Page 61 of Bridesmaid By Chance
Jude glances in my direction and then back to his sister. “Do you have new responsibilities?”
“Uh, yes. I mean no…I mean…I have taken on a new role.”
Jesus Christ.
“What kind of new role?”
“A personal one,” she says, her eyes cutting to me briefly.
Fuck, don’t look over here!
I can practically feel the sweat drip down my back while I hang on every word Sloane says, hoping and praying she doesn’t slip up and give away the knowledge that we are currently betrothed.
“A personal one?” Jude turns fully toward his sister. “What are you up to?”
“Nothing.” She waves at him. “Absolutely nothing. Well, I mean…not nothing. Of course I’m up to something. But not like a tricky something. Just a regular something. Figuring out life, making changes, nothing you need to worry about at the moment.”
“I don’t like you hiding things from me, Sloane.”
She nervously chuckles. “Now, now, can’t tell a brother everything.” She pats his arm. “Anyway, you have a call with London?”
“Do I?” I ask, confused as to where that came from.
“Not sure. Let me go check.” She turns on her heels and heads out of my office, leaving me in a pool of sweat. Aw, it was her escape route.
“London? Would that be Archie?” Jude asks, still sporting a scowl.
“Yes,” I answer, my voice surprisingly steady. “Trying to secure the deal.”
“Smart.” If only he knew what exactly was going into it to seal the deal, he wouldn’t think it was that smart. “Well, I came in to get some blueprints of the building on Seventh. Hardy said they were delivered here.”
Sloane comes back into the room and says, “No call. Silly me.”
Jude’s scowl grows, probably disapproving of her current…flakiness.
“Anywho, anything I can help with?” she asks, looking between us.
“Blueprints,” I answer. “Jude is looking for blueprints for the building on Seventh.”
“They must be up front because we don’t have anything back here,” Sloane says. “Unless you have them?” she asks me.
I shake my head. “Nope, don’t have them.”
Jude’s eyes flit between the both of us, and I can’t tell if he’s just listening intently or trying to connect the dots. Either way, I feel like there is a giant billboard over my head, pointing at me and saying,I married your sister and almost slipped my hand under her shirt last night.
Finally, he says, “Okay, I’ll check up front. Hardy made it seem like they were back here.”
The idiot probably sent Jude back here on purpose just to make me sweat. Well, job accomplished because I’m going to need a new shirt after this.
“Hardy doesn’t know what he’s talking about a lot of the time,” I say.
“Okay, well, are we still on for our meeting this week to catch up?” Jude asks.
Fuck, I forgot about that.
There is no way in hell I’m going to be able to sit through an hour-long meeting with Jude, just me and him, without looking like something is bothering me. I’m smooth, but not that fucking smooth.
“Shit, I was actually going to call you about that,” I say, lying through my teeth. “I’m going to have to cancel. There’s a lot I have to prepare for, and I don’t have a lot of time.”
