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She sobers in an instant. “I don’t know. It’s dangerous, Roman. Leo and Brandon… Is it worth the risk?”
“I’m inclined to say yes.” I dip my head, pressing my mouth against her shoulder. She sways backward, weakened against me.
Of course, she’s right. I’m being reckless and selfish even in wanting her, and if we’re going to go through with pretending to be married for the sake of Reid’s investment, that means telling Brandon at least some of the story.
“Roman, I’m not playing games here. Clearly, we can’t help ourselves, but we need to find a way to make it work so we don’t hurt people — or each other. This job matters to me, and so does Leo, and if we’re going to pretend to be married, that’s just another complication.”
It’s an effort to tear myself away from her. I do, though, to meet her gaze. Her eyes are round with concern, her forehead ridged with lines.
She really does care about my son, perhaps more than anyone else he’s ever known.
I soften, my heart feeling as fragile as glass. She could so easily break it.
What is this woman doing to me?
“We can at least agree this is purely physical.” A lie, but I manage to say it without wavering.
She falters and then nods, and I can’t quite decide if I believe her agreement. “Right.”
“We’ll do our best to keep Leo unaware. Of course, we’ll have to tell Brandon about our plans to appear in public, but I’m sure we can convince him that we’re as indifferent as ever behind closed doors.”
“We’d be lying,” she whispers.
It doesn’t sit well with me, either. Brandon has always been my closest friend, the only one I could trust to see who I am outside of the office. He trusts me, and lying to him will break that trust — but only if he finds out. Since he started dating Chloe, we barely have time to catch up outside of the office. If I can keep my cool, perhaps my new secret will remain hidden.
Still, I don’t want to drive a wedge between Madison and her family. I don’t want to cause her indirect hurt. “If you don’t want to do this, then I understand. Just say the word.”
She doesn’t. Instead, she leans into me, cupping my jaw as she offers the sweetest, least “purely physical” kiss I’ve ever been offered.
There’s something more growing between us. Something that terrifies me.
The door swings open and we jump apart. Madison is quick to cover her crumpled dress with the duvet, offering Leo a wide smile despite the fear in her eyes.
Leo rubs his eyes as though he doesn’t believe his sight. His face is wan from sleep, his pajamas rumpled and his hair sticking up in all directions. “Madison?”
“Hi, bud!”
He looks between us, adorably bewildered. “Did you two have a sleepover?”
Madison looks at me to save the day, and I think fast on my feet as I wander over to pick him up. “Kind of. Madison wasn’t feeling too great, a little like you the other day.”
“So you took care of her with lots of warm blankies?”
“That’s right, bud.” I droop in relief when Leo seems to accept this and see Madison do the same from the corner of my eye. “But now it’s time to take care of you. Let’s get you some breakfast.”
“Not oatmeal,” he warns, which makes me laugh as we leave.
“Okay, bud. No oatmeal.”
CHAPTER18
Madison
o o o
The building of Sterling Holdings shines like a diamond in the midday sun. Leo bounces with excitement at the sight of the revolving door, especially after he just rode the subway, which he possibly loves even more than going to the zoo.
I take a deep breath and we slip into the wedge hand in hand.
