Page 108 of Faking Cinderella
“You seemed surprised to come face-to-face with him the other day.”
“He was supposed to be out of town for a family thing. When Lucky said he could get me a job here, I had Cyril look into it. I might have timed things differently if I’d known our intel was wrong. Maybe. Other things lined up to make this excellent timing. Things I couldn’t plan but could very easily roll with.”
Her breathing is staying relatively steady despite her face remaining pale. Good sign.
Not that I’d expect someone like Margot to freak out over a small inconvenience.
Like she said, she can will herself into believing whatever she wants. And she has to know we won’t be here long.
I shift beside her, leaning back to plant my hand on the bench behind her, the closest I’ll let myself come to touching her.
Fuck me, she smells good. Like lemon and pine trees with that little hint of cinnamon and coffee lingering beneath it.
I clear my throat. “Speaking of Lucky and family, how’d you find out about the triplets?”
She slides me a look, but it’s not as suspicious as it probably should be.
“I assume people in your zip code aren’t doing DNA tests on ancestry and matching sites regularly,” I add. “Prefer to keep the skeletons in the closet, right?”
“You think you’re getting confessions out of me since we’re stuck in the air?”
“I think family’s complicated. The one person I told about my own family troubles went and started fucking the family member I complained about most, so whatever your reason for wanting to find more family, not my place to judge. Just curious.”
She studies me, color coming back into her cheeks. “This conversation is about seven left turns and a boat ride away fromthedon’t you fucking dare hurt my friendthat we started at a few days ago.”
“I watch you.”
Her eyes stay focused on mine in a way that makes my heart speed up and my fingers tingle in anticipation.
We’re alone.
No one on the cars ahead of or behind us.
I could kiss her.
I could kiss her again right now.
“I’ve noticed,” she says softly.
Focus, dumbass. “You look like you want to fit in. To my very simple brain, that means either you have a natural talent for acting, or that you don’t feel like you belong in the family you have now, no matter how much you say you love your sister. So maybe you do still have an extra secret agenda or two, but life’s complicated.”
She’s completely lost track of the fact that we’re trapped in a gondola thirty feet off the ground, or if she hasn’t, she’s clearly not uncomfortable with it anymore.
Not with the intensity of the attention she’s aiming at me. “Lifeiscomplicated,” she agrees.
“Wish it wasn’t.”
“Will starting your own security firm really be enough for you?”
I’m such a fucking sucker for a smart woman.
Even more so for a woman who’d give half a thought about what I want beyond what I say out loud.
“Would be nice,” I reply.
One corner of her mouth hitches up. “Would be niceto start a security firm? Orwould be niceif starting a security firm is enough for you?”
Another thing I like about this woman.
