Revenge With Benefits. Cat Schield

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СКАЧАТЬ initial unguarded reaction was jubilation and she goggled at his invitation like a smitten fool. Ryan was an incredibly sexy man and any woman would be thrilled that he wanted to spend time with her.

      But did it make sense that he was interested in her? Not Zoe Crosby the wealthy socialite, but plain Zoe Alston with her spiky hair and inexpensive clothing. In her current state, she recognized she wasn’t in his league and he had to know that. So what was his angle and how did she go about finding out without tipping her hand?

      Everly had warned her that Ryan was bound to be suspicious if Zoe came on too strong, so she intended to focus all her attention on getting on Susannah’s good side. She’d never imagined that Ryan might be interested in her and this odd turn left her tongue-tied while she rethought her strategy.

      “Don’t look so alarmed,” he said, misreading her hesitation. “I’m harmless. Ask anyone here.”

      “I’m not sure harmless is an accurate description of you,” she said.

      “No? Then what would you say that I am?”

      Charming. Sexy. Irresistible.

      Or if Everly was right, he was predatory, manipulative and cruel.

      Zoe couldn’t picture him like that.

      “You seem quite nice.”

      He laughed. “The way you say that it almost seems like an insult.”

      “It’s not.” Her cheeks felt overly warm. “I like nice.”

      His white teeth flashed in a smile that heated her blood and drew her in until she caught herself leaning into his space. Silver glinted in his gray eyes, mesmerizing her.

      “Good,” he murmured. “Because I want you to like me.”

      It unnerved her to discover that she craved his company and that her motivation wasn’t due to any revenge plot she’d embroiled herself in. Zoe recognized that her interest in Ryan was purely female and driven by an instinct as old as time. She fingered her short hair and struggled against the pull of his charisma.

      “I’m not sure how long they need me to stick around today,” she hedged, glancing in Tonya’s direction. The woman watched Zoe and Ryan with interest.

      “I’ll wait.” His gray eyes remained fixed on her and their steadiness made Zoe fidget.

      “I’m sure you have much better things to do than hang around and wait for me,” she said. “Don’t you have a company to run?”

      He deflected her brush-off with a lazy grin. “One perk of being the boss is that I set my own schedule.”

      His utter confidence was turning her on. Zoe shifted in her chair. This would not do. There was too much at stake for her to become distracted by an attack of lust.

      “Or if you’d prefer,” he continued, his deep voice turning her bones—and willpower—to mush. “We could have dinner.”

      Zoe compelled her gaze to shift away from the determined glint in his eyes, but the damage was done. His unrelenting focus had struck a match to the dry tinder of loneliness she’d endured in her marriage.

      “Sure.” The word came out in a breathless rush before her thoughts caught up to her emotions. “I mean—”

      A broad smile bloomed on his face. “Too late,” he said, cutting her off. “Tonight at seven?”

      “I’m busy tonight,” she lied, remembering that she shouldn’t appear too eager.

      “Tomorrow?”

      “You’re awfully determined, aren’t you?” She tried to act as if she wasn’t flattered by his persistence while a traitorous thrill pulsed deep inside her, setting her nerves to jangling and twisting her stomach into knots.

      “I’m used to getting my way.”

      Indeed. Which was why she’d be wise to keep her wits about her and her defenses on high alert. Her purpose in joining the campaign was to hurt him by causing his sister damage. An eye for an eye, Everly had said.

      Zoe hadn’t taken into account how difficult it would be to exact revenge on someone she found herself liking. She had to remember that Ryan was a bad guy like her ex-husband. Focusing on that would make it a lot easier to take him down.

      Instead she caught herself daydreaming about his handsome face and gorgeous body. But more worrisome than her double-crossing libido was the way his wry humor made her smile and his easy confidence bypassed her defenses. Add in his devotion to his sister and he appeared to be quite the catch.

      The question remained. If he was so wonderful, why was he still single? Everly insisted he lacked a conscience. That he had no qualms about using women and then throwing them aside. He’d certainly done that to Kelly Briggs.

      And then he’d sent her to jail after she’d acted out, impulsively deleting engineering schematics that had cost his company millions of dollars. Everly wanted him to pay for leading her sister on and then turning his back on her. From the picture Everly had painted of him, Zoe easily perceived him as someone who deserved payback.

      But how was she to reconcile that version of Ryan with the man she’d met? The disconnect worried Zoe and made her question the wisdom of what she’d joined Susannah’s campaign intending to do.

      “Where can I pick you up?” he asked, interrupting her train of thought.

      Zoe shook her head. He would expect her to be renting an apartment or a house. Her living arrangements were far less conventional and he would ask too many questions she didn’t want to answer.

      “How about I meet you at the restaurant?” she suggested.

      His eyes narrowed as he surveyed her. “How do I know you’ll show up?”

      “Why wouldn’t I?”

      “That’s an interesting question.” He leaned forward and his powerful presence enveloped her. “There’s something about you I can’t put my finger on, but you intrigue me.”

      His declaration gave Zoe goose bumps. And only some of them were the good kind.

      “Me?” She huffed out a laugh and shook her head. “That’s funny. There’s not a single interesting thing about me.”

      “Let me be the judge of that. I’m looking forward to getting to know you much better. How about we meet at Charleston Grill at seven?”

      The last thing Zoe wanted to do was to eat anywhere close to downtown Charleston where she might run into someone she knew.

      “That’s a little too fancy for me,” she said, thinking fast. “How about Bertha’s Kitchen at six?”

      The iconic soul food restaurant was located in North Charleston and famous for its fried chicken and Southern sides. The hearty helpings of delicious soul food were served cafeteria-style on no-frills foam plates. Not necessarily a place she’d expect a wealthy businessman like Ryan to dine.

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