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As if she heard his ain Take a break and I’ll get the report together"

"Did you eat?"

She waved her hand in the air and reached the door "Not hungry"

"Stop" His corabbed the plastic knife and sawed off a piece "You don’t go anywhere until you share this with me"

"Don’t need it"

"Sit down or you’re fired"

She laughed but obeyed She dragged over her chair, snatched up the piece with a napkin and dove in For a few moments, they chewed and enjoyed their food, a common staple in their childhood memories He relaxed and some of the tension eased from his shoulders Funny, most women he dated viewed food as a necessity or an evil entity that incited weight gain How many times had Mama Conte prepared a meal and only he and Carina were left at the table? Their passion for eating in co he’d et back to what they were doing But when it ca each bite Carina held the same type of respect and honor for ain life

He snuck a peek Danature stiletto heels should be outlawed for the office and allowed only in a nightclub They ay too sexy with all those straps And why didn’t she wear normal perfume? He was used to heavy musk and contrived florals Instead, she smelled clean and fresh, like cocoa butter and a hint of le up? I know I’ve been giving you a lot of work lately"

"I don’t ue ran over her lower lip to catch the last bit of olive oil He shifted his gaze "I have a new respect for Michael and Julietta Growing up, I thought it was just about baking desserts and having a case to sell thehed "So did I When Michael first hired ether and built an eh Maybe I’m a control freak"

She rolled her eyes "Definitely You drove us all crazy ere kids Ordered us around and sulked e didn’t listen"

"I never sulked"

"Sure you did And when that didn’t work, you turned those baby blues on any feht, and they crumbled You still do"

He stared at her in surprise with a bit of embarrassment "That’s ridiculous You et what he wants"

She took another bite and shrugged "Well, not just your body You use your char me off" He tried not to squirot him places "I didn’t help build an empire without some brains"

"Of course you have brains That’s where the lethal charm comes in--you knohen to use it If you only had brawn, it would be easier to shrug off"

Why was he engaging in this ridiculous conversation? He tried to take the high road but his ive women the respect they deserve Always did"

She swiped her mouth with the napkin and sat back with her arms crossed in front of her chest The ainst the heavy swell of her breasts "What about that tiame, and you convinced her to lend it to you for a wholenice to ht Michael said she followed you around like a puppy in school the whole tiave it back to her and barely spoke to her"

He shoved the paper plate in the bag and cruh him at the elina, he just didn’t want to date her

"And how about that tiot Theresa to do your science report? Michael said you just had to sit with her at lunch and she wrote the whole thing for you"

"Why did Michael tell all these lies about rumbled "This stuff never happened"

Carina lifted her chin in triu?"

"What about this ?"

She sht at Walter’s house?"

He ignored her and cleaned his desk, but a sputter of unease flared in his gut "Yeah So?"

"You told Bonnie you were stressed and overworked and needed soht in and offered to represent La Dolce Maggie"

"How does that rumbled

She so with her to the opera, remember? She had an extra ticket You patted her on the shoulder, told her you were busy, thanked her for going to the party in your place, and left her with a confused expression on her face Face it, Max When it comes to women, you are bad news"