Page 48 of The Temptation
“Simon,” I whispered, the sound of his name being carried away with the wind.
He stopped near the trunk and caught my hand, stopping me from approaching the passenger-side door. “Today has been a lot. Why don’t we put things on hold for a while with the whole telling-your-parents-the-truth thing? Your mom and dad have enough on their plate for now.”
“But what about us? There are things we need to talk about.”
“We’ll talk. Just not today.” He cocked his head to the side, smirking at me. “Besides, your mom was very adamant about your father attending the work cocktail party that’s been arranged. Do you really want to fuck that up for her?”
I closed my eyes and barely held back a groan of frustration. I’d dug this hole with my stupidity, and now so many people were going to pay the price.
A soft, warm pair of lips brushed my jaw, and I opened my eyes to find Simon smiling. “Let it go, Pierce. You saved my ass on Saturday night. Let me help you now. We’ll keep up the cute-couple facade until after they leave, and then we’ll talk. Your mom doesn’t need you creating more stress for her.”
He made it sound so simple and easy, but I knew it wasn’t. Someone was going to pay the price soon, and I didn’t want it to be Simon.
16
SIMON MILLER
I didn’t seePierce at all on Tuesday, but he sent a quick text confirming the time of the office mixer that I was to attend as his significant other. It seemed safe to assume that he hadn’t confessed to his parents the second my back was turned. But I knew my time was dwindling fast. Pierce’s parents weren’t going to stay in Cincinnati forever. They would return home, and Pierce wouldn’t need me as his fake boyfriend any longer. I had to come up with a way to lock his ass into a real relationship.
The company hired to handle the party had transformed the office into a glittering escape. Beautiful floral arrangements and trees that twinkled with white lights filled all the nooks and crannies. A string quartet played in a corner of the conference room, sending the soft music trickling out to fill every available space.
Pierce met me just past the reception area, looking as dapper as ever in his charcoal-gray suit and silver tie. He took my hand and started to lead me inside, but I placed a hand on his chest and stopped him.
“Hey, are you okay? You look tired,” I said, taking in the dark circles under his eyes.
A small smile rested on his lips, and he squeezed my hand. “I’ve gotten little sleep recently. After Mom’s scare, I’ve been trying to catch up on some work that has piled up. I’m sorry I didn’t call yesterday.”
“Understandable. How’s your mom?”
“Good. They released her from the hospital yesterday, and she’s resting.” He grunted a rough laugh. “She’s grumpy that Dad wouldn’t let her attend tonight.”
“There will be plenty of other parties for her.” I leaned closer and whispered, “You want me to come over tonight after the party? We can cuddle, eat cheese, and listen to your rain recording.”
A long, weary sigh escaped Pierce. “God, that sounds so fucking good.” As my hopes rose that he’d agree to it, he shook his head hard as if trying to free himself from the image. “Can’t. I’ve got an enormous pile of reading ahead of me tonight.”
“I can feed you cheese as you read.”
Pierce smirked and tugged me toward the office party. “This won’t be a late thing. There will be plenty of time for you to head out to grab drinks and pick up someone at a bar. That sounds like a far better night to me.”
Fuck. That.
Tedious nightclub scene or feeding cheese to the sexy man holding my hand? Gee, it’s so fucking hard to choose.
Usually, he put more effort into brushing me off. It had to be the fatigue, or that I’d finally worn his ass down. I liked to think it was the latter.
We walked together through the office space, past a row of offices with glass walls facing a small area filled with cubicles. Pierce murmured that this was where the paralegals and some of the junior lawyers sat. The office building itself was filled with old-fashioned exposed brick walls and dark wood, giving it a different feel from the usual rich, polished office buildings I’dseen. I’d visited Sebastian and Declan at Courtland Enterprises a couple of times for lunch, and that building was filled with glass, polished nickel, and marble, giving it an elegant but very sterile feel. Meanwhile, the Sutton law firm was warm and inviting.
The deeper we moved into the building, the bigger the offices became, along with more gleaming wood and leather seats. Here we were reaching the domain of senior partners. In one boardroom, the long table had been pushed against the wall and the chairs removed. A white tablecloth stretched over it, and food filled silver platters and chafing dishes.
“I thought you mentioned this was going to be little finger foods? Hors d’oeuvres?” I murmured.
Pierce’s smile returned, even brighter. “That was the plan, but Marie realized that since we were holding this directly after regular business hours, people were going to be hungry for dinner. It made sense to do something more substantial, so people wouldn’t be rushing out of here to get dinner.”
“I like Marie. You better be paying her what she’s worth, because she’s a gem.”
“I am. She’s helped keep me sane while setting up this branch of Sutton Law. Do you want to fix a plate now? Are you hungry?”
The food smelled and looked amazing. There was already a line forming as people filled their plates. It was all so tempting, but it was better to wait. “No, I’m good for now. You still have to introduce me to coworkers, and I need to say hi to your dad. I want to get that done before I get spinach stuck in my teeth or something dribbled on my tie.”
