Page 13 of The True Garza

“Ah, cool.” I straighten and pick up my folder. Then salute Guy. “See you around, frenemy.”

Then, I’m out the door.

CHAPTER Five

“Panty-wetter True Garza?”

Lonny

After having the “visitor’s pass”bracelet removed downstairs, I assume a composed demeanor and exit the building. Even though the pulse under my skin is anything but.

I’m nervous. Ridiculously so.

It’s been well over ayear. The man’s married. Maybe even has a little one on the way. My ovaries shouldnotbe this excited about seeing him again.

Head down, I make a beeline for my car. Just casually pretending to forget that he asked me to meet him in the parking lot.

Dry heat licks at the back of my neck, making me miss the cool air-conditioning inside the sumptuous Red Cage building.

“Knew this old thing looked familiar,” a deep voice comes at me as I’m opening my door.Hisvoice.

I jerk in the direction of his voice to find him observing my car. Where did he even come from?

“Tammy’s a classic, not ‘old,’” I tell him.

One corner of his mouth kicks up. “Ah, yeah. Tammy. I remember that, too.”

He’d washed her for me once. On the eve of the end of our fling. He’d spent that entire Sunday with me at the cabin. I’d sipped a cup of coffee out on the porch and leered as all six-foot-four of him, in nothing but a pair of jeans, lathered Tammy in suds before hosing her down. Although he was gone for good by sundown, that Sunday is still one of my favorite days ever.

True pulls his attention from Tammy and fixes it on me. It’s probing. All while I struggle to ignore the spikes of lust clawing under my skin. “Your parents really named you London Bridge?”

“Yep.” I flip my keys around my fingers. “There’s also Brooklyn Bridge and Charles Bridge, my siblings. They thought they were being clever. And, yeah, I got teased in pre-school. Kids would push me down and sing ‘London Bridge is falling! London Bridge is falling!’”

You’re blabbing. Stop blabbing. Don’t let him unnerve you. He’sjusta man.Amarriedman.

“Why’d you give me a wrong name?” he asks.

“Why didyougive me a wrong name?”

“I didn’t. My middle name’s Mateo.”

“But that’s clearly not the name you go by, so it’s not much different from me giving a wrong name.”

He just watches me with a slight frown, his eyesroamingmy face.

The heat pressing down on my skin has nothing to do with the sun this time. Unfortunately, I’m stillverymuch attracted to this man. And having already sampled the goods—knowing exactly what that mouth and those hands can do—doesn’t help one bit.

With a clearing of my throat, I turn to open my door again. “Anyway, I’ve gotta get back to the office.”

“Just spoke to Walter,” he says. “You’re not supposed to be at the office.”

At that, I pause and face him. “Here’s the thing, if we’re gonna work together, then what you willnotdo is callanyonebehind my back to talk about me.I’mon this assignment, soI’mwho you’ll speak to. If Walter Bridge has something he wants passed on to me, tell him to talkdirectlyto me. I won’t be taking orders from him through you, got it? And I also willnotbe taking orders from any Red Cage asshole. I’m workingwithyou. I’m not under you.”

As the last line leaves my mouth, a slow grin stretches across his face. I bite my lip and lift a finger at him. “Don’t even think about making a sexual pun.”

He lifts his hands in surrender. “Only called him to confirm their budget. Trust me, I don’t report shit to old boy Bridge. Barely even like him.”

“Well… good.”