Infiltrating Your Heart (11 page)

To my amusement, Mercedes’s face
turns bright red. I keep from even chuckling at her.

“I was just kidding. Couldn’t help
it.”

Mercedes arches her eyebrows, bumping
me lightly in the shoulder.

“You’ve got a sense of humor, Mr.
O…Gabriel.”

I chuckle as Mercedes shakes her head
at me.

“Have you met the Mayor?” I ask.

“Yes. He stopped by our table for a
chat. I almost couldn’t believe it. I’ve only seen the Mayor on TV.”

“I know. This is the first time I’m
in the same room as he is, too.”

“Has he stopped by your table for a
chat?”

“Yes. He’s a cool guy. Makes you feel
like an equal, you know. I can’t stand politicians—or people—who think they’re
better than everyone else.”

“Me, neither. Though, next to the
Mayor, I confess I felt a little inferior.”

I purse
my lips, placing my hand on Mercedes’s shoulder. She looks at it, and then back
at me. Yeah, I’m feeling it too. Right when I made skin contact with her, I
felt something course through me. Like a current.

~*~
Mercedes

My body is hyperaware of Gabriel’s
hand touching my shoulder. I almost gasp when our skin comes into contact. A
sort of current travels through us. I thought that was just something romance
novelists invented for dramatic effect.

I mentally shake my head, dismissing
the thought. Gabriel can’t be my match. I’m supposed to infiltrate his heart,
not to get involved with him for the long term.

“Mercedes Roberts, don’t think about
yourself like that. I can tell you’re a great person. A great woman.”

I bite my lip, mesmerized by
Gabriel’s eyes. His gaze switches to my mouth.

“You don’t even know me,” I manage to
say. This is
so
not the time for me to forget how to breathe.

“There’s no way I can be wrong. A
woman so…attractive must have a personality to match.”

My face instantly blushes. Gabriel
likes me. Hmm. Winning his heart might be easier than I thought.

“Care to find out? You won’t be
disappointed. I sure would like to know you better, too.”

I try to make myself a little taller.
I smile when I see Gabriel look down at my cleavage. He appears to be holding
his breath. He takes back his hand.

“Why don’t we carry on this
conversation later? This place is as public as it gets.”

I look around. To my relief, no one
seems to be paying us any attention.

“Okay.
Call me,” I say with my most seductive smile. Gabriel’s eyes widen. I walk back
to my table, making sure to brush against Gabriel as I walk past him. I spot
his brother sitting at a table. He gives me a look of approval.

At close to eleven, I return to my apartment.
The party was awesome, but tiring. I’ve never been to such a huge event. Nadine
won’t believe me.

Mr. Fa—Fullerton seemed very
satisfied when we left. I learned that he works at the city hall, and that he
aspires to rise up the ranks. I’m just glad there wasn’t sex. Imagine if I’d
slept with the potential future Mayor, or worse, Governor. The thought makes me
cringe.

What surprised me the most was to
meet Gabriel there. It was a shock. I certainly didn’t want to run into him
while I’m in the middle of an assignment. For my mission to succeed, it’s
imperative that he
not
learn I’m an escort. Gabriel will run for the
hills if he finds out.

Gabriel

I have another fitness class the next
day. My current roster of students is halfway through the course. I’ve been
training them since the end of March. Granted, I had twice as many students
when the class began, but I’m glad for those who have stuck around.

My roster of students changes three
times a year. That means my fitness class lasts about ten weeks. I also have
swimming lessons. Those only last from May until the end of December. I didn’t
use to give those classes in the winter months, but apparently there are people
willing to learn how to swim, even in that season.

An hour before noon, I dismiss my
class. As I walk to my office, I once again think about Mercedes. I won’t lie,
she’s been on my mind more often than she should.

I think I must keep her at arms’
length. That woman is dangerous. It would be too easy to fall for her.

As I’m preparing to head outside for
lunch, someone knocks on the door to my office.

“Come in,” I say. When I look up, I
see my brother.

“How’s your day been, bro?” Patrick
asks me. I stand up, and we shake hands.

“Slow, and fast.”

Patrick’s brow furrows as we both sit
down.

“I don’t get it.”

I’m not sure if I should say
anything. As I ponder over it, I get an idea. I could tell Patrick that I’m
nervous over a woman. Just without admitting who that woman is.

“I’m planning to propose to Evelyn.”

For a second, Patrick’s eyes widen in
shock. I think I also see fear there, but it’s so fleeting that I must have
imagined it.

“You—you want to marry her?”

I arch an eyebrow at Patrick.

“What’s so weird about that? Evelyn
and I are ready for the next step.”

“Have you spoken about this to her?”

“No. I plan to do that soon.”

Patrick nods. His gaze moves to the
top of my desk. I don’t know what’s going through his head right now.

“Are you concerned?” I ask. Patrick
looks up.

“Yes, for you. I just wonder if
you’re doing the right thing. Marriage isn’t a step to take lightly.”

“I think you would have gotten
married first if you weren’t so apprehensive about it.”

“It’s not that. I haven’t met the
right woman.”

“I just hope you’re not too picky, or
you’ll be waiting forever for the ‘perfect’ woman.”

Patrick scoffs.

“Enough about me. Let’s talk about
you. Have you called the woman from last night? What was her name, Mercedes?”

I groan, leaning back against my
chair.

“I wish you hadn’t reminded me about
her. I’m trying hard not to think about her.

“Why? She’s a goddess, brother. If
you’re not careful, I might just steal her from you.”

I laugh at that.

“She’s not mine to lose. Feel free to
date her, brother. You’d be doing me a favor.”

“How can you not want her?”

I narrow my eyes at my brother.

“I’ve got a soon-to-be fiancée,
remember?”

“Yes, but—how can you look at any
other woman when Mercedes is in the room? If I were you, I’d take her hand and
go to the end of the world with her.”

I blink, wondering if Patrick sounds
like what I think he sounds like.

“The way you talk about her, one
would think she’s the perfect woman you’re looking for. Why don’t you ask her
out, if you’re so interested?”

“Nah. You’d be better for her than I
would. She looks too young for me.”

“If you say so,” I tell Patrick. I
reach out and wake my computer by shaking the mouse. There are a couple of
e-mails in my inbox.

“When are you proposing?” Patrick
asks me.

“I think this summer would be great.
Evelyn would love it if I propose to her on one of her family’s cruises.”

“That’s so romantic. You could go all
Titanic and propose to Evelyn at the front of the top deck.”

For a second, I think that’s a great
idea. Only, it’s a little over the top for me.

“Good idea, but I don’t think I’ll
consider it.”

Patrick
chuckles, shaking his head.

~*~
Mercedes

Once I’m back from classes, I go
straight to my room. I leave my backpack on top of the bed, and then walk to my
closet. I laugh to myself when I recall what kind of closet I used to have. The
closet in my old bedroom was a bit too small for me to stand inside it. I’m not
the kind of girl that can make do with such misery of a closet, so it was a
boon when I moved to this apartment.

I grab my purse from the closet and
sit on my bed. When I open my purse, I pull out a small moneybag. This is where
I keep some of the money I make. I always have an amount of cash on me, just in
case.

There’s little more than two hundred
and forty dollars here. I stand and pull out my laptop from my backpack. A few
minutes later, I log in to my bank account. I need to know how much money I
have in total.

I smile. There are over ten thousand
dollars there. That might sound like a lot, but it’s not. I make a lot more
than that. As a high-class escort, my account saw as much as thirty-five
thousand in its best month. I have to pay for my dad’s health care, as well as
most of the house bills and the payment for my room and the Infiniti. That’s
been leaving a small fraction for me. Not that I complain.

If I made less money, I’d wish
Patrick was at least paying me for the trouble of having to seduce his brother.
Unfortunately, I can’t force him to. If Patrick turns me in to the cops, I’ll
hit rock bottom. Regardless, he looks like he doesn’t have enough money for
himself anyway. That must be why he wants the rich girl. I’ve done my homework.
Whereas I have thousands, Evelyn Carroll has millions.

My smartphone rings. I look at the
caller ID, and groan. Speak of the devil.

“Hi, it’s Mercedes,” I croon.

“I need to meet with you ASAP. Do you
have time?”

“Yes. We can meet this afternoon.
What’s the matter? You sound tense.”

“There’s been a development. But you
must hear it in person. Where’s your apartment?”

“Wait, can’t we meet someplace else?”

“You’ve seen where I live, darling.
Why don’t you want me to see where
you
live?”

I bite my lip. Closing my eyes, I
give him my address.

“We’ll
meet at six,”
Patrick says, and hangs up. I look at my phone, wondering what’s got him
worried.

~*~
Gabriel

At around three, I make some time to
go shopping alone. Well, not exactly. I’m going to pick up Ciara on the way. I
promised I would let her go with me to this shopping trip. I’m going to buy
something meaningful.

I pick up Ciara outside her
apartment. She looks excited that I’m taking her with me.

“Good afternoon,” she says when I get
back behind the wheel.

“Thanks for accompanying me, Ciara.”

“I’m honored to do this. We’ll pick a
ring that Evelyn definitely will love.”

“Will she mind if I don’t splurge
that much? A girl like that deserves the best ring from Tiffany’s.”

“She’s not going to care that it’s
expensive. She’ll only care about its meaning, and that it’s pretty.”

Hmm. Evelyn really is any man’s dream
woman, even without all the money. She’s not spoiled, and that’s one of the
things I like most about her. I love my Evelyn.

When we reach the entrance to the
jeweler, Ciara and I open the door. I let her walk in first. A chime sounds
when we enter.

There are a few customers inside. The
employees are almost all male, wearing suits. I walk up to a counter, looking
at the jewelry. I see that they’re bracelets, so I move to the rings section.
Ciara follows behind.

One of the employees, a woman, talks
to me.

“Good afternoon, sir. How may I help
you?”

“Yes, ma’am. I’m looking for an
engagement ring.”

“Oh,” the woman says. She looks at
Ciara behind me. I ignore what the woman must be thinking. “What did you have
in mind?”

“I believe my girlfriend would like a
silver ring. Show me a few with large diamonds.”

“Right away.”

The woman looks down at the counter.
Then she uses a key to open it from her side. She reaches her hand into the display,
grabbing a ring box and setting it on top of the counter. She repeats this
twice more.