Again, we picked up a vixen standing on the curb in front of a high-rise condo. This time, she wore a forest-green dress, the neckline dropping in a deep V between her breasts, and the hemline just two degrees south of illegal.

My heart leapt into my throat as she eased into the limo, her pale legs closing before I could get a glimpse of the wonderland between her thighs.

“You look unforgettable.” I forced myself to not dig at my collar. Scarlet had some magic of making the air disappear the moment I saw her.

She smiled and pulled out her lipstick. “Did you practice that one, Sparky?”

Her playful tone was in place, but there was something different. She applied her lipstick and placed it and the mirror back into her bag.

I plucked a lock of her fiery red hair and slid the smooth strands between my thumb and forefinger. “I practiced in the mirror a few times. Tried out different words. But that one just came to me the second I saw you.”

Her warm brown eyes caught mine. “You’re sweet.”

“I think you know I’m more than that.” I trailed my fingertips along her smooth throat.

She flushed but grabbed my wrist. “Don’t. We need to keep this professional.”

She was one hundred percent correct, but “professional” had gone out the window the moment she came with my head nestled between her legs.

“What’s the matter?”

She shrugged and dropped her gaze. “Nothing. I’m just trying to keep this as a business arrangement.”

A sharp sting sliced through my heart, and I leaned back against the leather. I knew what she was doing. For being a mystery, she was clear as freshly Windexed glass on this point. She was afraid to get close, to open up. The stuff with Pauly was just the tip of the iceberg.

“You don’t have to be scared.”

Her head whipped around. “I’m not scared.”

“You are.” I smoothed my hands down the lapels of my suit coat.

“You don’t know anything about me.”

“I know lots.” I smiled at her, getting under her skin for once. “I know the sounds you make when you come on my face—”

She huffed and crossed her arms over her chest. “That was a momentary lapse in judgment.”

I nodded as if I were entertaining her words. “Okay, so what about the cock sucking?”

Her back stiffened. “Also a lapse.”

“I think you enjoyed every minute of it, and only got scared when you realized that meant you were opening up to me.”

She smirked. “You call that thinking?”

“This is just like Aliens Versus Vampires II. Commander Reptilian meets and falls in love with an enemy in the vampire fleet, but she pushes him away because of her dark past as an alien hunter. Fangia was the one who captured his father and turned him over to the vampire overlords for his eventual execution. So, of course, she was afraid the Commander would find out and not want her anymore. But you know what he did when he found out?”

She rolled her eyes. “This is the nerdiest thing I’ve ever heard in my life, but sure, continue.”

“Don’t be embarrassed about liking the series.” I patted her knee. “You’ll be watching them all with me soon enough.”

She guffawed, but I continued, “He was angry at first. Like shoot-your-laser-gun-into-space-while-screaming-at-the-stars angry. But once he realized Fangia wasn’t that person anymore, he forgave her, and they joined forces to rid the galaxy of the alien and vampire conflict.”

Her nose wrinkled. “So, if they joined forces and ended the conflict, why are there what, three more movies in the series?”

“Five.” I coughed into my hand. “And the series had to continue because…well…Fangia died in the final battle of the second movie.”

She gaped at me, her mouth slightly open. “Did you just tell me a story where the character that is presumably me dies at the end?”

“Yeah, I didn’t really think that one all the way through.” I glanced out at the lights of Park Avenue as we approached the Four Seasons.

A smile flirted with the corner of her lips. “For the record, I didn’t kill your father, and my name’s not Fangia.”

“Also, on a positive note, you’re not dead, either.”

Her amusement faded, draining from her eyes.

I moved closer. “What is it?”

“Nothing.”

“Is it Pauly?”

She shook her head. “I wish you didn’t know about that.”

“Too late. Have you thought about maybe going to the police?”

Her crossed arms tightened, and she turned away from me. “Not an option.”

“Maybe I could—”

“Leave it.” She had shut down, the musical tone of her voice dulled.

I wanted to pull her into my arms and tell her she could trust me, but her body language was clear. Pushing wouldn’t get me where I wanted to go.

“I’m sorry I brought it up again.”

“It’s all right.” She still didn’t look at me.

We pulled up in a line with the same red-carpet treatment as the prior weekend. People crowded the sidewalk under the glass awning of the hotel, and stars and socialites walked down the row waving and smiling.

I couldn’t let it drop. “I just wish you’d let me help you.”

Her tone softened. “You can’t save me, Willis. It doesn’t work that way. So, you might as well stop trying. Let’s just get through tonight, okay? Help me shine for you.”

Fuck. She was more focused on making my career a success than I was.

“You don’t need me for you to shine.”

She smiled but turned to look out the window, hiding it from me. “Well, I do need you to help me with any questions that involve a talking penis.”

“I’ll be all over it.”

Her shoulders shook with quiet laughter, and I re-thought over what I just said.

“I meant that I’m all over the question, not all over the talking penis.”

“Of course.” Her voice cracked with a giggle.

I leaned closer to her and pressed my lips against her ear, her delicious vanilla perfume begging me to take a bite. “Do you recall the spanking we discussed?”

“No.” Her voice turned silky. “Haven’t a clue what you’re referring to.”

“I’ll remind you.” We stopped at the red carpet, and her door opened, but I grabbed her elbow before she could escape me. “Soon.”