“Hey, Malik.”

Lindsay stood a few yards away from the barn where Malik was closing up. Daisy stood beside him.

“What are you doing out here?”

She held up an envelope. “I brought you something. Photos from the shoot.”

“You didn’t have to come out here to do that.”

“I wanted to.”

“Let’s see what you have.” Malik took the envelope and walked toward the front of the house. Daisy trotted along beside him, and Lindsay followed behind. He hadn’t seen or heard from her since the shoot, but he had to admit to being curious about how the photos turned out.

He sat down on one of the steps, and Daisy settled on the porch, resting her large head on her paws. Lindsay chose to remain standing in front of him. He removed the photos and examined them one by one.

“What do you think?” Lindsay asked.

“They’re nice.”

“I think they’re amazing. Hal and the publishing company think you and I have real chemistry.”

He glanced up at her.

Lindsay’s attitude toward him had changed. She used to be cool-acting, treating him like something stuck on the bottom of her shoe. Like someone she didn’t want to touch and barely had time to talk to for more than three seconds—the three seconds it took to say hello and goodbye. Now he knew why. She thought he’d rejected her the night of Stephan’s party.

Now, she was definitely feeling him. Hell, Malik was feeling her, too. She was casually sexy the way confident women were when they knew they were the shit. She wore a black sleeveless top cut short enough to show a sliver of skin between the hemline and the waistband of her long tribal print skirt. If she twisted to the right, maybe he’d be lucky enough to see the line of butterflies she told him about.

“You stare a lot,” she said.

He didn’t even realize he’d been staring. “And you speak your mind a lot.”

“Only when I need to.” She shrugged.

He sensed there was another reason for her visit. “What’s going on, Lindsay? What really brought you out here? Because it wasn’t to give me these photos.” He stuffed the pictures back into the envelope and handed it to her.

She tucked it into her large purse. “Well, now that you mention it, I need to talk to you, and it’s kind of important. Life-changing.”

“Life-changing? Oh, then I’m all ears.”

“I’m really getting tired of your sarcasm.”

Malik chuckled. Man, he would love to give her a good spanking. See how saucy she was then. “Pardon me. Please continue.” He leaned back, resting his elbows on the step above him.

“Funny thing happened,” she started. “Like I said, Hal and Bear Publishing loved the photos we took. And, um…” She licked her lips. “They want to see more of us together, and I wanted to know if—”

“No.”

“Wait a minute! Listen. I need you to attend a few more events. One is a radio interview lined up for me already. Really, it’s not much.”

“So basically, I have to continue pretending to be your fiancé?”

“Yes.”

“Hell, no.” He stood, indicating he was done with the conversation.

“Malik, what’s the big deal?”

“I don’t want to lie anymore. Makes me feel weird.”

“I couldn’t tell. You did a helluva good job faking it at the photo shoot,” Lindsay said dryly.

“I figured you wanted our engagement to appear believable.”

“Hmm. Guess I’m not the only one good at lying.”

“But you might be the only one who doesn’t feel guilty about it.”

She frowned. “Is that an attack on my character?”

“Take it however you see fit. Listen, I have a life. I have a career I’m trying to build.” He waved in the direction of the barn. “Have you done anything toward getting me in touch with Nina’s people to see if I could sell my tree sculpture?”

“I sent my sister an email already, but she’s probably in some remote part of the world without Internet service at the moment. As soon as I hear from her, I’ll get the information for you. Until then, can’t you help me out?”

“Why should I do this for you?”

“Because I have something you need.”

“Which is…?”

Lindsay took a deep breath. “I’m going to talk to Nina about the sculpture, but you have real talent, Malik, and for the next few months, I have publicity. Lots of it. I can get you in front of people who’d be interested in your work.”

Malik remained silent.

Lindsay rushed on. “Instead of only appearing as my fiancé, we could use my time in front of the media to talk up your work, as well. We need to get your website set up and running and put your pieces on display, but whenever you do an appearance with me, we should make sure to plug your sculptures. Coupled with talking to Nina’s people, I’m sure we can get you started on being a self-sustaining artist. I only need you for a few months. What do you think?”

“I think this is another hare-brained scheme that I want no part of.”

“Was the other one so bad? You made five hundred dollars for one hour’s work.”

“An hour’s work you failed to mention would end up in some of the country’s most popular magazines. There’s no telling what you’ll get me into if I have to continue this charade.”

Lindsay placed her hands together in a prayerlike position. “You could become a household name. Isn’t that what you want? For people to know you and fall in love with your artwork?

He scrubbed a hand across his jaw. “I don’t want any handouts.”

“It’s not a handout. It’s a hand up. You’ll meet the right people, but you still have to do the work. Do you have any idea how many people have become successful from the breaks they get? From who they know?”

“This is nuts. It’s crazy.”

“Crazy enough to work?” Lindsay said hopefully.

“No, just crazy.” Malik pushed out a breath and paced away from her so he could think clearly.

He instinctively knew that if he ventured down this road, he was asking for trouble. Lindsay was the kind of woman he’d promised himself he’d avoid from now on. The kind with plenty of sass and attitude that turned him on. The I-don’t-need-a-man type. The crazy kind. The ones who’d smash your car window or burn your clothes in a front yard bonfire—both of which had happened to him.

He didn’t know why he was attracted to drama. Maybe because otherwise, his life was boring and sedate, having been raised by a single mother who’d been too proud to reach out to anyone, even family, for help, no matter how hard they struggled.

So women like Lindsay were his catnip, and three years after their not-so-stellar introduction to each other, she could easily jeopardize everything he’d worked toward the past few years. As temptation personified, she could make him forget his personal promise and do all the nasty things to her he’d envisioned ever since that kiss.

But how could he pass up this opportunity?

Malik came back to her, his eyes resting on her expectant face. “Are you sure this is going to work?”

“Of course. We have to get a few personal details down first. We need to get to know each other better. I’ll send you some questions, and we could have a meeting at a later date, to compare notes and talk.”

“Something tells me I’m going to regret this,” Malik muttered.

“I promise you won’t.”

He sighed. “Fine.”

“Yes! We only have to pretend for a few more months. Which brings me to the next issue.” She smiled sweetly.

“What?” he asked, suspicion lacing his voice.

“You’ll have to put your private life on hold for a bit. We both will because we’ll have more media attention on us. So, whatever your biological urges, please be discreet. You know how to be discreet, don’t you?” She flashed a grin.

She was obviously fishing for details about his sex life, and he eyed her for a few seconds, wondering how much of his private life to share. “You don’t have to worry about my biological urges being a problem. I don’t date much.”

“You sure?”

“One hundred percent certain.”

“Hmm. That explains how you have so much time to create all those pieces. Why don’t you date much?”

“You gonna keep probing into my personal life?”

Lindsay wasn’t the kind of woman to fluster easily and so far didn’t seem to have a problem saying whatever was on her mind. Yet his question made her lower her thick lashes and a reddish tint surfaced under her luminous brown skin.

“I’m curious about you, that’s all.”

Like other women he’d run across, she was probably wondering what was wrong with him.

“I’m a single man living in Atlanta, where sisters outnumber men. It’s easy to hook up. I just don’t want to.”

“All the more reason why what you said doesn’t make sense.” She bit the tip of her fingernail between her teeth, looking at him like she wanted to serve up a platter of Malik.

“Relationships take time, and I’m too dedicated to my craft. Focused on one goal.”

“Which is?” She gave him that look again, heat in her eyes like she wanted to climb on top of him.

“Becoming a successful artist.” He wanted to put away six months’ expenses in the bank. If he could do that, he’d be on his way to achieving what his mother had wanted for him.

“You’re a very attractive man, Malik, with an obviously incredible body. There are so many women who would be happy to have a non-relationship relationship with you. You know, like a friends-with-benefits thing that wouldn’t distract you from your work.”

“Is that so?”

“Mhmm.”

“Do you know of any?” He looked right at her. Would she admit it?

“I do.”

“I wouldn’t mind talking to her. See where her head is at.”

“I’m sure she wouldn’t mind talking to you, too, or doing whatever you have in mind.”

Malik laughed softly and scrubbed a hand down the side of his beard. His gaze swept her body. “What am I going to do with you, Lindsay?”

“I can think of a few things.”

“Is that right?”

“Mhmm.” Her hazel eyes glinted with a mischievous light, and his dick jumped. They were entering dangerous territory, wading into waters he hadn’t ventured into for a long time. He needed to set her straight before the situation got out of hand.

Malik stepped closer so they were less than a foot apart. She gazed up at him, lips parted, eyes seductively peeking at him through her long lashes. He wanted to kiss her again and do much more. Lately he’d had some wild thoughts in which she’d held a starring role. He imagined licking every bit of brown flesh or having her bounce up and down on his thrusting hips, his hands filled with her lush breasts. And right now, standing so close, the scent of her was tempting. She was really testing his resolve.

Clenching a fist to resist the urge to toss her over his shoulder and have his way with her, Malik lowered his voice and whispered, “I’m not gonna fuck you, Lindsay.”

Her eyes widened. “Excuse me?”

“I mean, I want you and I’m going to have you eventually, but not right now. The timing’s all wrong. I’ll fuck you when I’m ready.”

“Wh-who do you think you are?” she sputtered.

“Right now, you need to prove you can do what you say you can for my career, and I need to keep my head clear. Thing is, when we fuck—”

“Would you stop staying that!” She glanced around even though no one was nearby. “You make it sound like it’s a given.”

“Because it is.” No way they wouldn’t end up together. Heat registered between them every time they came near each other. “I’ve had my eye on you since that night at Stephan’s party, and I know you’ve had your eye on me. I’m not ready to make my move yet because I need to concentrate. But when I’m ready, we’ll hook up.”

Lindsay’s mouth fell open, and she took a step back. “Does that schtick really work?”

“What schtick?”

“Your overbearing confidence and the cocky way you told me what was going to happen between us.”

“You’d be surprised how well honesty works.”

“Is that what you call it?”

“Because of my honesty, I’ve had women throw their panties at me like I’m a rock star.”

“Wow. Unbelievable.”

“I’m just being honest. I can’t tell you how many women have told me I’m the best sex they’ve ever had.”

“Were they all virgins? Because all this bragging makes me think you probably can’t deliver.”

“You don’t believe that for one minute.” He locked gazes with her.

She took a tremulous breath. “Be that as it may, I think you need—”

“This conversation is over for now, and we should get back to talking about how we’re going to fool everybody into believing we’re a couple. Like you said, we need to learn enough about each other to make our relationship believable. The chemistry between us can be addressed at a later date. We good?”

She appeared frustrated but answered, “I guess. As long as you sell it.”

“I did before, didn’t I?”

“Yes.” She looked confused, as if she couldn’t figure out what had just happened during the conversation. He’d thrown her off balance.

“How bad do you want this, Lindsay?”

“Really bad.”

His gaze dropped to her lips. “Yeah, I want it bad, too,” he said, and she licked those pouty lips as if they’d suddenly gone dry. His eyes flicked back up to hers. “I guess I’ll be your fiancé for the next few months.”