He smiled as tenderly as he could. It was a risk, but if he wasn’t truthful with her, she wouldn’t trust him. And he wanted her trust now that Russell had broken it. It was vital to the new plan he was formulating.
“Because his meeting is with me.”
Her eyes grew big. For the first time since he’d met her, he truly believed she had no idea who he was. His sense of purpose redoubled. He would destroy Russell Tech when he was through, thanks to this woman.
“You are Mr. Valishnikov?”
He shook his head. “I am the other V.”
If anything, her eyes grew bigger. Her fingers flew to her mouth, pressed against her lips. When her hand dropped away, her face was pale.
“Oh my God,” she said. “You’re Prince Voronov.”
It was snowing as the Mercedes moved through the city. Fat flakes that ghosted down and gathered on the pavement. Paige stared wide-eyed out the window. She’d never seen so much snow in her life, and it was April! Dallas was balmy this time of year, and Atkinsville, on the Gulf Coast where she’d grown up, had always been temperate.
She wanted to turn to the man sitting beside her, to thank him for taking her back to the hotel so early when the meeting wasn’t for another two and a half hours, but she couldn’t look at him.
Alexei Voronov. A prince. She’d been kissing a prince. Trying to seduce him when her feelings were hurt, and he’d turned her down flat. Of course he had! Not only was he a Russian prince, but he was also gorgeous on top of that. Not at all the sort of man to be interested in her.
Paige’s face grew hot as she thought about how he’d kissed her in Red Square, the way his body ground against hers, the way she’d nearly splintered apart simply from the delicious pressure.
A game, she reminded herself. A necessary act to save them both.
But the man who’d rescued her wasn’t just any prince. He was Prince Voronov—and Chad seemed to hate him. According to Chad, Prince Voronov was determined to absorb Russell Tech into his vast operations—which he would be in a prime position to do if he acquired Valishnikov’s land.
If he succeeded in his quest, Russell Tech would cease to exist.
Jobs would be lost, people displaced—including herself. She wasn’t unemployable, but in this current economic climate, how long would it take to find a new job? And how would she make her rent and utilities until then?
Worse, would she find new work in time to make Emma’s tuition payment next semester?
Last night, she’d had plenty of time to think as she’d tossed and turned in the guest room Alexei had shown her to, and she’d realized that though she was hurt, it wasn’t Emma’s fault at all. Paige had never said she had a crush on Chad, and it wasn’t fair to be mad at Emma. Her sister couldn’t help being beautiful and vivacious; of course Chad had been attracted to her!
“You are very quiet, Paige.”
She turned her head slowly, steeling herself to meet Alexei’s gaze. Would she still see pity in his eyes? It was nothing but wishful thinking to hope he’d forgotten how she’d thrown herself at him after he’d told her about Chad and Emma. She wanted to sink into the leather cushions and disappear, but since that wasn’t happening, she forced herself to be cool under pressure.
“I’m just thinking,” she said. “We don’t get snow in April where I’m from.”
His smile made her heart thump. “Ah yes, it is quite tropical where you live.”
“I wouldn’t say tropical.”
He shrugged. “Compared to Moscow?”
Paige swallowed. He was too handsome, this man. Too easy to look at. She found herself wondering what it would have been like if he hadn’t pushed her away.
Mind-blowing, no doubt.
“I see your point.”
“You should see my home in St. Petersburg,” he continued. “It is an old estate dating back several hundred years in my family. The snow is pristine, undisturbed. There are wolves that howl during the night, and the stars shine so brightly you cannot believe. It is perfect for a troika ride.”
She had a vision from a movie, of a couple bundled under a fur and riding through the snow in a sleigh with jingling bells. It seemed so romantic, though of course he hadn’t mentioned it for that reason.
“That sounds lovely,” she replied.
“Perhaps I will show it to you someday,” he said, and her heart thumped harder.
Was he flirting with her?
Impossible. A man like him dated movie stars and models, not plain secretaries who were so pitiful they could only admire a man from afar.
“I don’t see how,” she replied truthfully, “though it’s a nice thought. We are leaving in a few days, and St. Petersburg is not on our itinerary.”
His gaze glittered strangely. “Do you intend to take your lover back after what he did?”
Shock zapped her like an electrical current. “Chad Russell is my boss, not my lover.”
“Is that so?”
She thrust her chin forward. “Yes, it is.”
He laced his fingers between hers, brought her hand to his mouth. She was too stunned to pull away as his lips touched the back of her hand. “Then that is really too bad for him, isn’t it? But it’s excellent for me.”
When he released her, she clamped her hands together in her lap. Her skin still tingled from his touch. “I don’t know why,” she said as the blood roared in her ears. “You had your chance last night and you didn’t take it.”
Had she really just said that to him?
His laugh was not what she expected. “When I take you, maya krasavitsa, it will not be as you cry over another man.”
Her face flamed. “I wasn’t crying over Chad.”
His expression said he didn’t believe it. She turned her head to watch the snow again. Damn him for seeing so deeply into her. Her shattered romantic fantasy hadn’t been the only thing she’d cried over, but she wasn’t planning to share everything about her life with this man in order to correct his impression.
He was nothing to her, in spite of the heat of attraction she felt. After he dropped her off, she would never talk to him again.
“I think perhaps you are in love with Chad Russell,” he said from behind her, “even if he is not your lover. And I think you are bitterly disappointed to learn he has chosen your sister over you.”
Paige whirled, both stunned and furious. “You have no idea what you’re talking about!”
“I am not a blind man, Paige.”
Her breath stabbed in her chest. Was she that transparent? Had Chad always known it, too? Was that why he’d taken her to lunch? To try to let her down easily?
My God.
“Leave me alone, Prince Voronov,” she said coldly. “I appreciate your help, but that doesn’t give you the right to pick my life apart for your amusement. You don’t know anything about me, so save your rude speculation.”
The car drew to a halt, but she couldn’t seem to look away from the man staring so intently back at her. His icy gray eyes weren’t cold like she expected—they were hot, boring beneath her skin.
“Then I apologize,” he said after what seemed an eternity of them staring at each other in silence. “I would never want to hurt you.”