Courting Justice. Brenda Jackson
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father to fork over a hefty settlement to avoid a countersuit.
“I’ve been hearing a lot about you lately, Angelo,” she said, interrupting his thoughts. “Your name has been all in the news.”
“Really?”
“Yes, and you need the right woman by your side to help you handle all that media attention—one who is refined, elegant and poised.”
He looked over at her and couldn’t help but smile. The one thing Lela hadn’t mentioned was honest. That was definitely something she was not.
“Thanks for the suggestion,” he said, standing. “Now if you’ll excuse me, there’s someplace I need to be.”
Ignoring her, he took one last sip of coffee before walking off.
* * *
“Peyton.”
Her name sounded like a whisper uttered from the deep, husky voice that infiltrated the recesses of her deep sleep. She slowly opened her eyes, looked up and immediately connected with the most gorgeous and intense dark orbs staring down at her.
Her heart kicked up a beat when she thought back to the time she’d first been ensnared by Angelo’s eyes. She hadn’t been in the Di Meglio’s humongous house in the Hamptons for more than a few hours when Sam’s tall, gorgeous and handsome-as-sin brother walked through the door.
Bringing her thoughts back to the present, Peyton’s gaze shifted from his eyes to his mouth, and for a spellbinding moment she was mesmerized by the shape of his full and sensuous lips. They had kissed her last night and practically devoured her lips. Why? If he had been in the kissing mood, she was sure there were plenty of women at the resort who would have eagerly obliged. But then, she hadn’t resisted either.
Now she was questioning her own actions last night, especially since she was no longer the starry-eyed twenty-two-year-old who’d had a crush on him. She was twenty-nine and looking at thirty too soon to suit her. But there was nothing she could do about it. “Angelo? What are you doing here?” she heard herself asking.
“I wanted to check in on you before leaving to play tennis.”
Rubbing a hand down her face to wipe the sleep from her eyes, she sat up in bed, careful to keep the sheet covering her in place. She had very little on, which was normally how she slept—usually in a top but rarely any bottoms. “What time is it?”
“A little past noon.”
“Noon!” she said in shock.
“Yes.”
Peyton rubbed another hand across her face. She usually was an early riser and had never slept this late before. But then she usually didn’t drink much either, and the pounding in her head reminded her that she’d started celebrating her birthday early.
“Here, I think you can use this.”
He handed her a cup of coffee. “I made it just the way you like.”
She took the cup and was about to ask how he knew the way she liked her coffee and then she remembered. He had stayed at her place a couple of years ago when Sam had been out of town and had probably become aware of her habits. But not all of them. He’d never known how much she’d lusted after him during those five days. She’d confided in Sam and Mac, and they’d all had a good laugh about it later, specifically about how many times she’d been tempted to jump his bones.
She took a sip of her coffee. He was right. It was just the way she liked with just the right amount of cream and sugar. “The housekeeper let you in?” she asked. The one thing the resort prided itself on was its security.
“No, I kept the key you gave me last night. I checked on you earlier this morning and you were sleeping soundly.”
She blinked. “You came into my room while I was sleeping?”
“Yes.”
The thought that he had come into her room when she’d been unaware annoyed her a little. She hoped it hadn’t been one of those times she had kicked the covers off her body or he would have seen more than he had needed to.
Evidently it hadn’t been one of those times. At least she could only assume it hadn’t been since he was acting normal. But then he had kissed her, and he was acting normal about that as well. She reminded herself that this was a man who had his pick of women, and she was certain a lot of them had a better looking body than hers and could probably kiss a whole lot better. Seeing her partially naked on top of the covers and kissing her the way he had probably hadn’t done anything for him.
“I figured when you did wake up you’d have a hangover and would need the coffee,” he said, interrupting her thoughts.
She did, and it certainly hit the spot. She took another sip and studied him when he moved away from the bed. He was dressed in a pair of jeans and a white shirt and was sexy as sin.
“So what are your plans today, Peyton?”
He’d almost caught her staring when he turned to look at her. She shrugged. “I’ve slept a good bit of it away. I plan to shower, dress and then go downstairs to get something to eat.”
She took another sip. She appreciated him thinking enough to make her coffee, but why was he hanging around? This was a singles resort. Certainly he had more important things to do. “Is something wrong, Angelo?” she asked. Was he uncomfortable with the thought that he’d actually kissed her last night? Should she let him know it hadn’t been a big deal?
He opened his mouth to say something then stopped, and as if he’d made his mind up about something, he said, “I need to ask a favor of you. If you can’t do it, I understand.”
She raised a brow, wondering what kind of favor he needed. “What is it?”
“I ran into someone I wish weren’t here,” he said.
She chuckled. “Um, let me guess. An old girlfriend?”
“Hardly. She and I never dated. She was a former client of my father’s and has a tendency to make a nuisance of herself at times.”
Peyton looked at him, clearly confused. “This is a singles resort,” she reminded him. “The single women here are looking for single men. Last I heard you’re still single.”
He leaned back against her dresser. “Yes, but I’m not looking for anyone. I came here to get away. Escape the media, so to speak, to relax.”
She shook her head and laughed. “Relax? You at a singles retreat? And you actually thought you would relax?”
He chuckled. “I could only hope. Things have been crazy for me since winning that case.”
“So I heard. I also heard that one of those reality stars has been trying to grab your attention. I’m surprised you’re not breaking your neck giving in to her. Most men would.”
“I’m not like most men.”
She took a sip as her gaze scanned his body. Yes, she’d definitely agree that he wasn’t like most men. At least he wasn’t like any she’d ever encountered. “So what’s the favor?”
“For the next couple of days I’d like us to pretend that we’re lovers. I know it might cramp your style since you’re single and undoubtedly came here looking for single men.”
She laughed. “No, I didn’t come here looking for single men. This is a birthday gift from Mac and Sam, and God knows I need a break. That last case I worked on was a doozy.”
“So you didn’t come here looking for a man like I didn’t come looking for a woman.”
“Yes, that sounds about right.”
“Then you won’t have any problem pretending to be my lover.”
She held up her hand. “Whoa, wait a minute, I didn’t say that. I’m not good at pretending