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  “I want to make you an offer, Freya.”

  She opened her eyes, and found Jared watching her. He always seemed to be, and she didn’t mind. This was what was so frustrating. She didn’t mind his gaze, or his interference. Instead of finding them an invasion of her personal space, she found it cute.

  “What kind of an offer?”

  “Agree to be mine for the next two months, and if you don’t like it, I’ll let you walk away. I won’t bother you again. But if you do, and you want it, you stay mine for the rest of your life.”

  Okay, now she felt like she was in some kind of movie. The temptation to run was strong, but not as strong as her curiosity.

  ****

  Freya had taken the deal, and after they finished their meal, he took her straight to his country home. While they were in the car he got her to phone Sophia in case she was feeling nervous about being alone with him, not that she should. He would never hurt her. All he wanted was for her to feel safe with him.

  He was already in love with her, and now all he needed to do was make her see that she felt the same way about him.

  She’d had a crush on him for as long as he could remember, and he found it sweet that she kept trying to fight it.

  Only when she was in college, did his feelings begin to mature. She’d never appealed to him as a child other than being a sweet kid.

  “What did she say?” he asked when the call had finished.

  “She told me to have fun, and to not be afraid.” She blew out a breath. “I’m not afraid of you.”

  “That’s good to know. I don’t want you to be afraid of me.”

  He pulled into his country home parking lot. There were six other cars there, all of his own collection.

  “Wow, are you here to show off your wealth?”

  “Nope. I just happen to like cars, and I have a thing for the classics.”

  He climbed out of the car, and made his way around to her side of the car where she was already climbing out.

  “Next time, wait for me to help you out.”

  “I’m quite capable of getting out of a car.”

  “I know, but I like doing it.” He placed a hand at her back, and together they moved toward the front of the house. His housekeeper wasn’t around right now as he’d given her the weekend off.

  Entering his home, he took her jacket, and placed it on the stand.

  “Is this rented, or is this your place?”

  “This is mine.”

  “I always thought you were a city guy. I couldn’t imagine you out of it.”

  He tutted. “There is so much for you to learn, Freya.”

  “Let me guess, you’re the guy to teach me.”

  “Of course.” He gripped the back of her neck, and turned her so that she was facing him. Putting his thumbs beneath her chin, he tilted her head back so that she was looking at him. “You’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen.”

  “There are a lot of other women out there.”

  “Does it look like I give a shit about them? You’re beautiful to me. I think you’re stunning, and I’m going to cherish you always.” He didn’t kiss her. What he wanted was to drive her crazy with her own need, and he was an expert in knowing what she wanted, and of course, knowing what she liked.

  She liked the way he touched her, when he took rather than asked. Her hardened nipples and the little catch in her breath gave her away.

  He should advise her to never play a game of poker. Her face was far too easy to read. It was why he knew that his endeavor would make him the victor. Freya loved him, but years of seeing men’s betrayals firsthand was going to make it difficult for him. She wasn’t going to cave easily, or even straight away.

  Time, patience, and care were all things he was good at, and he didn’t see any problems in his plans.

  “I know what you want,” she said. “It’s the same as Alfie wanted. I know you worked together for us.”

  He leaned against the doorframe, staring at her. “And?”

  “You’re not going to deny it?”

  “Of course not. Why would I lie to you?”

  The confusion was clear on her face.

  “Freya, it’s not my intention to hurt, upset, or lie to you. That is what I promise you I will never do. I want us to have a relationship.” The truth was he wanted her to be his wife, the love of his life, but if he went too far too quickly, he was going to lose her.

  Time and patience.

  “What about my dad? What will he think?” she asked. “You’re his best friend. I don’t know him all that well unless you count him trying to sleep with everything in sight.”

  He sighed. “I’ve not told your father my intentions, and until we’re ready, I won’t. That is something we’re going to do together, when you’re ready, Freya. I know you’re not the biggest fan of the man. It’s why when he said about offering you a job straight out of college, I knew I had the perfect place for your art.”

  “I didn’t want to work with him. He offered, and I told him I’d think about it. Your offer was a great relief.”

  “Why don’t you like him?” he asked. “Is it because of your mother, or something else?”

  “I guess it’s a bunch of stuff. When I was younger, I couldn’t wait for him to come home. He’d be late, and then he and Mom would argue. It didn’t take me long to realize it was because he was meeting ‘special friends,’ as he called it.” She shook her head. “There was one day at his office, his special friend came. He left me outside with his receptionist while he was with this special friend. It was his latest mistress.” She snorted. “I guess I just got fed up with being constantly pushed aside because he wanted to be with his latest piece of ass.”

  “You’ll never feel that way again with me.”

  “How are you so sure?” Her arms went out and then slapped back down against her sides. “There could be another woman who is beautiful, and you want her.”

  “It doesn’t matter. None of them would be you. That’s the difference, Freya. I’m not after a piece of ass. I’m after you.”

  Chapter Three

  If Jared was a book boyfriend, she would have been all over him. As it was, he wasn’t, and she was keeping her distance. Freya loved his home, nearly as much as she adored the man.

  No, she wasn’t going to think of him as a man.

  “So, erm, how does this all work?” she asked, taking a seat in his sitting room after a grand tour. “Do I do your bidding?”

  Jared chuckled. “Freya, you always have to rush everything. Don’t you think some things you should savor, take your time, enjoy, relish?”

  “I’ve always been a dive in and get it done kind of girl.”

  “And I bet you don’t have many fond memories of everything you’ve done?” he asked. He handed her a glass of white wine, as he sat down with a whiskey.

  She was surrounded with everything Jared, and Freya was shocked by the fact she liked it. None of his essence seemed fake. The home had character. It wasn’t just a bachelor pad. She got a sense of comfort.

  “Do you have an army of servants?” she asked, avoiding the question.

  “No, I don’t. I have a housekeeper who comes in twice a week. That’s all I have, and she has been very efficient in running my place. I wish I could spend more time here. Work pulls me away.”

  He was looking at her strangely.

  “Have I pulled you away as well?”

  Jared tilted his head to the side, and smiled. “More than you will probably ever understand, but that’s okay. I don’t have a problem with that. I like to be close to you in case you ever need it.”

  She took a sip of her fruity wine, loving the taste, but then, she didn’t expect anything else.

  “So I’ve got my own room, and we’re still working together. I don’t actually see the point of this arrangement,” she said.

  “It’s simple, Freya. I want you to be close to me. I want us to get to know each other, and to have you relax around me
. To give me the chance that you seem determined not to.”

  “And if I don’t want to be here?”

  “You can leave any time you like. I believe that you want to be here more than you realize.”

  She licked her lips, and stared down at her wine glass.

  “Tell me, Freya, do you like my company? No catty remarks, or being a bitch either. I’m wanting the truth.”

  “Yes, I do.” She’d loved his company even when she was younger. He used to do this really bad magic trick when she was sad. It was old, but she had loved it so much.

  “Then see it as I’m your roommate. I just wanted to change the décor.”

  She laughed. “You miss your home.”

  “Yes, I miss my home. It took me two years to buy this place.”

  “Because it was so expensive?” she asked.

  “Not at all. The price was easy. I could pay for it a gazillion times over. The biggest problem was the owner before me.”

  She sat back and wondered if he had ever thought of reading books. He had the sexiest voice in the world. “Tell me.”

  “The owner was very sick. He’d lost his wife several years ago, and he didn’t have much longer. His children just wanted him to sell this place, and to finish it. So that he could have a happy life.”

  “That’s … sad.”

  “I know. His kids loved him, and were worried about him.” Jared smiled, clearly remembering something fondly. “I sat with him many times. He told me that he had spent twenty years building this house for it to be perfection. His wife loved it, and he loved it. Moving out was … like he was severing his bond with his wife. He told me it was his final connection to her.”

  “He didn’t want it to go to just anyone?” she asked.

  “No. He told me that if I was a man-whore, I was to stay away. He wasn’t going to disrespect his wife’s memory by selling it to some loser who had no respect.” Jared laughed. “I opened up my soul to a dying man. I told him that I had no intention of turning this into any brothel. That I was actually looking for a woman that I could fall in love with for the rest of my life, and that we’d be together until our dying day.” Jared looked at her. “For two years I visited him, and when I finally got the place, it was rather bittersweet.”

  “Why?”

  “He died. He died before he could give me the key.” There were tears in his eyes, and he looked away, and she saw him struggling. “He’d left me a letter. Told me that if any woman didn’t fall in love with this house, and then me, they weren’t worth it.”

  Her heart seemed to take a dive.

  “I’m not going to ask you straight away, Freya.”

  “I love the house,” she said, blurting the words out. “I’m not sure on the man yet.”

  He laughed. “I didn’t expect you to. He didn’t say anything about women who’ve witnessed betrayals like you have.”

  She finished off her wine. “I wish I had known him.”

  “I wish you’d known a lot more men who are willing to stay faithful to their wives, Freya. It would make my life a whole lot easier, but then, I’ve never been the one to step away from a challenge.”

  She liked that. “What’s the plan for tomorrow?”

  With it being a Saturday, it was her day off.

  “I’ve got to head into the office. A client wants to go over some last-minute changes.”

  “I can come in. I’ve got some work I could finish. I wouldn’t want to be alone here all day. I don’t mind work.”

  “Are you sure?”

  “I’m sure.”

  “Then I’ll drive us both in.” He took her glass, and they walked upstairs together. “This is your room.” He pressed a kiss to her head, and turned to leave.

  Freya touched the spot, and wished, not for the first time, that he had stayed.

  Her feelings were driving her crazy. She also needed to apologize to Sophia for lying to her. Just thinking about that made her sick to her stomach.

  ****

  “How is it going?” Alfie asked.

  Jared looked away from Freya and Sophia hugging, to look at his friend. “She’s difficult, and refuses to give in. Everything I imagined she would be.”

  “Sophia told me a little about Freya. Her mother had the worst luck in men.”

  “Yeah, and she never listened to reason. All she ever did was what she wanted, and to hell with everything else. I warned her about Freya’s father. Did she listen? Nope. It was a constant battle. Of course, it’s made Freya hate men, and believe we’re all cheating assholes.”

  Alfie took a seat opposite him.

  “You’ll get there.”

  “I see you’re happy,” Jared said.

  “Very happy. Seeing Sophia that night was the best thing that ever happened to me. Waiting patiently for her to be ready was worth it. I’m the happiest man in the world.”

  Jared watched as Sophia and Freya left the office, probably to go to the cafeteria. He liked to make sure his staff had the best coffee. He’d done a little experiment, and found shitty coffee made for shitty workers. Great coffee, great workers.

  “Do you need any advice? Any help?”

  “Nope. I need you to not interfere.”

  Alfie held his hands up. “Our two women are like sisters. There’s a chance they’re going to share a lot of stuff, and Sophia talks to me a lot. I can share some information if it would help you.”

  He looked at his friend, and the smirk on Alfie’s face told him he was holding something back.

  “What is it?” Jared asked. “And what do you want?”

  “I want to be best man at your wedding, and for Freya to be available to my woman. Sophia heard that she was staying with you, and was worried she wouldn’t see her friend again. She can be a little dramatic. So I said we’d come and see you.”

  “I’m not holding Freya against her will. Sophia may visit whenever she wants.”

  “Good.”

  “What do you have for me? Clearly, you have something, as otherwise you wouldn’t have come here empty-handed.”

  “You’re right.” Alfie took a seat, and placed a hand over the back of the sofa. “This isn’t concrete or anything but Sophia’s assumption.”

  “What good is that for me?” Jared asked.

  “She believes Freya is in love with you. You can take that view any way you want to. My woman thinks Freya is in love with you, but she’s so scared to even think of commitment that she is keeping you at arm’s length.”

  Jared rested his ass against the desk. Even though he believed that Freya loved him, she could be so damn prickly at times that it made him doubt. “And you think Sophia’s to be believed.”

  “They’re like sisters. I believe her. At first I didn’t, but look at the facts. She joined your working environment when she didn’t need to.”

  “Her father offered her the alternative.”

  “Or she wants to be close to you. How about this, after Freya spent time away with her dad, Sophia told me that she’d spend a lot of time talking about this mystery guy.”

  “Now I’m listening.”

  “Freya would talk constantly about her trips with her dad but never about her dad himself. She’d talk about a guy who’d play a magic trick to make her smile, or who would sit with her, and didn’t make her feel like a great inconvenience. Ring any bells?”

  It rang a lot, and Jared found himself looking toward the door. She was attracted to him. Could it be that a little crush had developed into something more?

  He had hope.

  ****

  “Are you happy?” Sophia asked.

  “Yeah. Why wouldn’t I be?” Freya took a sip of her coffee. It was so good. This was one of the perks of working here. Such great coffee.

  “You moved out of our apartment, and you’ve moved in with Jared. Are things going great with you?”

  “I only slept there last night.”

  “You’re sleeping with him?”

  Freya paused. Her
lies were coming back to haunt her. “There’s something I need to tell you, Sophia.”

  “What is it?” Her friend was so trusting.

  “I, erm, I kind of—no, I lied to you.”

  “What about?”

  “Sex.”

  Sophia stared at her, waiting.

  “Erm, I’ve never had sex before, and I didn’t have sex with Jared in his office. I … lied. I don’t even know why I lied. I just freaked out, and I wanted to tell you about my feelings for him. I don’t want everyone to think that my mom really did have an effect on me.”

  “But she did?” Sophia asked.

  “I think she did. I’m fighting it though. I want Jared so much, and I don’t want to keep thinking of Mom’s rants. I’m crazy, aren’t I?”

  “You’re a little crazy.” Sophia chuckled. “Wow. You’ve not lied about anything else?”

  “No, nothing else. I promise. Will you forgive me?” Freya asked.

  “No, absolutely not. How dare you lie?” Sophia glared at her for an entire second, and then burst out laughing. “I don’t care. I’m hurt that you think you needed to lie, but I can see why. Your mother even scared me. All the men that cheated on her.”

  “What if it happens to me, Soph? What if I’m going to get hurt?”

  “Jared won’t do that to you. You’ve got to have some faith in yourself, and not keep thinking about your mother and her problems. Truth, are you having sex with Jared?”

  Freya was so pleased, and knew she had to make it up to her friend somehow. She wasn’t going to lie to her again. “No.” She wanted to. Her dreams had been filled with him, and it had made for a very uncomfortable night. “We have separate rooms. We’re just going to get to know each other.”

  “I thought you did.”

  “We do but not like really close. It’s complicated, Sophia. He has this really beautiful house though, large rooms, and I even saw a library.”

  “I know you love to read.”

  “I know, right. He’s got this huge kitchen as well, but I can’t really do a whole lot of cooking.”

  “You burn ramen noodles,” she said. “I get it.”

  “We had breakfast, shared coffee, and talked about the news.” Freya frowned. “It was really nice.”