Page 4 of Scandalous Contract

I’m a meteorologist for my local news channel.That kind of made me a local celebrity. But he wouldn’t know that unless he was from my town. And I was almost two hours away from home. Still, I was about ninety-six percent sure I hadn’t told him my name.

“Stefanie,” he started, voice low and deep, almost a growl, like he was testing the feel of my name on his tongue.

My stomach clenched. I’m pretty sure another part of me did, also. But I was trying my best to ignore that part of me.

“Call me Ms. Adams,” I insisted, setting boundaries that were sorely needed with this guy.

His smile only widened. “Ms. Adams? NotMrs. Which means you’re not married. I’ll be happy to call youMs. Adams.”

That sounded even worse on his tongue.His tongue? Ugh!Why was I thinking about his tongue? He grinned, slow and knowing, and it annoyed me immediately.

“Do you remember telling me that you’re here to pick up your daughter?” he asked.

“Of course I do.”

“Just checking, Ms. Adams. What dorm does she stay in? I’ll take you to her," he offered.

“No, thank you.”

He took a deep breath and released it slowly like I was frustrating him or something. I should be the one doing that, not him.

“If you don’t want my help, fine.” He took a step back. “It was nice meeting you, Ms. Adams. I’ll be here watching you walk around, lost, while you look for your daughter. If you need me, just call my name. I’m Julian Cattaneo.”

Cattaneo? My daughter’s roommate was Aubrey Cattaneo, and she had an older brother named Julian. I’d heard the girls talk about how strict he was with his sister. Far stricter than her parents. Poor Aubrey was always complaining about him.

“Are you... Aubrey’s brother?” I asked.

He nodded. “Yes. That brat is my sister.”

Oh, no. Earth, swallow me whole right now.Had I really been getting flustered over the brother of my daughter’s roommate?

“How do you know Aubrey?” he asked.

I took a deep breath and released it slowly. “She’s my daughter’s roommate.”

“You’re India’s mom,” he said. “Wow! Small world, huh?”

“Yeah. The smallest,” I muttered, wishing I’d run into anyone except him.

“Aubrey told me that India’s mom was pretty. But I hadn’t expected you to be this stunning.”

Uh-uh.No more compliments or subtle flirting. I couldn’t lust after the guy who my daughter said half the girls in her dorm had a crush on. Though India swore he wasn’t her type, she’d said that most of her friends were in love with him.

She’d also mentioned that Aubrey got tired of her friends and people on campus asking her if her brother was single. Julian Cattaneo turned heads wherever he went. I was not about to be one of his admirers. It was time to nip this in the bud.

“As you know, the girls had to switch to the new dorms because the old dorms flooded,” I told him. “This is my first time coming to the new dorms. There were so many cars on campus that I thought it would be easier to walk. I was wrong. I, sort of...”

“Got lost.”

“Got turned around,” I corrected, hating the smile he gave me.

“I’m heading in the same direction. If you want, I’ll take you there. But only if you need me.”

To. If you need me to.That’s what he should’ve said. But he was doing this on purpose. There was a level of petty in me that wanted to teach this cocky young man a lesson. I swallowed that urge down.

“Yes, I need you to show me to my daughter’s new dorm. That’sallI need from you, Julian Cattaneo.”

He stood there staring at me for so long that I thought he’d changed his mind. Finally, he spoke up.