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"I know The polenta is cooked perfectly Try it paired with the tomato"
"Okay"
They ate in reverent silence for a while, each lapsing into a food-induced coma of pleasure Finally he roused himself and took up the conversation "Let me tell you all the reasons we shouldn’t have an affair"
"One-night stand"
"Whatever First, your brother trusts me to protect you and I would lose his loyalty Second, our mothers know each other and they’d freak Third, you technically work for me, and that could blur the lines between us in business"
"Michael and our moms will never know Our work relationship won’t be affected since I’ll be with another division Why shouldn’t we indulge ourselves? Wouldn’t it be better if you were my first sexual experience rather than soer spit in waves around hiinity for some society crap that tells women to seize the day It should be special, with so with no future The answer is no You can argue and cajole and tee in a short affair that could ruin our whole foundation I won’t risk it"
Raw need burst fro to work Her one-night fantasy was just that--a fantasy Deep down, she just wasn’t worth the risk to him Another experience that told her she wasn’t the type of woman to drive a man so mad with desire he’d break the rules Even half-naked and throwing her pride away Dear God, even her seduction atteical conversation of assets and liabilities for an affair Humiliation burned She craved to crawl into her bed, pull the covers up over her head, and cry Just like she’d done so many times in her past when she realized Maximus Gray could never want her in the crazy way she did him
The dreaazed at her with concern The saave that could never satisfy or scratch the surface of her darkest fantasies
Maybe soe of Sawyer flashed in her mind A man interested in her like a woman, not a childhood friend With hi she craved Maybe it was tioing to bed night after night alone Lonely and unsatisfied at twenty-six years old How sad was that?
Slowly, she blotted her lips with the napkin and forced a suess your decision is made"
"Trust me, this is best for all of us involved"
She nodded "Understood There’s one thing you h"
"What?"
Carina lifted her chin and o"
He blinked "I’m sorry I upset you, cara Please don’t tellto me"
She forced back the tears that burned her lids "You’ll never lose me completely In a way, I think I’ll always be a part of your life But I can’t play this game anymore I need to ht, you made the decision to cut the ties between us You lost your right to tell ritted his teeth and leaned forward "Please don’t tell et back at h escaped her lips "Dio, how arrogant And you have every right to think that, because I’ve given you so ht And that’s not because I’what I’ve wanted for a long time A man who makes o A ht with You gave up that right tonight"
"Carina, don’t"
She pushed her chair back and stood "If you have any respect for me at all, you’ll leave me alone I deserve that, Max" Carina put her napkin down "Thank you for dinner"
"Wait"
She paused Seconds ticked by The sounds of the busy restaurant flowed around thehter, the slide of the boats cutting through the water below She waited as he seele with his de point hung between them Her heart pounded and she waited for his final decision His carved features twisted into a tortured expression and he opened hisin the air like a cartoon balloon, blank until the artist sketched in the final ending
His azed at an uneer who ain"
Her throat tightened but she kept herself together When she walked away, she refused to look back
• • •
What had he done?
Max stared at the jues of his sanity He grabbed his wineglass, drained the rest of the liquid, and signaled for a refill The evening turned into a disaster and he wasn’t even sure why a crazy panic puht decision Fuck, the only decision There was no way he could take Carina to bed for one night, claio back to business Why couldn’t she understand that?
I’ht
Sawyer
Her final words haunted him Would she seek his friend out to prove a point? Was she attracted to him? What did she mean by "dark desires" or "fantasies"? His fists clenched in his lap as an array of ies taunted hi, head thrown back, biting down on that lush lower lip as so another e and madness and reah with it She’d probably flirt a bit, dance, maybe even kiss someone to satisfy her curiosity All he needed to do was keep his distance and an eye on her He wouldn’t interfere, and she’d never spot hio back to New York and s would calm down She’d date so-ups Soer and respectable Not an older, jaded, screwed-upwith her in any capacity was a guaranteed disaster He’d hurt her and would never be able to stand himself He’d lose Michael’s friendship, respect, and his career