Fuck his boyish charm, she thought. Why did he have to do that?
‘Last night, with you, for the first time in my life I’m ashamed to admit I was.’
Fuck—what was he saying? That the attraction between them had been too strong to deny? That he’d never felt that way before?
Panic bubbled in her throat. Wasn’t that how she felt too?
Or—her stomach twisted—was he hoping that flattery would see him free of her wrath? Well, screw that.
‘Are you trying to flatter your way out of this?’
‘No, I can assure you I’m not,’ he said strongly. ‘I’m not proud of my actions, and I’m angry for not keeping myself in check, but I can assure you I’ll do my damnedest to keep myself in check from now on.’
She pressed her lips together, a confusing mix of emotions was raging within, disappointment hitting the crescendo.
Hell, she shouldn’t be disappointed, she should be grateful.
She needed it gone—this attraction, the desire, the distraction...
But where was the off switch?
Even his questionable behaviour regarding Tony wasn’t enough to rid her of it. Or maybe it was if his justification on that score was full of shit.
She grabbed at it like a lifeline. ‘Fair enough, but what about Tony?’
His eyes widened, her change in topic clearly surprising him. ‘What about him?’
‘Well, from all I’ve read you’re a man to be admired,’ she said evenly, ‘not one to be despised for taking advantage of a man not in his right mind.’
He frowned, and she could see her words had stung.
‘Is that what you think I did?’
‘I don’t know what to think,’ she admitted with a sigh. ‘I only know that the broken man I saw today had no business signing your agreement.’
‘He needed that deal.’
‘Is that what you told yourself to make it all better?’
‘Look, Andrews came to me with a sound offer and I took it,’ he said. ‘Whatever his personal situation, it didn’t come into it.’
‘But you must’ve known something wasn’t right—that he wasn’t right?’ she flung at him, her desperation to paint him bad ringing through her words. Working with a man she disliked would be hard, but it would be doable. The alternative—she raised her drink and took a long, slow sip—didn’t bear thinking on.
‘I had my suspicions at the time,’ he said truthfully. ‘But I’m a businessman, Jennifer. I didn’t get to this point in life by being all soft and understanding.’
‘So you just took advantage?’
‘No, I did not,’ he snapped. ‘Surely you can see that ultimately my involvement has given him a get-out? A chance to fix his mess?’
Her fingers trembled around the glass. She didn’t want to accept his argument but felt it register all the same. ‘It’s not right. He should’ve come to me, not you.’
‘What?’ he said incredulously. ‘Why do you think you’re the one to help him out of this? Do you know how much money we’re talking? How much it’s taken just to keep a roof over his head and see off his creditors?’
‘I would’ve been able to do something.’ Even as she said it she realised it was nonsense, that Tony was in too deep for her alone to have given him enough. ‘Now he has nothing.’
‘Only if he chooses it to be that way,’ he said softly, his anger disappearing as quickly as it had come. ‘I’ve given him ample money to start afresh and get himself sorted out. Yes, I know he’s not in a good place, but I’ve given him the best possible chance. What he does with that is up to him.’
His words silenced her, his logic doing away with every rebuke, rational or otherwise, save for the desperate. ‘He still should have come to me.’