His Dirty Bargain (Dirty Billionaires 3)

Because I texted you. Great. You’re one of those grumpy people who hate mornings until you’ve had your coffee.

Rolling my eyes, my thumbs fly over my phone.

Great, you’re one of those morning people that literally no one likes. It’s none of your business but I had a late night. I only got about five hours of sleep, no one is happy with only five hours of sleep.

His response comes fast.

If you aren’t going to meet your commitment to me because you couldn’t put down the book you were reading, it is my business. Don’t think I don’t know you stay up all night reading. Bethany told me.

He really never forgets anything. Man, that is going to be a problem, because I forget everything except when something pisses me off.

Didn’t Bethany also tell you I always meet my commitments even when I’m dealing with insufferable jackasses? How do you think I lasted so long with your brothers?

I need mental help because I’m disappointed when no response comes through. Just as I toss my phone on the counter, it pings.

Bethany told me many things. I’ve also learned a lot myself. As much as you say you hate bossy men, all the others bore the fuck out of you. I take my coffee with one spoonful of sugar and a small splash of cream.

He’s not even here and I’m blushing.

Maybe. The same way you don’t like agreeable women as much as you thought you did. I take my coffee with two sugars and two big splashes of cream.

I’ve almost given up when he responds.

I sleep naked.

Lord, I blush like an idiot at the idea of Enzo naked.

I sleep in panties and a T-shirt like a civilized human being.

His response is much faster.

Civilized is boring. I’ve always thought Santa and the tooth fairy were stupid. My father never did the tooth fairy thing. He just took the teeth and saved them in our baby books. My favorite food is lasagna.

I remember Dante mentioning his father as the primary parent, his mother too busy with affairs to be present in her children’s life, which made it even harder to reconcile their love for their father with the person who killed their mother, then himself.

I never had a baby book. My mother never did the tooth fairy, Santa wasn’t an option because when we were in the shelter there was no such thing as Santa. My favorite food is cacio e pepe, it was the first meal Nonna made me when we got to her home in Milan.

My stomach sinks when no reply comes through. As I push away from the counter my phone pings.

Walking into a meeting. My favorite color is gray.

His answer leaves me with a smile and hope that we could maybe get this right.

I make it to the house more than ten minutes late, traffic was a nightmare. The pool guy, Garrett, is understanding. He actually got here almost thirty minutes ago so he could take the time to assess the space and Enzo’s demands. A heated pool available for use year-round. He asks me if Enzo wants it lit. I tell him every upgrade available, consider it something Enzo wants. Garrett stakes out the sizes of thirty-six, thirty-eight, forty, and forty-two feet. I’m surprised by Garrett saying it should only take two weeks to install, then he explains they’ll be using a prefabricated fiberglass shell. He promises he’ll have the estimates before noon. The one thing I’m concerned about is the backhoe getting into the backyard to dig. I ask if there is any other way.

“Sure, but it will cost more.”

“That’s fine. I don’t want to tear out the fence set in concrete.” I thought I would struggle more with all the money I’m willing to spend on the remodel. Then again, it’s Enzo’s money, and his demands for forgetting cost over value makes sense.

“Not a problem. Here’s my card, call me if you have any questions. I look forward to hearing from you.” His smile is a little too wide. Interesting, he has a dimple in his left cheek just like Enzo. All I can think is he needs to shave.

I don’t return his smile. Taking the card, I nod. “I’ll talk to Enzo and email you back. Have a good day.”

Without another word, I go into the house to talk to Ray.

“Bad news, they pushed us back to Wednesday for inspection on the half bathroom, so I can’t close anything up until then. It gives you time to get over and pick out a sink and toilet.”

“I’ll go over to Finishing Touches from here before I go into work.”