Page 23 of Ms. Fortune

“I did not know that about you, no. I guess I should have done a more thorough background check.”

She laughs but stops just as quickly, giving me a dirty look. And not the good kind of dirty.

“You ran a background check on me?”

Shit. I’ve stepped into it again. I can’t win. And I really can’t seem to say the right thing around her. Ever.

I shrug as though it’s not a big deal. “Sure. If I’m going to spend any time with anyone, at least a cursory check is done, so one was completed for almost everyone attending the funeral.” It’s not a lie. One was completed. I just skimmed over the fact that I had one performed before that too.

She still looks a little upset at this, so I try to lighten the mood.

“Why? Is there something we missed I should worry about? The stripping job, maybe?”

God-damn. The blush deepens but then morphs into anger, her entire body tensing and her expression turning to steel. The Ice Queen is back in full force.

Chapter 16

SEIZE THE POWER

NORMANDY

My anxiety since meeting this man has been at red flag levels, but there is still this unreasonable pull toward him that is driving me crazy. Sometimes, when Brandon speaks, I don’t know whether to laugh or scream. Or, in some cases, kiss him. Like right now, I would like to do all three, but my anger is winning out. This situation isn’t funny. Nothing has been the least bit amusing since I met him.

“Brandon, I don’t think you understand the gravity of what is happening. What has happened to me due to one dinner with you. What you’ve done to my life in a matter of minutes. And I don’t think it’s fixable. It won’t ever go back to how it was. This will now follow me for the rest of my life. Whatever the hell this is.” Angry tears are threatening, and I need to shift my eyes away from him to gather myself.

“Let’s go grab some breakfast and talk this out.”

I turn back to him, and he’s smiling at me, his stupid dimples on display and his eyes full of compassion. Again, I’m not sure which of the insane emotions flowing through me in this instant makes the most sense because none of them do.

“Did you not hear what I just said?” I can’t believe that is his response. Does he honestly think going for breakfast is going to solve anything? “Did you not see the mob of paparazzi at the gate? Do you hear the business phones ringing in here? Do you see anyone working?”

“I saw Wayne….”

“Besides Wayne. He came with the building and never left.”

His eyes widen in amusement, and he laughs. “Really?”

“That’s what my dad always said. I don’t know.” He’s starting to derail me and distract me from my anger. Damn him.

“C’mon. Breakfast.” He holds a hand out to me with a grin. “I’ll even treat.”

That makes my mouth twitch, the idea of a billionaire offering to pay for breakfast, but I keep myself from laughing. I narrow my eyes at him, still unsure how I feel about this. “You’ll need to convince me better than that. Other than you’ll scrape your pockets and pay.”

He folds his arms and rubs his chin, pretending to look pensive as he considers his answer.

“Convince you, huh? Let’s see. First, there’s the obvious; you get to spend time with me.” He checks my reaction and, seeing I’m not impressed, continues. “Okay, interesting. That’s a first, but I’m up to the challenge. What else? Well, you yourself admitted that things can’t go back to how they were, so perhaps instead of dwelling on that, we should talk about what you can do from here on out. Believe it or not, this isn’t my first rodeo in this arena, and I might be able to help.”

The words sound like those I should be offended by or that I’ve been condescended to, but his delivery wasn’t that way at all. Instead, it appears that he genuinely cares and he thinks he can help. I can only hesitate, though. The last 24 hours have done a number on my decision-making, causing me to doubt every single thought in my head. I hate it.

“Normandy, I got you into this. At least let me try to help get you through it if I can.” He pushes off the desk and again holds a hand out to me. “Tell you what, I’ll count this as one of our two dates to sweeten the deal. Final offer.”

“Oh, really? Do you think our agreement is still valid? I thought I canceled that.”

“I didn’t accept. And sorry, no refunds, exchanges, or cancellations. You should have read the fine print.” He leans down and grabs my hand, pulling me out of my chair. “And remember, you’re free to trigger that kissing clause anytime.”

He hasn’t moved, and we stand so close to each other that I swear I can sense his body heat. I can’t breathe without taking in his spicy cologne, and he’s still holding my hand, now interlocking his fingers with mine. Being at eye level with his mouth since he’s so tall, I can’t avoid noticing his lips and wondering what they would taste like if I ever did kiss him. The thought of it twists something inside of me, but in the best of ways.

When I glance up and into his eyes, I’m surprised to see they’re actually hazel. They were darker the other day, but today they’re light and sparking with an intensity so compelling, it’s hard to look away, but I do. I have to somehow keep my composure around him. Just because I find him physically attractive, like any woman would, doesn’t mean I like him. Quite the opposite. His whole “that’s a first” about my needing to be convinced to go with him rubbed me the wrong way. He’s trying to sound confident, but it's coming off as arrogant to me.

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