by Kwan, Coleen
He gazed after her, at her slim shoulders and straight back, at her smooth hair bouncing against her shirt, at the narrow skirt compressing around her ass as she walked away as quickly as possible. God, she had a great ass...
“Wait.” He didn’t know where that came from, but suddenly he found himself hurrying after her. “Wait a minute.”
As she paused, she made a show of checking the time on her phone. His stomach clenched. Yeah, she was enjoying having him on a string.
“Well?” One arched eyebrow rose. “You’ll take Kevin back?”
He wasn’t going to concede everything to Jacinta at once. Make her work for it, if she wanted a job for her brother that badly. “Only if you find this security leak within the next three weeks.”
“Three weeks? That’s not much time.”
Three weeks was all he had before his meeting with the bank. “Too difficult for you?” he drawled, folding his arms.
“I didn’t say that.” She raised her chin, proud, watchful. “But I can’t guarantee I’ll deliver.”
“Which is why you should take the money instead.”
“No,” she replied without hesitation. Damn, this woman was single-minded. “If I agree to help you, then in the meantime you have to at least give Kevin a job interview.”
“Even if there’s no job for him in the end?”
“Do you know how depressing it is to apply for hundreds of jobs and only get one or two nibbles? An interview will at least give him some hope, especially if it’s not too harsh.”
Lex shrugged. “Okay, sure. I’ll set something up.”
“And you’d better have a genuine job lined up because I’m going to try my damndest to find this leak of yours.”
He cocked a wry smile at her. “Now isn’t it nice when we’re working together instead of fighting?”
“I wouldn’t go that far.” Her eyes glimmered. “But we have a deal.”
He hadn’t realized what a tough negotiator she could be, but he’d got her agreement, and that was all that mattered. She would be his fake girlfriend.
But there was nothing fake about the thrill of excitement than ran down his spine at the thought of having her back.
…
“Before we go any further, we need to take care of a few formalities,” Lex said to Jacinta as they sat in a café near the museum. “I just need you to sign this.” He pulled out a folded piece of paper from his jacket and laid it on the table between them.
“What is it?”
“A confidentiality agreement. It’s a standard form.”
Jacinta kept her hands firmly in her lap. “I thought you said you trusted me.”
“It’s not that. It’s just that I’m about to discuss some really personal details with you, and I would hate for any of it to get into the wrong hands.”
“So...you don’t trust me.”
He sighed, and she sensed his impatience building. “Why is everything such a struggle with you?”
“I don’t know, Lex. Maybe it’s because you don’t trust me.”
He lowered his head, eyes drilling into her. “It protects you, too, you know.”
“What do I have to hide?”
“Do you really want Kevin to find out what lengths you’re going to just to get him a job interview? Pretending to be the girlfriend of a man you described as a mean, vindictive bastard?”
Beneath the table she squeezed her shaking hands between her knees. “Okay, have it your way.” After all the passion and rage they’d shared, a confidentiality agreement felt cold and clinical and just plain wrong, but she signed it anyway.
Their coffees arrived. When the waiter had left, Lex leaned his elbows on the table. “I’ll give you a brief rundown of my problem. Someone inside the company has been leaking information to the media and our competitors. I don’t know exactly how long it’s been happening, but I suspect it’s been going on for at least five or six months.”
“What kind of information?”
“It varies. Some of the stuff leaked to the media is financial—memos about our refinancing issues.”
She almost choked on her coffee. “You’re having problems refinancing?”
“Not problems, no. Issues. I’m figuring them out, but it doesn’t help to have out-of-context rumors circulating.”
Lex had only been the CEO of Jubilee Holdings for about eighteen months, since the unexpected death of his father from a heart attack. The company was a lumbering behemoth, with interests in hotels, resorts, and property management. They made millions of dollars in profit, and it seemed unthinkable that they would have refinancing issues. Plus, she knew Lex was a shrewd businessman. He hadn’t been promoted just because of his name; he’d been working in the company for years and proven himself by turning around several underperforming divisions. For someone as competent as him, it must be aggravating to have these false suggestions circulating. From his guarded expression, though, she sensed he wasn’t telling her the full story.
She cleared her throat. “And your competitors? Are they getting the same information?”
“No, it’s worse.” He frowned as he stirred his coffee. “They’re getting information about our bids for certain management projects and using it to underbid us. We’ve lost a number of big contracts already. I’m talking about millions of dollars of lost revenue here.”
No wonder he looked on edge. His shoulders were bunched tight, and the tendons in his neck stood out like steel cables. He needed to relax. He needed someone to massage his shoulders and neck, to ease out all the kinks. She’d done that for him in the past. She’d stroked and squeezed and turned him on until he’d forgotten all his problems for a while...
She pulled herself upright. Heck, she wasn’t feeling sorry for Lex, was she? He was strong and hardy, he could take the pressure.
“I’m assuming you’ve done all the usual checks, got your IT security guys to run the normal scans?”
“Yep. I’ve even had my offices and all the conference rooms checked for listening devices. Nothing suspicious so far. This mole isn’t high tech, I’m beginning to think.”
As he studied the dark depths of his espresso, a premonition came over her. “You have a suspect in mind.”
In answer, he shifted in his seat and tapped his spoon against his cup.
“Well?” she prompted.
He pushed aside his coffee to lace his fingers together on the tabletop, his thumbs pressing against each other. “You’ve never met my family, have you?”
“You know I haven’t.” In the four months they’d been together, she couldn’t remember Lex ever mentioning the other Rochesters. At the time, she hadn’t really noticed, but now it did seem odd, considering he was the head of the family company. “I know you have relatives who work at Jubilee too.”
Lex nodded. “There’s my uncle Ralph. He was our vice president in charge of branding, but now he spends most of his time running the Rochester Foundation. Kirk, his son, is in our finance division. We’re the same age. He’s had some personal problems in the last couple of years. His wife was sick for a while. She died six months ago.”
“Oh, I’m sorry,” she replied, uncertain how to react when Lex remained so impassive.
“He came back to work a couple of months ago. He has a younger sister, Holly, who also works at Jubilee.”
Jacinta waited for him to tell her more, but he fell silent. “Do they know anything about your security leaks?” she asked.
He drummed his fingers on the tabletop, a deep crease between his eyes. “I think one of them is the security leak.”
For a second or two she was speechless. “Your own family? That’s impossible.”
“Is it?” The ice in his eyes chilled her.
“Why would any of them want to jeopardize the company? They all own shares, don’t they?”
“Yes. Together with my grandmother’s shares, the family owns a controlling stake in Jubilee Holdings.”
“So why would any of them w
ant to kill the goose that lays the golden eggs?”
His mouth flattened. “Personal reasons.”
She waited for him to elaborate, but instead he drained his coffee cup, his face flinty. With a pang she realized she barely knew Lex. This man had turned her life upside down. For four months he’d bewitched her, consumed her every thought, thrown all her priorities out the window. She’d shared the most physical intimacies with him, but she’d mistaken sexual familiarity for an emotional connection. He’d never talked to her about his family, never hinted at any tension.
The fact that he’d hidden so much from her triggered a fresh rush of hurt. He’d never confided in her because he hadn’t trusted her, hadn’t viewed their relationship as all that intimate or special. Well, she wouldn’t beg him to open up to her.
“You must have more than just personal reasons to suspect them of sabotage,” Jacinta said.
He set down his coffee cup with a thud. “Hell, of course I don’t want to suspect my own family, but I don’t seem to have any other choice. The last two leaks could only have come from one of them because they happened right after private meetings where only family members were present. We were discussing a possible sell-off, and those discussions were leaked. The meeting room we used had been scanned for listening devices, and we don’t allow cell phones in our meetings. The only way that info got out was through someone who was there—me, Kirk, Holly, Ralph.”
“Maybe one of them did leak the information, but only by accident. They could have mentioned it to their partner or to a friend in passing. It doesn’t have to be deliberate.”
“This was no accident. A day after the meeting, I had a reporter asking me about the sell-off. Everyone in the family knows all our meetings are confidential. And besides, none of us have partners of any kind.”
Jacinta let out a long breath, then took a sip of coffee to give her time to order her milling thoughts. “And how do you think I could help you? Seems like you’ve already narrowed down the suspects. Why don’t you simply confront them?”
“I can’t do that.”
“You? I don’t believe it. You thrive on confrontation.”
“This is different.” He studied the tabletop. “This is...my family. Things between us are tricky enough as it is.” For a second he seemed uncertain, vulnerable even. “I don’t want to stir up a hornet’s nest by coming out with my suspicions. They’d think I didn’t trust them.”
“But you don’t trust them.”
He sighed, still looking troubled. “I want to get my facts straight before I act. That’s where you come in. My IT security guys have already put in software to monitor the entire company’s network traffic. I have access to those logs. I want you to look at all the activity my relatives have been generating and analyze it for me, see if you can spot anything out of the ordinary. But no one can suspect what you’re doing. You can work from my home or my office any time of the day, but to the outside world, you’re just my girlfriend visiting or staying over at my place.”
“And I only have three weeks to catch this person. Why three weeks?”
His face became guarded. “I have my reasons.”
She toyed with a sugar packet as she wondered what she was letting herself in for, pretending to be Lex’s girlfriend. What would it do to her to be with him, receiving his attentions, knowing it was nothing but a sham? And what if she forgot herself and they ended up in bed again? Wouldn’t that hurt her twice over, knowing it meant nothing, yet unable to stop herself?
“Are you sure it’ll be so easy to fool people into thinking we’re back together?” she asked.
“Why not?” He shrugged his wide shoulders. “We’ll go to a few public engagements, some big, high-profile parties. We’ll be seen together as a couple, and people will assume we’ve reconciled. It’s not unusual.”
“Yeah but we’ll have to...you know, play a role.”
He lifted his eyebrows. “You don’t have to sleep with me...” His cool eyes glinted. “...if you don’t want.”
Her chest grew hot. “I wasn’t even considering that.”
Liar, his eyes flashed.
“You weren’t?”
Forcing herself to hold his gaze, she caught the amusement and heat mingling in his blue depths. Her breath shortened. Just one loaded stare from him was enough to send her into meltdown. The packet tore between her fingers and sugar spilled out.
“Don’t get any ideas, buster. I have standards. I could never sleep with a man I despised.” Yeah, keep telling yourself that and maybe it’ll hold true.
“Keep your panties on,” he drawled. “All you’ll have to do is suffer a few kisses and hugs from me in public. Think you can put up with that?”
A few kisses and hugs from Lex? Heavenly torture. But what if she wanted more after that? She busied herself sweeping up the spilled sugar and depositing the debris into her saucer. “I guess.”
“And no heavy petting without prior arrangement.” The glint in his eyes lingered.
“No heavy petting, period.”
“Why make such strict rules? You might enjoy it. I’m not a bad kisser, you have to admit.”
He was a fantastic kisser, the best she’d ever had, but pigs would fly before she’d admit that. “When do you want to start?”
“Tonight. There’s a big party I’m supposed to attend. I’ll pick you up at seven. Wear something slinky. You know the kind of thing I like.”
For a moment she spluttered. How dare he talk to her like that? But then she realized he was right. If they were to convince everyone they were back together, she’d have to dress like his girlfriend. And she did know the kind of thing he liked—slinky, provocative, but always classy.
“Is that okay with you?” Lex asked. “You look...stirred up.”
She was stirred up all right—at the thought of dressing to please Lex, of spending an entire evening in his company after all these months struggling to forget him.
But hadn’t she decided this would be good for her? If she spent more time with Lex she’d realize once and for all how incompatible they were, no matter how incredible he was in bed. This was her chance to cauterize the wound. And pull her brother out of his rut at the same time.
“Seven is fine with me.” She pushed to her feet, suddenly longing to get away from Lex. “I’ll see you tonight.”
Chapter Three
The doorbell rang at exactly seven, and although she’d been expecting it, Jacinta couldn’t help starting. Nerves quavering, she hurried to the door and opened it to find Lex filling up her door frame with his tall figure, tonight smart-casual in slim-fit trousers, black shirt open at the neck and showing just a hint of chest hair, and tapered Italian shoes. His dark hair was immaculately groomed, still slick from his shower, his freshly shaven jaw smooth and angular.
The corner of his mouth twitched as he scanned her body. “I see you took my advice. I like what you’re wearing.”
Gratification surged inside her before she squashed it down.
“It’ll do the job, I guess.” She smoothed her palms down the sides of her ruffled halter neck cocktail dress as the tips of her loose hair brushed against her bare shoulder blades. The soft material clung to her body, flattering her shape, the short skirt showing off her legs. She felt good in this dress, and she couldn’t deny she liked Lex’s appreciation.
He helped her into his car and soon they were speeding away. “How did your brother take the news about us?” Lex asked.
“He wasn’t thrilled.” That was an understatement. When she’d told Kevin she was seeing Lex again, he’d looked at her as if she’d thrown a dagger through his chest. Coming on top of his disappointing interview yesterday, it couldn’t have been worse timing.
“I spoke to the head of the IT department,” Lex said. “There’s an entry-level programmer job available. If Kevin sends in his résumé, someone will give him a soft interview. Tell him it’s been ten months and his record has been wiped clean. Think he’ll go for
it?”
“Oh, by now I think he’d go for anything.” Her spirits lifted. “He’s been in a deep funk for so long.”
Lex didn’t answer, but the tightness in his jaw said it all. He had no sympathy to waste on her brother.
“Tell me about this party,” she said. “Who’s throwing it?”
“My friend Carl. You remember him? He works at Jubilee too.”
Jacinta had met Carl a few times. He was an easygoing man, an old school friend of Lex’s who now held a top-level executive position at Jubilee Holdings. Attending his party as a couple would definitely set the gossip flowing. Carl would spread the news of their reconciliation right through the company; he wouldn’t be able to help himself.
“And Carl knows nothing about your leak suspicions?” she asked.
“No, nothing.”
So Lex couldn’t bring himself to trust one of his oldest friends. Maybe because his family was involved? He’d only revealed his suspicions to her because he’d had no choice, but to everyone else he’d remained silent. Maybe he didn’t want to bad-mouth his relatives behind their backs, even if he didn’t get along with them. Maybe he was more family-focused than he let on.
She was still mulling this over when they arrived at a large, brightly lit house already heaving with a crowd of people. As they stepped inside, Lex’s hand came to rest on the small of her back, a familiar gesture from the past, which, as always, sent an electric spark rippling down her spine. She’d barely collected herself when Carl came rushing over, his face flushed and eager.
“Great to see you again, Jacinta!” He gave her an extravagant hug, then turned to pump Lex’s hand. “Fantastic news, buddy.”
Jacinta raised her eyebrows at Lex in silent query.
He lifted his shoulders. “I sent Carl a text earlier saying I was bringing you tonight. I guess that’s what he’s referring to.”
“Best news I’ve had in months.” Carl grabbed a couple of cocktails from a passing waiter and pressed them onto Lex and Jacinta.
“As you can see,” Lex said to Jacinta, “Carl is easy to please.”
“Brooke!” Carl beckoned to his wife who had just entered the room. “Lex and Jacinta are here.”
