Chapter 4

FOUR

BASH

“His name is Thomas Rowe Prince.” Kenji clicked a button on his tablet, and Rowe’s picture appeared on my office wall screen. “He’s twenty-four, from Linden, Indiana, no college degree, no criminal record, pitifully small bank balance, and he’s currently working under the table delivering fast food. Sent the full report to your email and the group chat.”

I sat back in my leather chair and stared at the DMV photo from several years ago. That was definitely the man I’d met last night. Same enormous, innocent eyes. Same sweet, slightly rounded features. Same brown hair, though the man in the picture kept his ruthlessly tidy.

But there was something different about him, too. Despite the horrible lighting, the person in the photo looked confident and carefree, while the guy I’d met last night had seemed… well, nervous as fuck.

Maybe because he hadn’t been attempting to steal someone’s identity back then , I thought grimly as I turned away from the photo and sipped my coffee. “Any idea what game he’s playing?”

According to Kenji’s info, Rowe had no background in app development, no company that needed funding. So what the hell had brought him to the city looking for a meeting with Justin Hardy?

Kenji turned from the wall, set his hands on his lean hips, and regarded me for a long moment. “You mean besides the game of impersonating a fictional person, probably in an attempt to ingratiate himself with the people at the gala so he can steal their money?”

I grunted. It was a fair assessment, and it shouldn’t have set me on edge as much as it did. “He won’t be getting any from me, that’s for damn sure.”

“Oh, no, you’re far too smart for that, sir.” Kenji cocked his head to one side, though his shiny hair was too well-groomed to budge. “You’re merely spending the afternoon enjoying polo with him.”

“First off, the match is for charity .” I fixed him with a steely glare. “As my assistant loves to remind me, networking and being philanthropic is an important part of my job as a member of Sterling Chase’s board of directors.”

“I see.” Kenji rolled his eyes. “You’re associating with the sexy schemer for philanthropic purposes. Such a giver.”

“And secondly,” I went on, ignoring a pulse of something at Kenji’s description of Rowe, “I’m going because I have a gorgeous mare with a blaze on her nose and three white socks who’s been sadly neglected for weeks.”

“Ah. You’re cavorting with the cute con artist for Starlight’s sake.”

The weight of my personal assistant’s judgment was crushing, but I forced myself to straighten in my seat. “If you have something to say, Kenji, say it.”

“ Moi ? I’d never presume to tell my boss his business…”

“Of course not.”

“But since you’re asking.” Kenji plopped into the heavy wooden side chair on the other side of my desk, his tablet on his lap. “What the heck is so special about this guy, Sebastian? If you’re looking for a hookup, I could find you a hundred men who aren’t liars or users and have a whole lot more in common with you than a guy from a tiny speck of a town who has an annual subscription to Furniture Refinishing Quarterly Magazine and recently worked the customer service desk at…” He glanced down at his tablet. “Bobby’s Tech Barn.”

I picked up a pen from the desk and toyed with it idly, staring at Rowe’s picture on the wall screen. I’d wrestled with that very question for hours after I’d finally fallen into bed last night. Why Rowe?

Because he was gorgeous? Because he had a face like an angel and a body that seemed like it would fit perfectly against mine? Well, yes, but Kenji was right; I could find that lots of places.

Because he lied like every word was being wrenched from him, but when he told the truth, he spoke with passion that couldn’t possibly be fake? That, too. But not just that, either.

Because he had secrets, and I was insanely curious about them?

Because he was adorably awkward, and I wanted to protect him from anything that could hurt him, including himself?

Because he was fucking with me, and I wanted to rage at him and throttle him?

Because he made me feel wrong-footed and on edge and amused and constantly surprised, but he made me feel … and I hadn’t realized how dull and emotionless my life had become until he’d practically face-planted in it and shaken it up?

Yes. All of that.

And more besides.

Last night at the gala, my chest had gone tight when Rowe had wished me a good night and walked away. I’d wanted badly to call out to him, to confess that I wasn’t actually his personal assistant, and to take him home to my bed. Of course, I hadn’t been quite that foolish… but I hadn’t been able to stop myself from turning to watch him leave.

I’d witnessed the whole spectacle when he’d walked directly into Mitzy Forman, gasped in apologetic shock, and reached for his pocket square, only to pull out a piece of red silk tied to a piece of yellow silk tied to a piece of green silk. Yards of pocket square and bits of card stock flowed out of his suit, a veritable flood of color against the black and white of the room.

Rowe had been horrified. He’d also been charming. I’d laughed my ass off, more amused than any attendee at a society charity gala had a right to be. And when Silas had shepherded me around the room later, forcing me to shake hands with the required number of society notables, I’d knelt and picked up one of the discarded business cards and tucked it away like a knight with a lady’s favor.

Kenji and Silas were right. It wasn’t like me. Sebastian Dayne did not do smitten.

Except, apparently, I did.

“I don’t know. There’s something about the guy, Kenji,” I said at length, because spewing out all the rest would probably make me sound insane.

“That’s exactly what Silas told me you’d say.” Kenji sounded far more bewildered than I thought was warranted by the situation. “He said you’re not acting like yourself, but I didn’t really believe it.” He followed the direction of my gaze toward the wall screen.

“You tell Silas nobody likes a tattletale.” I resolutely turned toward my laptop in an attempt to actually focus on work for the first time all morning. “Especially after I let that asshole show me around the gala like a prize steer, shaking hands with a hundred of my mother’s millionaire cronies.”

Kenji snorted. “She’d be so proud.”

I shot him a look that told me exactly how much I cared about that. “For the record, none of last night would have happened if I’d been having fun in Borneo hiking Mount Kinabalu as planned. So, really, isn’t my mother the person who deserves your Stern Disapproval Look this morning?”

“If you’d really wanted to be climbing that mountain, you wouldn’t have caved when she called you.” Kenji smirked because we both knew he was right. “You told me yourself the last adventure trip wasn’t as fun as you’d hoped. It left you feeling more restless than before.”

I cursed past-Bash for telling that truth.

“Still better than a gala ,” I grumbled, taking a folder from him so I could sign the papers inside. “And I have other options. I could go to the house in the Hamptons and hang out by the pool with sexy dilettantes.”

“You hate dilettantes.”

“I don’t need to like them to let them suck my dick,” I teased.

“Classy.” Kenji rolled his eyes before grabbing the folder back. “So, about this guy—”

Whatever warning Kenji was going to deliver was nothing I hadn’t already heard from Silas. Nothing I hadn’t already told myself .

“Don’t you have a family event to get to?” I interrupted.

Kenji pursed his lips. “Yes. I’ll be leaving for the airport soon.”

“Great. And did you get me a car and driver for this afternoon and take care of those other arrangements I asked you to make?”

“Yes,” he sighed. “Though Silas warned me not to give in to your whims.”

“You’re my PA,” I countered. “It’s literally your job to give in to my whims. And stop listening to Silas. You know he’s been fucked-up since his relationship with Justin ended.”

Kenji gave me The Look again. “What Silas had with Justin wasn’t a relationship . It was a manipulation by a narcissist fuckwad who was only out for his money, and since Silas loves you, he doesn’t want to see that happen to you. Can you blame him?”

I blew out a breath and cast my eyes to the ceiling. No, of course I couldn’t. And I knew Silas’s experience with Justin wasn’t unusual, either. Every member of our brotherhood had been targeted by users more than once.

Having this level of wealth had brought each of us incredible opportunities. Zane was pursuing his dream of becoming a professional musician, Dev had his horses, Landry had… an ever-changing harem of men to fuck. But opportunities like that came at a price—a loss of privacy, a loss of innocence, a constant worry about people’s motivations when they got too close.

Unlike the others, though, I’d grown up in this world. I’d learned early to invest my time and passion in things I could control, like my business. And aside from the brotherhood, I never let anyone get too close.

Kenji leaned forward. “Wait. Does Dev know you’re coming to the stables? Does he know you’re not coming alone?”

“Come on.” It was my turn to roll my eyes. “Of course he knows. I wouldn’t force him to interact with a stranger without warning. And, yes—” I held up a hand. “—before you ask, he lectured me also.”

You’re playing with fire, Bash , Dev had texted. Cut the guy loose. But because he knew me well enough to know that I wouldn’t take his warning, he’d also promised to get me a set of riding clothes in Rowe’s size, too.

“Good.” Kenji bit his lip. “Look, I know technically you and the others are my bosses, and a good personal assistant probably wouldn’t comment on his boss’s personal life—”

“Wait, really?” I snorted. “Where can I get one of those good assistants, just out of curiosity?”

“—but as the guy who manages your online orders of bougie lube and sex toys, and keeps track of Zane’s tour dates, and bails fucking Landry out of his messes every week, I feel like I know you guys. For reasons I cannot fathom, I care about you all.”

“Jesus.” I ran a hand over my face. I sometimes worried that we didn’t pay Kenji enough for all he did, but if we paid the man what he was worth, he’d own the company.

“But… not everyone we’re attracted to is good for us. And sometimes you don’t see the danger until it’s too late. Trust me.”

I sighed. I loved my friends, Kenji included, but sometimes they were a bunch of mother hens. “Look, I appreciate the concern. But this guy—” I jerked a thumb toward Rowe’s picture on the screen. “—can’t lie his way out of a paper bag. He’s not a danger.”

Kenji was the king of long-suffering sighs. “Why must you people always do things the hard way? Fine, then. Proceed at your own risk.” He tapped on his tablet. “FYI, I’m adding a line item to the budget for dealing with the fallout of this. Let’s call it the Fake Sterling Chase Escape Fund. We can use it to buy champagne when we toast you successfully evading the wiles of a con man… Or, alternatively, buy you a ticket to Central America so you can paraglide into an active volcano to cheer yourself up after it all ends in disaster.”

I opened my mouth to retort that I’d need no such thing when I heard a rap on my office door.

“Hey, hey!” Austin Purcell, Sterling Chase’s head of development, breezed in, his brown hair sleek and tidy, his smile bright. “Bash, do you have time for a quick chat?”

“Hey, yourself.” I gave him a genuine smile and gestured him toward the unoccupied seat in front of my desk. “Come in. Sit.”

“Mr. Purcell, Mr. Dayne doesn’t have an appointment with you on his calendar.” Kenji had dialed his chilly politeness up to a level that would give polar bears frostbite.

Austin shrugged good-naturedly. “Since he was supposed to be out today, I thought maybe his schedule would be open. Figured it wouldn’t hurt to ask. But I can come back another time if you’re busy.”

“Kenji, it’s fine,” I said, waving a hand. “I’ve got a few minutes. I planned to call Austin this morning anyway.”

Kenji sniffed, plainly displeased when Austin stretched out his long legs in the chair beside him.

I smothered a grin. For all his flawless efficiency, Kenji tended to be fairly easygoing with most people—a requirement, working for my friends and me—but there were a couple of people the man simply never seemed to warm to. Landry was one. Strangely enough, Austin Purcell was another.

He claims he’s just passing by when his office is at the other end of the building. He lies in wait for you in your office in the morning, ready to ambush you with overly sweet coffee and enthusiasm. No one should smile with so many teeth. He takes liberties, Sebastian!

Personally, though, I liked Austin a lot. We weren’t close outside of work, but he was dedicated to his job as head of development, his team loved him, and Clarissa, our CEO, considered him her right-hand man. When he’d first started, we’d actually clashed a little—before Austin, I’d been the one taking meetings with potential clients on behalf of Sterling Chase’s board of directors, and though I’d been the one to initiate the change, I’d also struggled to give up control, especially to someone I’d seen as needlessly risk-averse.

Then Austin had executed the first of his drive-by “hey, hey” conversations.

Trust me to manage this, Bash , he’d said . You’ve done an amazing job during your time as the face of the company. But if you want Sterling Chase to grow, to be famous for anything besides the Emergency Traffic Control launch, we can’t simply follow your whims anymore when deciding which projects Sterling Chase will acquire. The more successful our project launches, the bigger our profit—which will keep the company’s owners happy—and the better our reputation, which will attract even better projects to us in the future. Projects that deserve your passion and expertise.

He’d been right. Thanks to his tireless work, I’d scaled back my public involvement in the company and focused my attention on one or two of Sterling Chase’s projects each year where I could really dig in, help fledgling entrepreneurs hone their visions, and then bring them to life.

There were times when I almost felt bad that Austin and Clarissa didn’t know the truth—that my four mostly silent partners and I were the founders and owners of Sterling Chase and the creators of the ETC program—but telling them would be a decision all five members of our brotherhood would have to make unanimously, and none of the others knew Austin and Clarissa as well as I did.

Instead, I showed Austin my trust and friendship in other ways, like respecting his position as head of development and supporting his projects as much as I could.

“I spoke to Clarissa yesterday,” I told him. “She’s going to be at least another week in Sierra Leone since the launch of the digital education venture hit another snag.”

Austin grimaced. “It’s always the ones that seem simple…”

“True story. But—” I let my grin build slowly. “—she wanted to make sure I knew how impressed she was by your work on the MRO project. She said your team’s just waiting for clearance from the folks in Legal so you can move into beta testing and that you’d already found a municipality willing to test it for us, too? Fucking amazing.” I leaned back in my chair.

Austin’s ruddy face went even redder at this praise. “It just hits different when the project you’re working on is an invention you came up with yourself. When the patent is going to be in your own name. This one’s special to me.”

I nodded in total understanding. That had been one of the reasons I’d talked my friends into expanding Sterling Chase as a startup incubator, even after we’d gotten our windfall. I’d seen the importance of a company that would offer support and resources to inventors and entrepreneurs when launching products that would hopefully go on to improve people’s lives.

I thought it said a lot about our company when an employee like Austin, who’d been working on his brilliant MRO plan in his free time for years, decided to bring it to Sterling Chase for development.

“And it’s gonna net us a tidy profit on this thing once it hits the market. I think there are many avenues we can explore with this, also. Like the insurance component—higher reimbursements for companies with this technology in place, for example. But really, once we open this up to the marketplace, it can be used in many ways. The potential ROI is… Sorry .” Austin gave me a sheepish look and shifted in his seat. “I’m getting carried away. First things first—beta testing. Not sure if Clarissa mentioned to you that Upper Valley County in Virginia is the municipality that’s willing to test it?” He pulled his phone from his pocket, consulting his notes. “They’re going to install the system in all of their vehicles by the end of the week—”

“Did you consider my suggestion about the satellite uplink?”

A shadow of something passed over Austin’s face, and his smile turned wry. “Bash. We’ve talked about this. The kind of uplink you suggested would cost at least five times as much. That means the budget just to test it would be astronomical, and when we tell the buyers what their investment would be to run it? Nobody’d be able to afford it.”

It was on the tip of my tongue to say, “Then let’s work harder. Let’s develop new technology and bring the cost down.” But I had to remind myself this was Austin’s project, not one of the ones I was personally managing, so I sighed and nodded. I had to remember I was scaling back. That meant trusting Austin to manage things his own way. Letting go still wasn’t easy. That was one of the reasons I’d tried distracting myself with adventure travel recently. Maybe I needed an even bigger distraction.

“For a guy with a business degree, you’re very idealistic, and I love that about you. But we’ve gotta be logical since we operate in the real world.” Austin’s teasing grin was back, taking the sting out of his words, telling me that he didn’t begrudge my control-freak tendencies, and encouraging me to smile with him. “Remind me again why a bunch of savvy operators like the folks who founded Sterling installed a bunch of idealists and dreamers onto the board of directors?”

I gave a half chuckle. “Austin, you wouldn’t believe me if I told you. But go on. What’s the next step, after the system is installed?”

“Right, yeah. So, Legal’s getting us final approval before the beta program can go live,” he said earnestly. “There are a few i’s to dot and t’s to cross, but it should be out of our hands late next week, and I’m thinking I’ll do a celebratory lunch for the team. Jonas is working on pricing models now, and even though it’s a bit premature, I think…”

Austin droned on about cost/income projections, but despite my interest in the project, I found my gaze straying over his head to the picture on the wall screen, my focus stolen by a pair of big brown eyes.

There was nothing logical about my fascination with Rowe Prince. He was a bright blob of technicolor ink that had come out of nowhere and splashed across the orderly canvas of my life. A distraction I couldn’t afford. A risk that wouldn’t pass any of Austin’s cost-benefit analyses.

But looking at his eyes, at the curve of his cheek… I couldn’t make myself care.

He couldn’t manipulate me when I already knew he was a liar. I wasn’t going to fall for his con when I was already on the lookout for it.

And I wanted him, more than I’d wanted anything for a long time.

I wanted him on his back in my bed, his body beneath mine.

I wanted to get in his head, to learn all his secrets.

I wanted to stop his lies with my lips on his.

I wanted him to be my distraction.

“Erm. Bash?”

I blinked at Austin. “Yes! God, sorry. I was just thinking over everything you said. It’s… a lot.”

Kenji, who knew I was lying, gave a strangled cough.

Austin, who didn’t, looked confused. He turned to see what I’d been looking at, and his brow furrowed. “Do I know that guy?”

“Doubtful.” I stood, then motioned to Kenji, who tapped a few keys on his tablet that made the picture disappear. “I’m running late for my next meeting, Austin, but seriously, awesome job on this project. Let’s check in again next week. I’ll have Kenji put you on my calendar officially.”

Austin grinned and stood, offering me a handshake. “Sounds great,” he said. He flashed a smile at Kenji, who looked faintly nauseated, then walked out of the office.

Kenji stood slowly, shaking his head. “Holy ulterior motives, Batman. That man wants to kiss your ass in more ways than one.”

“Nah, I don’t get that vibe from him. Austin wants to impress me because I’m on the board of directors at the company he works for. He’s probably hoping for a fat annual bonus, a nice raise, and a promotion if Clarissa ever leaves.”

“You could be right,” Kenji grudgingly agreed.

“I am.” I lifted an eyebrow significantly. “It’s almost as if I’m a decent judge of character, Kenji. Almost like… I know what I’m doing and can handle myself.”

Kenji rolled his eyes as he headed for the door. “Keep telling yourself that, sir,” he called over his shoulder, a grin in his voice. “But every time you do, I’m upping the budget for the Escape Fund.”

“And I’m gonna use it to get myself one of those good personal assistants!” I called back, but Kenji pretended not to hear me.

* * *

I asked Morris, my driver, to arrive at the Park Avenue address twenty minutes early so I could hop in the town car and look like he’d picked me up first. The ruse was a little comical, and I felt ridiculous taking part in it… but the minute Rowe approached from the direction of the nearest subway stop, saw the car idling at the curb, and began limping in an exaggerated fashion, I let out a bark of laughter, caught up in the silliness and the challenge of him all over again.

The poor man looked legitimately terrible, with bags the size of suitcases under his eyes, a face pinched with nerves, and his hair even wilder than the night before, like maybe he’d had to run from the train. But somehow, he’d found himself a perfectly tailored pair of dark jeans and a tweed jacket, so whoever was supplying his costumes had leveled up overnight.

I hopped out of the car and threw on my cheeriest smile.

“Good afternoon, Mr. Chase! Are you ready for—oh no! it looks like you have a hitch in your giddy-up.” I held the door open and ushered him in. The scent of coffee and fresh soap wafted off his skin as he took a seat in the deep plush leather seat. “Hopefully nothing that will interfere with your playing today.”

He darted a look at me from under his eyelashes and swallowed hard.

“Ah… Actually, Bash, I’m afraid it might. It very well might. Such a disappointment. You know Sterling Chase loves… playing the ponies.” He shook a fist at the sky. “Curse you, fate!”

Just like that— just like that— any doubts or second thoughts I might have had about whether I was doing the right thing faded away into the pure joy of being in this terrible liar’s presence.

“I’m so sorry. What happened?”

“It’s rather a long story. You see, after I left the gala, I was, um… I was set upon by ruffians. It was quite upsetting.”

I shook my head. “Ruffians,” I repeated in a hushed voice. “On the way to your limo? My god. Did they attack you? Did you hurt yourself running away?”

“Run? Why the hell would I run?” he demanded, eyes narrowed in genuine annoyance. Then, like he’d remembered he was supposed to be in character, he straightened in his seat. “No, my good man, I attacked them. ” He nodded once, like he was convincing himself. “I wasn’t trained in martial arts for nothing. But I may have injured myself in the fray.”

“How devastating. Is it your trick knee, sir?” I leaned toward him to palpate his knee, ignoring the hitch in his breathing when I touched him. “Let’s see… it doesn’t feel like anything’s out of place…”

While I had intended to call his bluff, I hadn’t expected my hands to relish the job I’d given them. Rowe’s legs were shapely beneath his dark pants. The muscles curved under my touch and bunched as I squeezed them.

I looked up suddenly to meet his eyes before moving my hands down slowly over his calf. “Or is it your ankle?” My voice suddenly sounded rougher.

“I-it was Sally Struthers!” he blurted, yanking his leg away. “I was trying not to offend your delicate sensibilities since I know you’re a polo fan, but I can’t lie to you, Bash! I don’t really have an injury. What really happened was that as I was watching television, a commercial came on the air. This woman spoke so eloquently about how cruel humans can be to our poor animal brethren, and I-I decided then and there that I cannot force that indignity on my poor horse ever again. In fact, I think I’m going vegan.” Rowe crossed his arms in front of his chest. “It’ll be another of my—”

“—quirky billionaire eccentricities,” he and I finished at the same time.

I had to bite my lip to keep from laughing in Rowe’s face. Christ, this was fun.

“Being vegan is going to be quite a change for you, Mr. Chase. Does that mean you’ll want to cancel your big-game hunting trip for next month? And what will that mean for your Texas cattle ranch?”

Rowe’s nose wrinkled in disgust. “Sterling Chase hunts big game?” He blinked. “I mean. I mean… Sterling Chase does not hunt big game. No, sir. Not anymore. Cancel the trip immediately and put the cattle up for auction.”

I had to bite my tongue against a laugh. Even while bullshitting me, he was pretty damned cute, and part of me wished I had a cattle herd to sell on his behalf.

After pretending to type a note in my phone about selling his fictional ranch, I regarded him for a long moment, watching the afternoon sunlight filtering through the skylight gild his hair while he tried not to squirm under my gaze.

The man was so nervous I could practically feel the molecules in the air around him dancing with it. Yet here he was, in a car heading out of town, still doing his own flawed, adorable impression of a quirky billionaire, despite his nerves. I remembered what he’d told Miranda last night, about how letting fear hold you back was a waste of your life, and I couldn’t help feeling a grudging respect for the man.

I blinked and forced myself to look away. That kind of thinking was exactly the shit Silas and Kenji were worried about. I was here for flirtation. For fun. To fuck with the man and then, if he was amenable, to fuck him. To sort the truth from his lies. I immediately resolved to get this interaction back on track.

“You seem a little… tense,” I noted, leaning toward him to study his face more closely.

“D-do I?” Rowe leaned back against his seat.

I lowered my voice to a purr. “If you want, I know something that could help with that, Mr. Chase.”

His eyes widened.

I leaned in closer… close enough to see the tiny birthmark under his eyebrow and a spot on his cheek he’d missed while shaving. His lips parted, and his breath came out in a shaky, needy sigh that made my blood thrum.

Abruptly, I shifted left and grabbed the coffee cup I’d placed in the holder earlier.

“Coffee!” I said triumphantly. “I grabbed that new flavor you liked so much from your favorite bakery.”

He shut his eyes for a moment. “C-coffee. Right. Good.” He accepted the cup with a small smile. “You know me and my coffee.” He took a large sip and immediately choked. “This is… uh. This is very sweet.”

“Just the way you like it. Caramel-fudge-accino with extra pumps and double whip.” I beamed. “I made a note of it, per your last email. Oh, speaking of which…” I pretended to consult my phone once again. “I scheduled your colonoscopy for next week, and I took the liberty of changing your full-body wax to this Thursday since you’re back in town early.”

“You… but…”

“Also, your mother called to set you up on a date with her friend’s daughter. A woman named—” I squinted at my phone screen as if attempting to suss out the details. “—Jade, who’s a studio art major at NYU, runs fifteen miles a week and practices something called Reiki . Sounds fancy. Also, she’s not, and I quote, ‘out for your money, darling.’ Unquote.” I looked at him seriously. “Now, I know the situation with Bubbles must be fresh in your mind, sir, but since he’s happily married now, I’m sure he’d want nothing more than for you to find love again. So I set that up for Friday.” I winked and added in a whisper, “After the wax.”

Rowe’s eyes had gotten wider with every additional detail before he firmed his jaw. “My mother doesn’t know I’m gay,” he said gruffly. “Make an excuse and cancel the date. A-and I don’t need a body wax. I don’t have any, um… Just cancel it.”

Well, then.

He turned to look out the window, staring at the trees that bordered the highway now that we’d escaped the city and were heading west. His hands were clenched together tightly in his lap.

“What can you tell me about the man we’re going to see? Have you met Devon before?”

I wanted to reach out and grab Rowe’s hands in mine, to tell him not to worry because Dev was one of the sweetest, gentlest humans I knew. But the truth was, Dev was probably not going to be friendly—especially not after hearing from Silas that Rowe was a fraud. And I’d lied last night when I said everyone on the board knew lots of people outside Sterling Chase who’d invest in Rowe’s project. These days, Dev made it a point to talk to as few people as possible.

“Yes. I know him well. He’s a nice guy. Great at research. Huge animal lover. He studied veterinary medicine in college.”

“Oh, that’s great.” He exhaled in relief. “Looking forward to meeting him.”

Some mischievous impulse made me add, “I’ve also heard him described as supercute , and I happen to know he’s gay. Maybe the two of you…” For some reason, I couldn’t even finish the suggestion. The thought of Rowe hooking up with my friend made my stomach twist in an ugly way.

“Uh, no ,” Rowe said dismissively. “Not interested in hooking up with some rich prick who plays po—uh…” He broke off with a blush and darted a guilty glance in my direction. “I mean, I’m not interested in a romantic connection at this time. Thank you anyway.”

I poked the inside of my cheek with my tongue, feeling my temper rise. It shouldn’t have stung as badly as it did to hear his opinion of people who had money. After all, his impression of a billionaire was so absurd it was almost insulting, and I highly doubted it was drawn from real life since people with ten-figure net worths weren’t thick on the ground in Nowheresville, Indiana. But it was pretty fucking ironic that he was slamming all rich guys as pricks while seeking out a meeting with Justin Hardy, the prickiest prick of all.

Besides, some of us couldn’t help being rich. Some of us were born this way.

“Strange that you should have a chip on your shoulder about people with money, Mr. Chase,” I bit out, “when you yourself are worth over 2.5 billion dollars.”

“I am?” His eyes flared wide. “That is, I… I so rarely count it all up.”

I barked out a laugh. “Such a jokester. I didn’t get that from your emails. You’re very different in person.”

“That’s me,” Rowe said with a weak smile. “A joke a minute.”

“Why don’t you tell me about this side project that you’re hoping to discuss with Mr. Hardy,” I suggested. “I can make notes for you, if you’d like.”

“Well…” He paled, then took a deep breath and opened his mouth to speak. I sat poised on the edge of my seat, wondering which side of his nature was about to emerge, adorably conniving liar or the passionate, truth-telling angel.

Then the car made a very distinct left turn into the driveway that led to the polo field, and Rowe shut his mouth again.

I clenched my teeth in frustration. “Later, then.” I forced a smile.

When Morris opened the door, Rowe peeked outside anxiously, like an alien who’d crash-landed his ship on a distant planet and wasn’t quite sure the landscape was hospitable.

I looked out also… and saw nothing but the usual low white buildings of the clubhouse and stables, wide swaths of grass, several horses, and a few clusters of players and spectators casually chatting. Some of them looked pretty boisterous, like they’d already begun celebrating, but none of them looked intimidating or even particularly interesting.

“Out you go, Rowe,” I said softly, ushering him ahead of me. As he stood beside the car, I couldn’t help adding, “Everything is going to be fine.”

I quickly shepherded him toward the stables, hoping not to run into anyone I knew so I could avoid awkward introductions. But we hadn’t taken more than a step in that direction when one of the spectators chatting in front of the entrance broke away from his friends and jogged over, pointing a finger at Rowe.

“It’s you !” He grinned, wide and boozy. “Oh my god. This is amazing.”

“M-me?” Rowe stammered. “No.”

“Yes! I told my friends I recognized you, and they didn’t believe me. They said it was like that time I swore I saw Elton John at my cousin’s sweet sixteen. But now that I’m up close, I’m a hundred percent sure.” He folded his arms across his pink polo, which was slightly damp in patches, either with sweat or beer. “Sing the song, man.”

The panicked look in Rowe’s eyes suggested that he was attempting to melt into the lush grass of the polo field. “Song? I’m afraid I don’t know what you mean.”

The man began strumming a tiny, invisible guitar and launched into song. “My name is Burrito Bandito… and I’ve come here today to say…” He made a rolling motion with his hand like he expected Rowe to continue.

“No way,” Rowe said flatly, unintentionally continuing the rhyme of the song.

He darted a glance at me, horror-struck.

Color bloomed on his cheeks, spreading an answering warmth through my belly.

And before I knew it, I’d burst out laughing once again.