I watch Mr. Lavin walk away, confident even under pressure. Not many could be so cool even when confronted by a rival. It’s annoying that I admire him so much.

Bastard.

“Are you happy now? We’ll be lucky if they don’t throw us out of this place.” Mya’s words are cross but she doesn’t really seem angry that I’m here.

“I’m sorry, was I interrupting? You two seemed awfully cozy.” My eyes land on the flower next to her plate.

She flushes. “About that. It’s not what you think.”

“Are you sure? Because it looks like Mr. Lavin asked you on a date and you showed up to have dinner with him.”

“Maybe it is what it looks like,” Mya continues hurriedly, “but only because my brain functioning was impaired by too much Chunky Monkey. I thought he wanted to talk about the work we put in.”

Oh, that Italian fucker wanted to put some work in, all right. He was planning to give her a naked workout in his hotel room later.

“You really thought he wanted to talk about the campaign?”

She huffs. “It seemed like it. At first. But then he told me what you said to him in Vegas. How you told him to stay away from me.”

“Of course I did. Mya, that man wants you. The question is whether you want him back, because if you do, then I’ll leave now.” I slide closer until we’re thigh-to-thigh. “But I want you to ask yourself, will he do the things to you I can do?”

Her breathing quickens and she shifts in her seat.

“Do you get wet when you think of him?” I continue in a low voice, sliding a hand onto her thigh. The thin fabric of her dress is little barrier as my fingers climb higher.

“No. I only feel that way about you.” A soft moan slips from her lips when my finger finds home and presses. Hard. If we weren’t sitting down already she probably would have collapsed.

“Good. Because I wanted to punch that smug fucker’s face the entire time he was sitting here.” I edge her panties aside.

“Oh my god, Milo! We’re in public.” She sounds appalled but she’s also not saying no.

I grin wickedly but my finger slows slightly. “Tell me you won’t see him again.”

She bites her lip. “I won’t see him again. Not like this. But maybe it’s best if we don’t jump right back in. It only hurt so much because I realized how quickly things were moving. I don’t want to get hurt again. Men like you don’t settle down. And I’m not expecting anything. You never made any promises.”

“Oh but I did. You just weren’t listening.” I turn, wishing we were anywhere but this cramped booth. “My body made promises to yours the first time we made love. My lips promised you pleasure every time we kissed.”

Her eyes look wounded. “You know what I mean. It was just sex. I knew that going in. It’s my fault that I suddenly found myself wanting more.”

“I know about wanting more, Mya. I’ve botched this thing so badly I don’t even know where to begin to repair things, so I’ll do what I should have done that night in Vegas.” I grab her hand. “Mya Christine Taylor, I have been in love with you since, well, since forever.”

“You love me?” Mya’s eyes fill with tears as she tries to yank her hand back. “You’ve never said that before.”

“All those times I made up stupid excuses to argue with you, I was saying I love you. When I dropped everything to rescue you from dry humping random guys in a bar, I was saying I love you. From poker nights with your parents, to getting kicked out of my own shower, I told you every day in every way I knew how. I’m sorry I’m not better at this.”

Mya kisses me softly. “Actually, you’re doing just fine.”

I yank her back and our lips meet again, and this time there’s nothing soft about it. My mouth slants over hers, taking the kiss so deep and wet that I think we both forget where we are.

Until…

Andre clears his throat and we both turn to look at him. “I apologize Miss Taylor but I have to cut this short. My brother who is here visiting the States with me has been in a minor accident. I need to go to the hospital.”

“Oh no, I’m so sorry to hear that.” Mya tries to stand but I remain seated, blocking her in the booth. She huffs and shoves all her weight at me which does nothing other than cause her to hurt her own hip.

Andre watches us struggling with amusement. “Even though this dinner has not gone the way I’d hoped, I must admit it has been entertaining. Please, stay and enjoy dinner. I’ve instructed the manager to put it all on my tab.” He inclines his head to both of us. “I’ll be in touch soon about the campaign. But in the meantime, if either of you ever needs anything, feel free to call.”

We both sit in shock as he strides away.

“Did he just say that he would be in touch about–” Mya turns to me with a look of confusion that mirrors how I feel.

I have to give him credit. He knows how to keep us guessing. “That motherfucker is enjoying this. He knows he’s got us on pins and needles about whether we’ll get this job. But I don’t even care anymore.”

“You don’t?”

“No. This account has been nothing but trouble from the start.”

“Why didn’t you tell me what was going on in Vegas?”

“Because I didn’t want to put you in that position. I wasn’t sure if you’d feel pressured to flirt with him to get the account. Not that I thought James would ask you to but still, the pressure would have been there.”

I hesitate. That’s not entirely the truth but the answer to this question is complicated. And revealing. But then I think of everything we’ve gone through to get to this moment. Most of the trouble could have been avoided if I’d been honest and hadn’t let my fear of rejection steer the way. Mya is nothing like Tessa. She’s never done anything to make me believe she cares about power or position. In fact, the only thing she’s ever actually asked me for is… me.

“That was part of it but also he’s handsome, rich and well-connected. All I could think was that I’d lose you before I even had the chance to tell you how I felt.”

“You were jealous.” Her voice trembles slightly.

She’s not going to let me off the hook even now. That’s my ballbuster. “Yes, I was jealous.”

“You didn’t need to be.” Mya leans over and kisses my cheek. “I didn’t want him. The only man I wanted was the one I was fake engaged to.”

Suddenly it hits me that we’re still sitting in this restaurant in public when we could be at home. Alone.

“Come on. Let’s get out of here.”

It’s time I prove to Mya that there’s nothing fake about my feelings for her. If I want to win her heart, it’s time to put it all on the line. These are the highest stakes I’ve ever encountered and I’m willing to do whatever it takes to get there.

And I’m not above begging if I have to.