She met his gaze squarely. “Well, you’re a surprise, too.”
“Yeah? In what way?”
“I never would have thought you would have a room like this.”
He gave her a sardonic smile. “I should probably be insulted.”
She shook her head. “Not really. I guess it’s just the impression you give off.”
“Which is?”
“A man who only cares about the next deal.”
“That’s not far wrong.”
“No,” she said, “I’ve seen this room now. So I know there’s more to you than that.”
He frowned a little as if he didn’t enjoy her delving into his psyche, no matter how shallowly she went.
“Maybe this room is just for show,” he said.
“No, again,” she said and leaned out to run the tips of her fingers along the richly detailed leather spines of the closest books. “That table alongside the chair by the fire has a book on it. With a bookmark at the midpoint.”
He nodded thoughtfully. “Okay, good eye.”
“You can’t fool me now,” she told him. “Any man who can appreciate a room like this is more than he appears to be.”
“Don’t count on that,” he said softly. Then, shaking his head, he added, “You know, I always thought you were the shy, quiet type.”
“I’m surprised you thought about me at all.”
“Well, then, we’re both surprised tonight,” he said, and stood back to allow her to pass him into the hallway. “Should be an interesting month.”
“Or,” she muttered as she slipped past him, her shoulder brushing across his chest, “a train wreck.”
Four
“My bedroom and four guest rooms are upstairs,” he said, and waited a moment before adding, “Shall we continue the tour?”
“Oh, I think I’ve seen enough,” Mia assured him. Not only was she feeling uncomfortable about this whole thing, there was something else going on, as well. Some weird flashes of heat kept shooting through her and every time he touched her hand, she felt a buzz all the way down to her bones. No, seeing his bedroom probably wasn’t a good idea.
“Your call,” he said as he reached for her hand again. “But you should be familiar with the whole house. Be comfortable here. Learn your way around so you can convince anyone that you’re used to being here.”
“I don’t know that I’m that good an actress.”
Mia was really trying not to feel the heat between them, but his hand over hers was strong and warm and hard to ignore.
He was talking again, his deep voice seeming to echo off the high ceilings. “Good actress or not, you’re motivated to make this happen.”
“True,” she said, because why deny it? They both knew the only reason she was here with him right now was because he’d made her an offer impossible to refuse. Which, really, Mia told herself, she should always keep at the front of her mind.
Anytime she was tempted to think of Dave as charming or when he seemed to really like her…she had to remember that he was simply playing a role. Getting into the whole act of pretending to be crazy about her. That, and the fact that he was clearly a master manipulator.
“So does this house come with a map?”
“You’ll get used to it,” he said.
“Highly doubtful,” Mia countered as he led her toward the great room.
“You haven’t even seen the outside yet.”
“Why such a big house?” she asked. “I mean, you live here alone.” She looked around. The place was gorgeous but massive. “What’s the point of having so much room for one man?”
He stopped walking and studied her for a long moment. “Did you ask Alex the same question about his place?”
She laughed. “This is easily twice as big as Alex’s house.”
He gave her a quick grin filled with satisfaction. “It is, isn’t it?”
Were men always competing? she wondered idly. Were they always striving to keep one pace ahead of whoever they saw as their rival?
“So there is no point to this giant house.”
“It was the best,” he said simply. “I always get the best.”
Until now, Mia thought, wondering again why he’d chosen her for this subterfuge. Of course, maybe he didn’t know any other really desperate women. Another wave of depression swamped her but she pushed through it to keep her mind on what was happening.