Enemy Mine

Chapter 15

When we arrived at Harper and Smythe esquires extraordinaire, snow threatened, and even I had a hard time keeping warm under my black Eddie Bauer. Sylvie had gone all out for the interview, accenting her blue eyes with liquid eyeliner and styling her halo of blonde hair into bouncy curls that hugged her shoulders, giving her that movie star look. Not to mention, the linen dress in robin's egg blue fit her like a glove. If her resume didn't come up to snuff, her classic beauty and radiance would make up for it.

The law office took up residence in an ancient building on a corner lot, with the doors opening right onto Fifth. We all ducked into the lobby half an hour early, and took over the leather sectional, which smelled like the inside of a new Mercedes. Sylvie immediately nudged me to one end of the couch and started her interrogation.

"So, how did you do last night?" she said, assaulting me with cinnamon gum breath.

"Nothing of merit to report. I told you, my girl parts are preoccupied."

Sylvie raised her neatly-plucked brows. "Nothing at all?"

"There was some foreplay that resulted in both of us finding our happy place, but other than that, we napped."

A snort escaped her as she glanced at the brothers. Both were engaged in a discussion about Asia's trade market, a prelude to their big doubleheader at the Hearst Tower. It struck me as odd that these were demon-battling beasts tucked into those tailored suits, preparing to knock skulls with their shareholders. I still hadn't shared my big secret with Sylvie, which stretched to include her current sexual partner being a winged gargoyle, but I damned sure wasn't going to tell her now.

"I could really go for Colin." Sylvie's voice came at me all breathy and smitten, and the only thing I could do was stare at her as she barreled on. "We're really compatible. He's a down-to-earth guy. And funny. That's a make-or-break trait for me. I'm sure you've already noticed all this."

"Yeah. Colin's a great guy."

"To be honest, Reese, I can totally picture you with Colin. What happened there?"

Still reeling from Sylvie's confession, I offered my default response to questions like that. "The heart wants what the heart wants."

"You have never been more right." As she spoke, she and Colin exchanged a smile that only someone who has been infatuated would recognize.

Yikes.

Vincent finally walked over to speak with the receptionist, and she stood to greet him at the counter. That's when I noticed her long legs beneath her thigh-high skirt. I got an even better look when she leaned over so Vincent could kiss her cheek. The exchange had my hackles up, but I wasn't going to take issue with it now. His mind was on other things, and he may have forgotten his girlfriend could see him getting friendly with his attorney's receptionist.

When he walked back, he detoured to stand in front of Sylvie. "Rod Harper will be out to meet you in a few minutes. Do you mind if I cut in?"

"Of course, not. Thanks again for getting me this interview, Vincent." Sylvie smiled as she moved closer to Colin, and Vincent took her place next to me. He pulled out his phone and scrolled through the text feed, talking as he typed a message.

"I'm texting Rizzo to find out his ETA. I want you in the loop."

"Thanks, but do you really expect there to be trouble? It's broad daylight, and I'm safely ensconced inside an office that could double as a set for an Al Pacino movie." I waved my arm at the windows, demonstrating the prison quality of the wrought iron bars secured to the outside. "It's like the Kremlin in here."