Page 28 of Just a Little Tempted

I took a deep breath, forcing down my irritation. I’d made this bed. Now I had to lie in it.

“I know this situation is… complicated,” Simon continued, and there was a resignation in his tone that hadn’t been there before, an acceptance that we were in this together now, whether he liked it or not. “But I’m more determined than ever to secure Alexander’s partnership.”

“Because of Chuck?” I questioned.

One corner of Simon’s mouth curved upward in a rueful half-smile. “You picked up on that, did you?”

“I’m pretty sure everyone at the table felt the hostility between you two.” I tilted my head, studying him. “I don’t know what happened with your business, but I’d have to be blind not to see you’re carrying a serious grudge.”

Simon let out a long exhale, tipping his head back to look up at the stars scattered across the dark sky. “Yeah.” When he looked at me again, there was a hint of self-deprecating humor in his expression. “I’m a hell of a businessman, but apparently my real talent is holding grudges.”

A small laugh escaped me, but it didn’t break the tension humming between us. Even as Simon made light of the situation, the easy rhythm of our usual interactions was absent. Tonight had changed something.

“The point is,” he said, his green eyes locking onto mine with renewed intensity, “we’ll have to keep up appearances until Alexander signs a contract with us and tells Chuck to go to hell.”

“I know.”

I kept my voice carefully neutral, even as my thoughts spiraled. My impulsive lie had snowballed into something far bigger than I’d anticipated. The idea of playing the role of Simon’s loving girlfriend was both dreadful and enticing—and still, absolutely, a terrible idea.

“Alexander mentioned visiting the resort in two weeks,” Simon said, taking a small step closer to me. The movement was subtle, but suddenly he was near enough that I had to tilt myhead back to meet his eyes. His face was half in shadow from the overhead light, all sharp angles and unreadable expression. “In the meantime, we should get comfortable being together outside the office. Go out in public. Now that we’re committed to this charade, we need to make it convincing.”

I nodded, not trusting my voice.

My fingers finally closed around my keys, and I pulled them from my purse with a rush of relief. I needed to leave. Needed space to process everything—the kiss, the fake relationship, the confusing tangle of feelings I had no business having for my boss.

Simon watched me press the button on my key fob, then stepped past me to open my door before I could reach for the handle. The gentlemanly gesture caught me off guard, and I slid into my seat without quite meeting his eyes.

He started to close the door, then stopped. When I looked up, he was watching me with an expression I couldn’t decipher.

“I want to apologize,” he said quietly. “For kissing you like that. Without warning, without asking.” He paused, his jaw tightening. “I shouldn’t have done it. I’m sorry, Raina.”

Hearing my name in that low, rough voice made everything worse. My throat tightened, and I couldn’t form a response.

He’s sorry.Sorry for the best kiss I’d had in years. Sorry for the moment that had set my entire body on fire and made me forget every reason I was supposed to keep my distance.Great.

Simon seemed to take my silence as acceptance. He gave me a short nod, then closed the door with a soft click.

I sat there for a long moment, watching him walk toward his own car, my lips still tingling and my heart aching with something I refused to name.

Then I started my engine and drove away, trying very hard not to think about how thoroughly I’d just complicated my life.

CHAPTER TWELVE

Simon

Monday morning arrivedwith the kind of headache that felt like pressurized fog sitting just behind my eyes. I knew it was from lack of sleep, so even though Raina would make coffee when she arrived, I’d stopped at a café on my way in and downed a double shot of espresso.

The pain in my skull hadn’t budged, but now my heart was pounding like I’d touched a live wire—partly from the caffeine, partly from the anticipation of seeing her again.

I sharpened my focus on my computer screen, scrolling through emails that had accumulated over the weekend. The office was still quiet, Raina not yet having arrived, and I already knew this was going to be a long day.

My exhaustion was the result of two sleepless nights spent staring at the ceiling of my bedroom, thoughts churning in restless circles. I couldn’t stop replaying everything that had happened at the gala—the tension with Chuck, Alexander’s invitation, and most of all, the ruse Raina had invented.

This fake relationship.

The implications kept unspooling in my mind, one after another. To make this convincing, we’d have to touch in public. Hold hands. Stand close. Act like two people who couldn’t get enough of each other. Alexander was perceptive; he’d see through anything half-hearted. If we were going to sell this, we’d need to be intimate. Convincing.Real.

And then there was the kiss.