“Oh, I own it.” A cheeky grin creased Mason’s face. “And it’s Armani.” His voice dropped to an intimate whisper. “Should I send you the bill for the popped buttons and the zipper you ripped? You know, because you couldn’t wait to get me naked.” His laughing eyes smoldered, and a throb of desire rippled through Jude, sending him into a panic.
“Shut up.” Jude yanked him to the corner of the room and pushed him against the wall. “I was drunk.”
They stood nose to nose, and Jude was acutely aware of Mason’s heat and his hard, muscular body so dangerously near. He waited for his heart to stop pounding, but it continued to race. Must have been all the coffee he drank at breakfast that made it hard for him to breathe. It couldn’t be Mason’s soft, full mouth so close to his, or the scent of his skin.
Mason leaned in and murmured in his ear, “I can get us a room if you want to continue this in private.”
Jude drew in a sharp breath as every nerve ending under his skin sizzled. What the fuck was wrong with him? Every time he saw Mason, his brain misfired.
“No. It was a mistake.”
Mason blinked. “God you’re rude. No need to call me a mistake. We had a good time. Let’s leave it at that.”
Relief poured through Jude, and realizing he was still holding Mason’s arm, he let go and took a step away. “I don’t intend for that to ever happen again. If you do come to work for me, it’s business only.”
“Fine with me. Plenty other fish in the sea.”
“How can you be so blasé about sex? Doesn’t it mean anything to you?”
“Does this mean I have the job? Did you talk to Warren?”
“I did.” Jude still couldn’t reconcile Warren’s praise for Mason’s work ethic with the careless man he knew. “He spoke very highly of you.”
“You sound surprised. I told you I’m a hard worker, incredibly organized, and willing to learn.”
That cocky grin Jude had always found annoying reemerged. Was he making a mistake? He opened his mouth, but Mason held up his hand.
“How about you give me a trial run? Until Doug comes home from the honeymoon. They’re away how long—three weeks? A month?”
“A month.”
“Perfect. That’s enough time for me to show off my superior administrative skills.”
“Or for me to find out it’s all smoke and mirrors.”
“If you’re coming in with the attitude that you want me to fail, what’s the point?” Mason’s smile faded, and his eyes darkened. “I handle my professional life like I do my personal one. No-holds-barred. I’m all in. That should satisfy you.”
He took a step forward, and Jude froze, curiously out of his element. Mason talking about satisfying him…was that a double entendre? He’d promised to keep it professional, yet that strange undercurrent remained between them. Jude could still taste Mason’s tongue in his mouth, and his body bore the marks of Mason’s eagerness as they’d rolled around the bed in Jude’s hotel room.
Shit. I need to stop thinking about it.
Jude took a corresponding step away from Mason. “It’s not about satisfying me. It’s about the clients and getting the job done and done well. I’m fine with a trial run.” Again in control, he lifted his chin and straightened his shoulders. “I’m going to the office now to set things up for you to come in tomorrow. You should be ready to work. Don’t think I’m going to go easy on you because you’re Doug’s brother.”
Mason’s eyes narrowed. “I’ll meet you at the office later so I can start early and be fully on board and ready to go tomorrow. And for the record, I don’t need anyone to go easy on me. I can take it as hard as it comes. You should know that. Especially after yesterday.”
“Cut that out,” Jude snapped, clenching his fists. This was the Mason he knew—obnoxious and always ready to push his buttons.
“What?” Mason’s wide-eyed innocence didn’t fool him.
Jude darted a swift glance to each side and lowered his voice. “All the innuendos about what happened between us.”
“I think it’s you who needs to get his mind out of the gutter,” Mason said with an aggravating smirk. “All I meant was, it was hard for me to get everything together for the wedding and having it go so smoothly, considering you made it so difficult for me to help.”
“No, I didn’t. Your ideas weren’t practical.”
Mason rolled his eyes at him. “Get over yourself, Jude. Ilana would’ve loved having fire-eaters at the reception.”
“It was a liability issue. What if something went wrong?”
