Page 51 of Beneath the Light of the Moon
Glancing over her shoulder, the act of taking her eyes off him hopefully giving him false hope of her faux comfortability, she said, “Worked hard for this office. How does it compare to the one in your tall tower over at Romanov Real Estate?”
“It’s close.” His grin widened as he ran a hand through his short, blond hair.
“Guess real estate pays well.”
“It has its pros.”
“Like picking up female clients?”
Levi’s smile might’ve reached his eyes, but there was something weird about it. She knew he was playing with her, watching her reactions and cataloging everything. There wasn’t much to notice, most of it hidden behind the facade shewantedhim to see, but it annoyed her all the same.
Is he going to report back to Mikko? Or does he have his own motives?
Men had a habit of trying to thaw her exterior, claiming she needed to “smile more,” but the only connection she craved was the wicked promise of retribution. Levi would do well to learn that quickly.
“I swear this is the first time I’ve done this,” he answered.
“Of course, it’s rude of me to assume. It’s as they say, ‘innocent until proven guilty.’”
“Innocent isn’t the word I’d use, but…” he trailed off, his words painful to hear.
“And there’splentyI’d use, but we’ll start with ‘I still have thirty minutes left of work.’”
He leaned forward, setting the flowers down on her desk. Their scent was pungent and made her head spin. Unaware of her internal battle, Levi picked up a stray pen off her desk before twirling it between his fingers. “Do you really have to stay?”
“Yes,” she said dryly.
Anika knew she was being rude, but she wanted to let him stew in his own misery for a moment. She never claimed to be agoodperson. All her life, she’d considered niceties as subjective, especially when it came to those involved with Romanov Real Estate.
Turning her attention back to her computer, she resumed her last few tasks of the day. There were emails awaiting her response, ones she wanted to get out before going on thisdate.
“Have you given any other properties some thought?” he asked, unable to not be the center of her attention.
“No, I’ve put that endeavor on hold since my day job has picked up.” Her voice was cordial, but there was underlying sarcasm. The man before her missed it. While she usually knew how to read people, their true colors showing no matter how much they tried to shield them, Levi didn’t have the same ability.
Plucking one of the snapdragons free from the bouquet, Levi leaned over her desk. His height invaded her personal space, but she forced herself to sit still. Gently, he tucked the petals behind Anika’s ear. Frozen and unable to process this man’s audacity, she sat there with a painful smile on her face.
Of course it had to be the fucking snapdragon too,she thought.
Her instincts were screaming, encouraging her to smack his hand away, but she refrained. Anika’s game was with Mikko; Levi was a stepping stone to get there. She’d known what she’d signed up forwhen she agreed to his stupid dinner.
“That’s a shame, I was looking forward to celebrating a sale with you.” Annoyance flared in her gut.
“Never say never,” she muttered as she continued to type. Louder she said, “Besides, I wouldn’t want to look at too many properties at once and overwhelm you.
“It takes a lot to overwhelm me, I can assure you.”
Anika made a mental note to check his background, mind suddenly curious to know who hetrulywas.
Why does he work for Romanov Real Estate? What does he hope to gain with me? And why is he so damn insufferable?
The last one felt rhetorical.
Flicking her gaze over to him, reminding herself to play along, she teased. “Good to know.”Ugh.“Do you always talk this much?” Her honeyed voice softened the underlying edge of her question. Again, Levi missed it.
Levi’s laugh was an unexpected reaction; Anika’s sharp edges usually resulted in others being short with her, not this.
“Are you always this reserved?” he countered playfully.
