Page 67 of Sweet Deception

"You announced that she's just a fuck toy. I know it was to keep their eyes on you and not her." Rafael raises his eyebrow.

My gut clenches when he reminds me. Hating that those words were even necessary. "I did. I want to keep their attention off her."

"To be convincing, you need to limit your time together. Have her over at night only and go about your day as if she isn't even a thought. Otherwise, they'll never believe it."

Rafael is right, but fuck, I hate to do that to her. I look at the couch where we had our first real conversation. This will hurt her if I do this.

Resigned, I sigh. "You're right. I just don't like it."

"If it makes you feel better, it won't be for long. Rome said he thinks they'll move quickly now that they're aware you know about the plant." Gio rubs his chin. "It would have been ideal if they did it last night, but we all agreed it was probably too soon for them to strategize the break in."

"I agree. I think at the earliest, it will be Friday or Saturday night. If they're smart, they'll wait for Sweet Connections office to close for the weekend." Rafael uses his knee to nudge Gio. A smirk on his face. "You okay with entertaining Lisa for another week or two?"

Gio grins as he raises his glass to his mouth, not responding until after he takes a sip of his drink. "I didn't realize how awesome it is to have a fuck buddyso convenient at hand. I'm thinking about contracting my own sugar baby when this is all over."

Rafael and I just stare at him.

"What? Look at you." Gio tips his head to me. "You're giddy like a school boy getting it on the regular. You know what I'm talking about. And you should do the same." Gio turns to Rafael. "When was the last time you got laid?"

Rafael just shakes his head, exasperated.

"Your loss. I, for one, like having my dick sucked anytime I have the urge without having to work for it."

Rafael shifts his focus back to me. "Do you want to hang around to view the monitors this weekend?"

"I think I should for a time, just to occupy myself when I can't go to Kylie. I'll tell her I'm on a work trip so she can stay home this weekend while we monitor the feed." Scrubbing a hand over my face, I lean my head back against the chair, already tired of this entire ordeal. "Who's monitoring the feed now?"

"Tony. He and Leo have been helping me monitor the offices from my place." Rafael confirms.

"I'll come too. It'll be like a sleep over." Gio grins.

With a plan in place, I send the guys off and return to approving the invoices for the hotel. I have plenty to keep me busy and away from Kylie this week, thanks to the renovations. Maybe this is for the better. Her finals are coming up and if I back off, she'll have time for her studying.

***

I stayed in the office until ten, but knowing Kylie arrived at my house at nine made the last hour hard to concentrate. It was time to call it a night and head home.

As I climb the stairs to the third floor, the soft melody of piano music drifts toward me. Intrigued, I stop at my bedroom door to find Kylie wearing one of my t-shirts with her bare legs crossed, sitting on my bed. Her papers are spread out like an arc around her while her phone sits beside her playing music.

Enjoying the scene in front of me, I cross my arms and lean against the door jamb. Her hair's piled into a messy knot on top of her head as she concentrates on what she's reading with a pencil in her mouth.

She catches sight of me when she goes to turn the page and whips her head toward the door. She straightens abruptly and puts her hand over her heart. "Sorry, I didn't hear you come in."

"I noticed—no, don't." I command when she starts gathering her papers. She snaps her gaze to mine with furrowed brows. I walk over and smooth the frown lines away. "Continue with your studying. I'm going to take a shower."

"Okay. I'm almost done." She smiles shyly at me.

Moving to the nightstand, I remove my watch and set it down, along with my wallet and phone, before heading to the bathroom.

Eager to put my hands on Kylie, I shower quickly. If she wasn't studying, I'd pull her in with me.

I don't bother getting dressed, just walk back into the bedroom, using a towel to rub my hair dry. I glance up, hearing Kylie suck in a breath and smirk at the hunger in her eyes.

She flicks her gaze at my mouth. Her eyes narrow at my smug expression before relaxing and shaking her head. "I can't get over how comfortable you are nude."

I toss the towel behind me to land on the bathroom floor. "You will. My goal is for you to be just as comfortable, so the next time I come home to you studying on my bed, you'll be doing it naked."

"Not likely. It's too … exposed." She laughs, gathering her papers and moving everything to the dresser.