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“Huh.” He mulls over my answer. “For money, status, retribution?”
My laugh sounds hollow to my ears. “All of those.”
“More than one?” Antonio’s eyebrows shoot up. His brown eyes are almost black when his gaze skims over me, appraising. “You got the build for it. Strong-looking, but not too muscly. You got that icy-cold attitude.”
“Too muscly?” I give him a mild glance. “That’s a thing?”
“I don’t like my women to have more muscles than me.”
My mouth twists in amusement. “I didn’t realize this was an interview for a date. To be clear, I’m not interested.”
“You don’t like men? I wondered about you and Carys.”
I shake my head, and for the first time, stare into his eyes. “I like men fine. As long as they aren’t telling me who I am or what I can be, we get along.” Guys like Antonio are a dime a dozen. They can’t imagine their mere association with power isn’t an instant aphrodisiac. It doesn’t work that way, at least not for me.
The door behind us opens, and she signals for me to come in. She’s not happy. Hope starts to surface in my chest. Has she given in?
As we cross the room to the desk, she snatches her purse from a chair. “I’m going to leave you with him to make his pitch. It’s your choice. I’d never presume to tell you what to do. If you decide to work with him, you’ll always be welcome to come back to me.”
I raise my eyebrows, feigning shock. “You want me to listen to what he has to say?”
“I do.”
Glancing at Lorcan, I narrow my eyes. “Is he pressuring you? I don’t want to stay if he’s making you do this.” My insides are tap dancing, but I cover it over with suspicion.
“It’s not like that. Listen to him. You and I will chat once you’re done here.” She strolls out of the room, her shoulders full of tension. Whatever went on in here, Carys isn’t comfortable with some aspect. I focus on Lorcan as the door shuts behind her.
“Well,” I say. “What’s the offer?”
Chapter Five
Lorcan’s face twists with amusement. “I like that you’re straight to the point.”
“Why waste time?” I don’t take a seat. “I’m happy working for Carys, so your offer needs to be something special.”
“I’ve been seeking a female bodyguard—”
“Not interested.” I twirl on my heel, a calculated risk. The more resistance I put up, the less likely he’ll be to suspect me later. He’ll have won me over.
“Wait,” he says when my hand hits the doorknob. “I’m willing to go beyond the title for the right person. I understand you’ve been working very closely with Carys.” The lilt in his voice is back again, and my shoulders relax. There’s something in the cadence of his voice that could lure me straight into bed. Zaps the fight out of me.
“I have. I’ve earned my spot at her side.”
“What’ll it take to get you to come here, work for me?” In front of me now, he crosses his arms over his chest and gives me an intense stare.
“I like to feel important,” I admit. “Central, needed.”
He nods. “What I want you to do would do those things.”
“If it’s not a bodyguard, then what?”
His jaw tightens with tension. “You know my father was killed?”
“Yes.”
“You know the circumstances?”
“Yes.”