Silence. She rubbed her temples, and closed her eyes for a moment. Marveling at the chance, he watched her gorgeous face, so sexy, even when it was vulnerable. Uncertain. His libido stirred, and he cleared his throat.
She opened her eyes and asked in a small voice, “What do you want from me?”
Your legs wrapped around my neck. He leaned on the edge of his desk. No. That wasn’t what he needed from her. “For now, the truth. Did you steal one million dollars from the company?”
She looked him straight in the eye. “No.”
“Did Matthew, to the best of your knowledge?”
“No.”
He stood, and straightened his shoulders. A quick glance behind her assured everyone still minded their own business. “Why were you snooping on my computer last Friday?”
She sighed. “Because we thought you might have done it. I’m sorry. I suck as a spy. Clearly.”
“We?” he asked, then cocked his head to one side.
Folding her arms across her chest, she worried her bottom lip. Was she nervous because she was telling him the truth or because she was feeding him more lies? “Matthew and I are good friends. I can’t go deep into it, but that’s how I started working here. We never slept together and never will.”
He popped his knuckles. “Why did he get you a job here?”
“Because he wanted a witness handy in case you slipped up. Someone on the inside.”
Jesus. There was no limit to Matthew’s paranoia. “And why would you agree to such a thing?”
“He helped me in the past. I’m not going to tell you more because that delves into my private life. Trust me though, he’s not a monster,” she said in a drawl sweeter than candy.
“Okay.”
“Now I have no option but to tell him you know that.”
He waved his hand in disagreement. “No. Don’t.”
She frowned. “Why wouldn’t I?”
“Because we can buy time, and find out who’s really stealing from the company.” And leave the pissing contest out of the way. Matthew would never accept his offer to help him find more about the ongoing theft. Instead of wasting precious time with failed family dynamics, he would act out. And fast.
“So you can look good instead of him?”
“So we can find out who’s behind all this. Listen, let’s face it, his mother is the CEO. Who do you think she will choose? Her flesh and blood. I know eventually Matthew won’t handle the pressure and I will take over. But for now, the main goal is to unveil the thief. That’s the responsible thing to do.”
She twisted her hands together. “This is getting complicated. I’m Catholic, you know? I don’t think they created a rosary long enough for the kind of lies I’ve been telling.”
He bit back a smile, and was about to respond, when a knock on the glass made him turn his head.
Janie, Toby’s assistant, stood in front of the glass door, holding a few files. He gestured for her to come in.
“I’m sorry to interrupt, but Toby asked me to personally deliver these files,” she said, laying them on his desk.
“Great. Thanks,” he said.
Janie nodded at him, then threw a glance at Elena. This was probably one of those non-verbal female cues.
“Do you think she heard anything?” he asked, after the assistant left.
“No.”
“We can’t take that risk. I still need to finish this conversation. Come to my place, tonight.”
