Jaci shook her head, planting her feet. “I don’t think it’s suitable. It’s too sexy... I mean, I couldn’t wear a bra with it!”
After looking at her chest, Ryan lifted his eyebrows. “You don’t need a bra.” He grabbed her hand and tugged it. “It’s the first time I’ve seen you remotely excited about a dress all morning. You’re trying it on. Let’s go.”
“The black sheath is more appropriate.”
“The black sheath is as boring as hell,” Ryan whipped back. “Jace, I’m tired and sick of this. Let’s just get this done, okay?”
Well, when he put it like that... He was still—despite their hot kisses and the attraction that they were trying, and failing, to ignore—the boss.
As an excuse, it worked for her.
* * *
In the end it was just the three of them who attended the ballet, and despite the fact that Ryan did his best to keep himself between her and Leroy, Jaci knew that he couldn’t be her buffer all evening and at some point she would have to deal with Leroy on her own. The time, Jaci thought as she sent Ryan’s departing back an anxious look, had come. It was intermission and Ryan, along with what seemed to be the rest of the audience, was making his way toward the bar for the twelve-year-old whiskey Leroy declared that he couldn’t, for one more minute, live without.
Keeping as much distance as she could from him in the crowded, overperfumed space, she fixed her eyes on Ryan’s tall frame, trying to keep her genial smile in place. It faltered when a busty redhead bumped her from behind and made her wobble on her too-high heels. She gritted her teeth when she felt Leroy’s clammy grip on her elbow. Ick. Jaci ruthlessly held back her shiver of distaste as she pulled her arm from his grasp. Strange that Ryan, with one look, could heat her up from the inside out, that he could have her shivering in anticipation from a brief scrape of his hand against any part of her, yet Leroy had exactly the opposite effect. They were two ends of the attraction spectrum and she was having a difficult time hiding her reactions, good and bad, to both of them.
One because there was a hundred million on the line; the other because she was, temporarily, done with men and a dalliance with Ryan—her boss!—would not be a smart move. She wouldn’t jeopardize her career for some hot sex...as wonderful as she knew that hot sex would be. Mmm, not that she’d ever had any hot sex, but a girl could dream. She’d had hurried sex and boring sex and blah sex but nothing that would melt her panties. Judging by the two kisses they’d shared, Ryan had a PhD in melting underwear.
Yep, just the thought had the thin cord of her thong warming; if she carried on with this train of thought she’d be a hot mess. Jaci straightened her back and mentally shook herself off. She was enough of a mess as it was. She was in New York to get a handle on her crazy life, to establish her career and to find herself. She was not supposed to be looking for ways to make it more complicated!
“I have a private investigator.”
Jaci tucked her clutch bag under her arm and linked her fingers together. Be polite, friendly but distant. She could make conversation for ten minutes or so; she wasn’t a complete social idiot. A private investigator? Why would he be telling her that? “Okay. Um...what do you use him for?”
“Background checks on business associates, employees,” Leroy explained. His eyes were flat and cold and Jaci felt the hair on her arms rise. “When I was considering whether to go into business with Jackson, I had him investigated.”
“He wouldn’t have found anything that might have given you second thoughts,” Jaci quickly replied.
Leroy cocked his head. “You seem very sure of that.”
“Ryan has an enormous amount of integrity. He says what he means and means what he says.” Jaci heard the heat in her voice and wished that she could dial it down. Leroy hadn’t said anything to warrant her defense of Ryan but something in his tone, in his body language, had her fists up and wanting to box. This was very unlike her. She wasn’t a fighter.
“Strange that you should be so sure of that since you’ve only known him for a few weeks,” Leroy replied, his words silky. Leroy ran a small, pale hand down the satin lapels of his suit in a rhythmic motion. Where was he going with this? Jaci, deciding that silence was a good option, just held his reptilian eyes.
“So tell me, Jacqueline, how involved can you be with Ryan after knowing him for just seventeen days?”
“I broke up with my ex six weeks before that and sometimes love—” she tried not to choke on the word “—happens in unexpected places and at unexpected times.” Jaci allowed herself a tiny, albeit cold, smile. “You really should hire better people, Leroy, because your PI’s skills are shoddy. I’ve known Ryan for over twelve years. He attended university with my brother, and he was a guest in my parents’ home. We’ve been in contact for far longer than two weeks.” Jaci tacked on the last lie with minimal effort.