And he’d share all the info with her brother and Nico.
Everyone would know she’d been a fool. A dupe.
She couldn’t sweep the past away and pretend it hadn’t happened.
And that’s what had kept her up for the last few nights. They would all look at her differently.
Sam would look at her differently.
“Tansy. It’s so nice to see you.”
Tansy stiffened instantly, annoyed even more with herself for being caught off guard. She hadn’t been paying attention to her surroundings while she wallowed.
Tansy looked over but didn’t return the smile or the greeting.
James looked the same. Tall, handsome. Determined gait. How could he look the same when she knew he was a snake?
James moved in and started to lean in, potentially for a hug, but Tansy held up her hand to keep him away. “Don’t touch me. Sit. Say what you have to say.”
Anger zipped into his eyes. Too bad. Had he seriously thought she’d be happy to see him? That she would allow him to touch her in any way?
Not a chance.
James pulled off his leather gloves as he sat and offered his hand.
She ignored it and said nothing.
He was the one who wanted to speak to her. He could speak.
“You look good, Tansy, really good. How have you been?”
Tansy rolled her eyes and didn’t bother to reply.
His eyes narrowed, and he pulled in a deep breath. “Look, I know I messed up back home and I want to explain things to you.”
Mansplaining. Perfect.
“It’s not what you think, Tansy. I was under a lot of pressure. She didn’t mean anything to me. I had a weak moment.”
When she didn’t answer, he blew out a breath. “We were good together, Tansy. Really good. You know that. You also know I can bring our work to people who would buy it. That’s not your forté.”
Anger and embarrassment bubbled inside. She’d been fooled by this once. At least he was talking about the tech now, and not the fact that he’d been cheating on her. She’d hoped to keep that information from Sam.
Tansy raised an eyebrow and hoped her face reflected disdain. “And what is it exactly that you considerourwork?”
His eyebrows shot up as if he hadn’t expected her to question that. “The camouflage device, of course. We worked on it together for ages.”
Tansy laughed. This was ridiculous. “I didn’t realize you were delusional.”
The anger was back. “I have rights to that work. And I have people who are interested in buying it. Several groups, actually.”
This was what she was here for. This was the information she needed to get. Instead, she heard herself asking. “Why don’t you explain to me how thecamouflage deviceworks? Explain how it’s put together.”
James waved that away instantly. “You’ve always been better at explaining the specifics. I’m better at the selling.”
Clamping her teeth together was the only way to stop herself from speaking again. She needed to let him ramble instead of challenging him about the project. He didn’t appear to feel any guilt about claiming her work as his own. Work he didn’t even understand.
“I’ve got a few groups interested in the final project. We’re talking millions of dollars, Tansy.”