“And I’m never too busy to meet someone new. Besides, there has to be a reason for meeting you. I’m sure it was no accident.”
“Perhaps fate?”
“Perhaps.” He took a deep breath and then let it out slowly. “Listen, I’ve had time to reconsider your offer. I’m interested.”
She took a deep breath as she composed herself. He was interested? Shit! After everything Gina told her, she thought it was best not to get involved. No matter how hot he might look with his shirt off.
“You are?”
“Yes, very.”
Heart racing, she raised her gaze and couldn’t help but notice his white teeth, perfect smile, sparkling eyes, his jaw dusted with light stubble, and chiseled features like a Greek god.
That toned chest straining the buttons of his dress shirt.
Those shoulders.
Those arms.
All those muscles.
Paige imagined moving her hands inside his suit jacket and...
He’s your fucking boss! Stop it!
She had to admit, though, it was tempting as hell. He was her boss. A billionaire. A CEO. He was sexy. And she would love to see those tats underneath that dress shirt he was wearing! He drove a Harley. And he had muscles that never seemed to end. She imagined being tangled up in his sheets, with him kissing the hell out of her.
It wasn’t wise to hop into a playboy’s bed, even if it was for pretend. Because there would be no way she could resist him. And then she could join all the others who had their hearts broken by him. Sure the money was beyond fantastic, but it would create too many problems for the next year. He wouldn’t be serious about her. She would be the joke of the office. Labeled a golddigger. She couldn’t handle a year of gossip behind her back. It just wasn’t worth it in the long run. She would just be polite and tell him that she couldn’t do it. She should’ve just kept her mouth shut in the first place and not said anything. But she couldn’t take it all back. Just be sweet and polite and straight to the point.
“I’m so sorry. But the offer is off the table now. I decided there’s enough drama in my life without begging you to let me help you. You’re a wonderful, handsome man. And I’m sure there will be lots of offers. Thanks anyway, though.”
He stared at her, dumbfounded for a moment.
Luke could not remember being turned down by a single female in the last two decades. Every woman he’d even looked at twice had fallen at his feet. Not to mention the women he never even bothered with—the ones who pursued him because of his looks or his money or his influence. There had been no shortage of admirers. Now, a secretary turned him down flat. She obviously didn’t realize who she was dealing with.
“You don’t seem to understand what I’m offering you. A million dollars for twelve months’ work.”
“I’m not Julia Roberts looking for a John.”
“By work, I mean a platonic arrangement in which you make public appearances as my fiancée, and then wife, engender the image of a happily married and settled couple, and then quietly divorce. The return on investment of time is excellent.”
“I understand that. But it wouldn’t look good for your image. You need a Victoria’s Secret model. Not a lowly secretary. Thanks anyway.”
She returned to her work as he stood there in shock. There was no way he was going to be dismissed and give up. Just as he wasn’t a man who ever heard the word no, he likewise wasn’t a man who gave up easily.
Chapter 5
OKAY, SO HE WAS DREAMY. Paige used the word ‘dreamy’ to describe him. If she were fifteen, she’d want his photo printed on her pillowcase. She was completely silly over his handsomeness, his whole alpha-male, commanding vibe. He had the charisma to lead armies into a lost cause, even when he was being kind of douchey.
That didn’t mean marrying him was a good idea, though. In fact, that made marrying him the absolute worst idea. Anyone who’s ever seen one of those TV movies where someone has to pretend to be engaged to get a promotion knows that the story is supposed to end with a kiss under the mistletoe.
Luke Conners might be many things—rich, powerful, formidable. He was not, however, the kiss under the mistletoe type. She could tell that in about the first four seconds. So, any kind of marriage-of-convenience scenario is usually contrived as a set-up for romance in movies. In real life, it’s probably more awkward and uncomfortable. Like, his big persuasive argument was that she’d get an excellent return on her time investmen
t. If that doesn’t scream carry-her-over-the-threshold, she wasn’t sure what did.
He didn’t exactly make it seem like twelve months of rose petals and bliss, that was for certain. She had enough drama of the real variety, the sister who couldn’t afford medical treatment sort. She didn’t need to manufacture a soap opera for her own amusement. Paxtyn needed all her attention right now, so she couldn’t afford to split her focus and go chasing after a too-hot, too-aloof CEO.
Paige didn’t even mention Luke’s proposal. She wasn’t about to tell Gina that she’d offered to marry their boss, THE boss of the entire company. Gina would tell her she was crazy. Or else she’d tell her she was crazy for taking the deal off the table.