“So how much do you want?” He narrowed his eyes at her. Jacinta had never struck him as greedy. She hadn’t been impressed by his wealth, despite the expensive baubles he’d showered on her, every last one scrupulously returned to him after their breakup. But things were different now. If she was going to help him, then she’d make him pay a fair price, maybe even an exorbitant one just to punish him. The question was—how much?
“I don’t want money.” She took a deep breath. “I want you to hire Kevin. Give him a job in your IT department. A proper job, not some made-up role.”
“No.” The answer came out before he’d even had time to think about it.
She blinked. “What—”
“No, I won’t do that. Never.”
“Don’t you want to think about this? After all, it won’t cost you much.”
“I’ll pay you two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.”
Her eyes widened to the size of saucers. “Two hundred and fifty thousand? That’s crazy.”
“No, I’ll tell you what’s crazy. Expecting me to take back your brother as if he did nothing wrong, that’s what’s crazy.”
“You’re so unreasonable!” Her eyes were flashing. Usually they were a soft honey caramel color, but now they were spitting. “What do you have against Kevin, huh?”
“Come on,” he scoffed, his temper rising. “He sent out hundreds of fake emails saying we were going to build a five-star hotel on Alcatraz, and when those emails went viral, we were hammered on social media. It took weeks before our reservations recovered. And you don’t understand why I’m against him?”
“If he managed to hack into a supposedly secure database, doesn’t that show he has talent?”
“I don’t need that kind of talent.”
“But it’s not just the hacking.” Her chest heaved up and down. “Even before that happened, you never liked him. Admit it.”
The movement of her breasts was mesmerizing. Realizing he was staring at the top button of her shirt, he forced his eyes elsewhere. Damn, why did her breasts have such a devastating effect on his concentration? He focused his thoughts on her brother. Kevin Greene. A mousy kind of guy. Not someone he’d seek out or remember easily. But if it weren’t for Kevin, Lex would never have met Jacinta. So was that a plus or a minus?
“Okay, I never liked him,” he said. “But that has nothing to do with why I won’t hire him back. He deliberately abused his position. He knew what he was doing was wrong, and yet he still did it. He can’t be trusted, and I won’t hire anyone I can’t trust. Period.”
“But you want to hire me. Does that mean you trust me?”
“I trust your professional reputation.”
Her hands clamped around her purse. “Everything is so black-and-white with you, isn’t it? It must be such a comfort, knowing exactly what’s right and wrong, never doubting your judgment, never wondering if perhaps you might have done something questionable. Well, let me tell you, most people aren’t like you. Most people can at least acknowledge there are different sides to most arguments.”
Her words prickled his conscience, but he shrugged off the irritation. “Is there a point you’re trying to make, or do you just want to rehash the same old arguments?”
“Kevin hasn’t been able to find a job since you got him expelled from school.”
“I’ve just offered you a quarter of a million dollars. Give the money to him if you want.”
“No.” She shook her head. “This is something money can’t fix.”
Why couldn’t she just take the money like most people? But Jacinta wasn’t most people. She was independent and fiercely loyal, and maybe he even respected her for that. He forced his shoulders to relax in an effort to appear less combative.
“Let’s not argue. Isn’t there something else I can do for you?” God, he was almost pleading with her. Did she realize how difficult this was for him? To ask her for help while his pride battled her attraction?
“Jacinta?” His voice lowered of its own accord, and he glimpsed a flash of something in her wide eyes—something soft and yearning—before she pressed her lips together.
“Don’t tell me you’re trying to butter me up?”
He lavished her with a dimpled smile. “Is it working?”
“Oh, you’ll have to come up with more than just ‘Ja-cin-ta.’” She mimicked his husky voice.
Her throaty tone had the blood coursing thick through his veins. “How much more?”
“A lot more. You’ll have to stifle your ego and find Kevin a job.”
Lex sighed. “So you agree it’s a lot to ask.”
“That depends. How bad do you want me?” She flushed then, as her double entendre sunk in.
They were both breathing hard, he realized, but he wasn’t about to admit how much he really wanted her. He scratched his chin. “We-ell...I’m thinking about it.”
Jacinta huffed in exasperation. “Okay, then. Looks like it’s been a waste of time. I’ll be on my way.” She spun on her heel and marched off.
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.”