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What happened in New York would have never occurred if—”
She stiffened and held her hand, halting him in mid-sentence “I don’t want to talk about New York”
Regret flashed in his eyes “Sorry Consider it dropped”
She waited for her pulse to settle and then she forced a smile “So you’ll take a look at the research I’ve compiled? You’ll like Reese He’s a veritable Boy Scout His e health-insurance plan He’s had no layoffs since his business started and he’s not shipping jobs or production overseas Let’s see What else? He’s a regular contributor to a half dozen pet charities—”
Noah held up his hands in surrender “Okay, okay, he’s a saint I get it How do other men ever measure up?”
“Cut the sarcasm”
He checked his watch and let out a sigh “Sorry to break this up so early, especially since I haven’t finished the pizzaSo E-mail me the stuff I’ll take a look And the tickets will be waiting for you at the box office”
“You alere ,” she said affectionately
He dropped a kiss on top of her head then stood and stretched lazily
“I’ll give you a call when I’”
Three
Evan walked into the suite of offices he leased for the tih Union Square was a suhborhood that catered to upscale businesses, he preferred the funky modern feel of Seattle
He nodded a goodto his receptionist but halted when she came out of her seat, a concerned expression on her face
“You shouldn’t go in there,” Tanya said in a hushed whisper
He raised an eyebrohen he realized she was gesturing toward his office
“Why the devil not?” he demanded
She put one hand up to shield her ainst her palm—in the direction of his office
“Becauseshe’s in there”
Evan turned to stare down the hall toward his office, but the door was closed Damn, but he didn’t have tirowing ihly efficient if a little eccentric But he liked unconventional, and while she’d probably fit in better with his Seattle staff with her colored hair, , he found she brought a sort of vibrancy to an otherwise stuffy office here
“Okay, Tanya First of all, who the hell is ‘she’ and where is Vickie?”
It wasn’t like Vickie not to time assistant traveled with him everywhere She had an apart precisely when he’d show up, and as a result she was always there, ready to pelt hiations
Tanya’s face fell “Oh, sir, did you not get your hter was rushed to the hospital early this ery now”
Evan frowned “No, I didn’t get any such e Keep ery Send flowers and ht need On second thought, send over food for the fae for a hospitality suite If there is a
hotel close to the hospital, have a block of rooms set aside for any of the family members”
Tanya blinked then hurriedly picked up a notepad and began scribbling
Evan waited a hed “Tanya?”
She looked up, blinking, as if surprised to still see hi there
“Who is the ‘she’ waiting in my office?”
Tanya’s nose curled in distaste “It’s Miss Hammond, sir I couldn’t stop her She was quite imperious
Told me she’d wait for you”
It was all Evan could do not to look heavenward and ask “whyHe had no patience for Bettina today, and after his mother had extracted his proine anything Bettina could have to say to him
“Keep hter,” he said as he turned to go down to his office
He opened the door and swept in, his gaze i on one of the sofas lining thethat overlooked the outdoor cafés lining the sidewalk below
“Bettina,” he said as he tossed his briefcase onto his desk “What brings you here?”
Bettina rose, her hands going down to ss—her self-admitted favorite personal attribute The dress stopped als were on display
Evan wouldn’t lie He’d enjoyed those legs It was just too bad they were attached to the rest of her
Her expression creased into one of fake pain She crossed the roorasp his
“I wanted to thank you for agreeing to co It means the world to Mitchell and your ine how difficult it was for you to agree to go after I broke your heart”
Evan just stared at her Part of him wanted to ask her what planet she existed on, but he already knew the answer to that It was planet Bettina, where everything revolved around her Did she honestly believe he was still pining for her?
“Cut the theatrics, Bettina Why are you really here? You don’t care if I show up or not, so why pretend otherwise? In fact, I’d be willing to admit you hoped I wouldn’t”
She blinked, and for a moment he saw bitterness in her eyes
“Lucy said you were bringing a…date It was clever of you, really But you don’t fool me, Evan
Everyone knows you haven’t been serious about anyone since me Who is she? So about her? Does she know she’s going as an accessory? God knows that’s all I ever was to you”
“You can’t have it both ways, Bettina Either I was serious about you or you were an accessory,” he drawled “Which is it?”
She flushed angrily “I only meant that you haven’t dated any wos off with you”
He erated expression of surprise “You flatter me I had no idea you were so interested in who I date I would have thought my brother kept you too occupied to monitor my love life”
“Bring your date, Evan But you know and I know she isn’taway fro day”
With that she stalked out of his office, leaving Evan to shake his head He really ought to call his brother and thank him profusely