Page 20 of Trust

“Do you happen to know how sexy you are?”

“Don’t mess with me.”

He cocked his head to the side and studied her.

“You don’t.”

“Listen, I get that I’m not the type of woman you go for.”

Now, what the hell was she talking about? “Rubbish.”

Her cheeks were pink, and she was looking everywhere but at him. “Listen, let’s not talk about this.”

“No, wewilltalk about it, because what you said is rubbish.”

The sigh she released told him she wasn’t happy. He didn’t care. He opened his mouth to demand an answer. Before he could, though, she answered him.

“You date tall blondes with more attributes than I have. You have a type.”

That was what the studio had wanted to see him with. Also, his former publicity manager. She had been adamant that he date what she said was the vision of American beauty.

“Can I let you in on a secret?”

“Sure,” she said as she forked up another piece of cake. Thankfully, she didn’t moan this time.

“Most of those women were contracted dates.”

She frowned. “They were supermodels. And there was that one pop star.”

Who had been lovely, but she hadn’t really wanted to date him any more than he had wanted to date her.

“Yes. Supermodels who wanted to be seen.”

“Are you trying to tell me those women only dated you because they were paid?”

He snorted. “No. I mean…look at me. I am a Wulf.”

Her mouth twitched. “And you’re so modest.”

“Mutually beneficial.”

“Oh, hmm, so you never slept with them?”

“Not all of them.” And in the last six months, he’d had one brief encounter with a supermodel that had told him he couldn’t ignore his feelings for Lani any longer. “You want to tell me why you and Rick broke up?”

“Please quit pretending you didn’t hear my conversation with Rick.”

He hadn’t heard all of it, but he had heard enough to want to beat the shit out of the bloke. Though, Lani being free made his mission to win her heart easier.

“Fair enough. I didn’t hear everything, but what I want to know is why your brother seems to not realize you broke up?”

She shrugged, but she didn’t look at him. Instead, she stared at her plate as if it were the most interesting thing in the world. He reached out, slipped his finger beneath her chin, and gently urged her to look at him. It was always dangerous touching her, even with the tip of his finger, but he was done playing it safe with Lani. When he saw the tears, worry set in. Was she still in love with Rick?

“We broke up about six months ago, but my brother has not noticed.”

He blinked. “A man who works for the company—is the face of your company—was your boyfriend for what—a year?” He waited for her nod. “Seriously?”

“I kept attending functions without him, but Ben never seemed to notice. At first, I chalked it up to his wedding preparations, but when he had his engagement party, and Rick wasn’t with me, Ben didn’t seem to notice.”

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