Dirty Deal (Perfectly Matched 2)

Dealing with his attraction to Serena was definitely the lesser of two evils. She was the only weapon at his disposal right now, and he had to use it, no matter how much she wreaked havoc on his libido.

No matter how often she haunted his dreams.

No matter how her skirt crept up her slim thighs when she crossed one leg over the other.

“Sorry about that. I had no idea about your food allergy,” she said, and his attention snapped back to her face. Which, unfortunately, wasn’t that much less distracting than the rest of her.

He forced himself to focus on the road. “She’ll try to make something of it, but once she sees us out together more, she’s going to realize that it doesn’t matter if that part was a lie as long as she believes we’re really a couple. Just you being here helps, trust me. She’s aggressive when you’re around but not half as aggressive as she’d be if you weren’t.”

Serena let out a low whistle. “That’s…something. So what do you think is in the pie?”

He shrugged. “Apples would be my best guess.”

“And roofies, I think. All I’m saying is, I wouldn’t eat it if I were you.”

“I wasn’t planning on it,” he said. “She’s a terrible cook.”

Serena nodded and leaned forward to open the glove compartment, then snapped it closed again.

“What are you doing?” he asked.

“Checking. You don’t know how long she was out here. Who knows what she could have done. Though I think the more important question is where are you going?”

He’d cut through the parking lot and was heading west, the exact opposite direction of her house. “Throwing her off the scent, just in case. Trust me, you don’t want her at your doorstep.”

“Is this what your life is?”

“Why do you think the military seemed like a good option?” He glanced at her again as she chuckled. Bad decision.

Jesus, she was gorgeous.

He’d made every effort to downplay her looks since he’d seen her last. Had convinced himself that the moonlight and champagne had skewed his memory, making the fantasy of her way more compelling than she was in the flesh.

But he’d been wrong.

She was even more beautiful than he remembered, and that did nothing to help his resolve.

He turned his attention to the road again. Time to bite the bullet. “You know, as awful as it is to deal with the crazy, I’m kind of glad we ran into Piper today.”

“You’re glad? Seriously?”

“Hear me out. We’re probably okay, but there’s no question that the cherry pie was a close call. I fulfilled my part of the bargain today, and we need to put a little time into making your half equally successful.”

“I don’t think I follow,” she said as they turned down her street.

“I’m saying we’ve got to be convincing and we’re…not. You’re a stranger.”

“Well, not completely.”

He glanced toward her, and her cheeks went a pretty shade of pink as she huffed out a sigh.

“You know, sometimes I speak before I think. I’m just going to pretend that didn’t happen.”

If only he could. Instead, memories of her firm, round ass in his hands as he drove deep into her tight heat ran through his head.

He flipped on his blinker and pulled into the long driveway, saying a silent prayer for strength. “We’ve got to learn a little about each other. The reunion is next week, and then the wedding the week after that. So?” He let the question hang between them, gave it time to sink in. He had no doubt she’d see things his way. It was just a matter of getting her to agree to it.

“What did you have in mind?” she said at last.

“Well, we don’t have to get deep or anything. I don’t need to know about your pet turtle, Shelly, who meant the world to you or anything. Just stuff that could come up in a conversation. Let’s just keep it light. Are you free for dinner? I’ll pick up Chinese takeout. It’ll be casual.”

Again, she sank into silent contemplation, and he couldn’t say that he blamed her. She was in the same boat as him. Caught between a rock and a hot place. It didn’t take a genius to see the chemistry that bubbled whenever they were in the same room together, and they’d be putting themselves there on purpose. Tempting the fates.

But at the end of the day, he had two goals. To enjoy his leave without being stalked and, just maybe, to help Piper see that he was a lost cause so she could move on with her life. And Serena Elliott was going to help him do it.

He parked in front of the mansion, marveling again at the size of it. Even more imposing in daylight, the giant marble columns made it look like the entrance to Olympus.

“And you live here all alone?” He imagined crossing all that cavernous space, knowing he’d never run into anyone along the way, and felt a twinge of pity for her. Must be very lonely sometimes.

“Yep. Home sweet home.” She popped open the door and hopped out, but paused before closing it behind her.

“Come back at seven. With dinner. I’ll just have steamed vegetables. And order from the place on Henderson Drive. They’re the best.” Without another word, she clicked the door shut and strode up the steps.

He watched her go, mesmerized by her swaying hips and hoping against hope that she changed out of that skirt and into some sweatpants…or maybe a muumuu before he came back. He was resigned to getting the job done, but that didn’t mean he had to get blue balls doing it.

He flipped on the radio and rehashed the day. He’d squared up with Grace, and Piper hadn’t hobbled him. He’d been in close quarters with Serena and had managed to keep his hands to himself, if not his dirty thoughts. All in all, not the worst day he’d ever had.

He’d gotten halfway home before he realized he was whistling.

Chapter Six

She had three hours until seven o’clock, and Serena was determined to spend every minute of it working.

Grace was out there making love connections at a breakneck speed, but there was still a whole lot more to the business. Events to plan. Caterers to call for said events. Investors to woo.

So for the remainder of the afternoon, she rolled up her sleeves and dug in.

Or at least she tried to. Mostly, she stared at the phone in her home office, fingering the old-fashioned black cord her grandmother used to twirl while holding the receiver. She did get a few things done. Changed the ink in her printer, emptied the trash can, sent a couple emails.

By six thirty, she was pacing the oak floor, trying to think of details she could share with Bryan. Best to keep as close to the truth as possible, but it wasn’t like he had to know all the details of her childhood. It was more important for her to know about him. They ran in different circles, so the odds of them bumping into anyone she knew were low. The Serena he showed off to the world could be a total figment of their collective imaginations.

And still, for some odd and disconcerting reason, it felt wrong to out-and-out lie to him.

She picked up her now-cold coffee from the desk and took a long sip. The clock was winding down, and she had decisions to make. She sat her drink down a little too hard and some sloshed over the side onto the hem of her skirt.

Perfect. Now if she went and changed into something else, he’d think she’d gone and changed for their date.

Not date.

Meeting. Or whatever the hell it was.

With a sigh, she made her way to her bedroom and pulled off her skirt and blouse. Maybe she could wear something casual. Laid-back. That way he’d know the change wasn’t for his benefit.

But even if she wore the world’s least-flattering sweatshirt—even if she wore something with kittens hand-stitched into the fabric—it wouldn’t change the way his sensual gaze made her feel like she was wearing nothing at all.

She shivered and tossed her work clothes into the hamper. Sweats it was.

Just as she finished pulling on a faded pair of yoga pants and a T-shirt emblazoned with the Sale

m Harvest Dance logo, the ring of the doorbell echoed through the house. Rushing down the stairs, she pulled her locks into a ponytail and took a second to collect herself before she opened the door.

Cool. Collected. Unaffected.

Until she opened the door and her whole plan went to shit.