Page 37 of Legal Seduction
Chapter Ten
THEDOORTOSimon’s office opened with such force that it slammed against the wall. He glanced up from his desk in surprise and was even more surprised when he saw Bette standing in the doorway. Her face was flushed, and her eyes were bright with anger.
He’d never seen her like this. But as he did with everything about her, he found it incredibly sexy. He was also concerned. “What’s wrong?”
Just as she’d slammed the door open, she slammed it closed and strode over to his desk. “I wondered why you hadn’t been interviewing replacements for me.”
Because he didn’t think anyone could replace her. He’d never known anyone like Bette Monroe before. Not that he knew her even now. She was an enigma to him. A puzzle he had yet to find all the pieces to, like the proof of whether or not she was the mole.
But even if she was, he wasn’t in any hurry to replace her. He would take his time screening applicants from now on and make sure he knew everything about them before he hired them. Because he’d had no idea when he’d hired Bette how passionate she was or what she wore beneath her conservative clothes.
If he’d known, he certainly wouldn’t have waited two years to seduce her.
“But I didn’t realize that you hadn’t even posted my job yet,” she continued.
He leaned back in his chair, the chair on which they’d just had sex. “For some reason I don’t think you’re really going to leave.”
“Yes, I am!” she exclaimed. “I will only be here four more days.”
A pang struck his heart. Was it possible? Would she really be gone that soon? That pang, that felt almost like panic, was only because he hadn’t discovered the evidence against her. That had to be what it was. It couldn’t be that he was upset that his time with her was coming to an end.
Two weeks was about the longest any of his relationships ever lasted anyway. Usually, he grew bored before then, or the woman started making demands that he wouldn’t ever be prepared to meet. Like a commitment...
And he always got too bored to commit to anyone. He’d always be looking for the next challenge, just like he had his entire life.
Maybe that was why he hadn’t grown bored with Bette yet. She challenged him like no one else ever had.
“You should already be interviewing candidates for your new assistant,” she told him.
“I thought you’d be devastated if I tried to replace you,” he said, “what with you falling in love with me and all.”
She’d never actually said that she loved him, but she’d claimed that she was falling for him. But every time she’d told him that, she’d issued the statement like it was a threat.
And she’d had that little glimmer of mischief in her eyes that had told him she was up to something. Except for that last time, just moments ago when she laid her head on his chest...
Then she had seemed almost sincere. But maybe she’d just gotten better at the lie. Like his father used to say, a lie well told and stuck to was just as good as the truth.
Her face flushed now with embarrassment. And he knew that, just as he’d suspected, she’d been lying to him.
“What?” He arched a brow. “You’re not in love with me?”
She didn’t say anything. She just sighed. “I guess I might as well come clean with you now.”
“What?” he repeated, and this time he was astounded. “You’re going to tell me the truth?”
Would it be this easy? While she hadn’t fallen in love with him, maybe she’d enjoyed their time together enough that she was feeling guilty over her betrayal.
“Please, Bette,” he implored her. “Be honest with me.”
Her face flushed a darker shade of red and she wouldn’t meet his gaze. “You’re going to get mad at me.”
And his heart plummeted in his chest. She was the mole. While he should be relieved to know his suspicions were right, he was disappointed. Hell, he was more than disappointed.
He was devastated. For the first time in his life, he had actually wanted to be wrong.
Not that he’d gotten attached to her or anything. But at least he wouldn’t have been conned when he’d hired her, when he’d trusted her.
Apparently, that was not the case.
