Twelve-Day Lover (Thirtyish And Single) - Page 48

"Yep?"

Julian's jaw clenched. How stupid did she think he was? Both of them knew she had been about to say some word that began with the letter 'F' or something that sounded like it. And since God knew that word was neither clowns nor even fuck, then what else could it be but Philippe?

Unaware of Julian's suspicions, Fleur insisted on seeing everyone out first, which she told Julian was part and parcel of their role as hosts. But in reality, all she wanted was to make sure that her #JULIANxFLEUR pastries were completely gone by the time they finally disembarked.

And so they were, but in their place, however, was something - someone - worse.

An airport official had politely requested to speak with Julian regarding their travel documents, and it was while Fleur was waiting for the two to finish talking that she sensed someone approaching her, and—-

"Holy..."

Philippe raised a brow.

"Hunk!"

Philippe laughed, and Fleur wanted to face-palm herself a thousand times against the ground. She might have prevented herself from calling the French tycoon as a sacred piece of shit, but why oh why did she have to end up calling him a hunk?

"I guess I spook you still."

Fleur could only smile weakly.

"Which of course makes me wonder why it is," Philippe drawled, "that someone like Julian Alexeyev doesn't, er, spook you as much?"

Even as the question threw her off, Fleur already knew this was her best chance to finally speak the truth between them, and before she knew it, she was already hearing herself say, "I'm in love with him."

"Damn."

Fleur blinked in surprise, and Philippe's lips twisted in a crooked grin. "I was looking forward to breaking down your defenses, chérie. You could have said you were engaged or even married, and I would not have minded that at all. But because you are apparently the type to believe yourself to be in love—-"

"I am in love," she protested.

His broad shoulders moved in a Gallic shrug. "If you say so."

Fleur couldn't help laughing. "I really am."

"In any case, women like you are not suitable for what I have in mind."

Women like her? Fleur gaped at him, but since she already saw Julian finally done speaking with the airport official, she didn't hesitate to quickly say goodbye to Philippe so she could hurry back to Julian's side.

Julian had a strangely sardonic look on his face when she reached him. "There was no need to cut your conversation short with him."

"Uh oh." She looked up at him teasingly. "Is that jealousy I hear?"

"No."

"Liar," she told him laughingly and missed the way his lips tightened as she curled her arm around his.

With Fleur's head back in the clouds, she didn't notice the way Julian remained stiff beside her as they walked out of the airport, and by the time they made it to the limousine she had arranged for their use, Julian was once again on the phone, and there was no time for them to talk.

She wondered briefly why Julian seemed suddenly busier, especially since she recalled him telling her that he had cleared his calendar for their contract. She wondered if this could have anything to do with why he had left her the other day for some secret reason, and if so...

Perhaps...

Perhaps that meant Julian also had a surprise for her?

As Fleur happily weaved one fantasy after another in her mind, she was completely unaware of Julian watching her the entire time, and how his bitterness only grew as he watched a little smile start playing over her lips.

She had dared call him a liar, Julian thought grimly, when she was the one who was being dishonest.

She had seen Philippe out of her window earlier, but instead she had insisted she had seen a clown. A fucking clown!

Everything about her was a lie. The way she had pretended to be surprised at "accidentally" bumping into Philippe DeRose. The way she had feigned nervousness around the other man even when everyone in the tarmac would afterwards hear her call DeRose a fucking hunk.

A hunk, dammit.

She obviously considered herself "sexy" enough to win DeRose's goddamn heart now, and Julian's jaw clenched when he remembered how Fleur hadn't hesitated to take him up on his offer the moment he offered her a way out of their contract.

Knowing how foolishly optimistic Fleur could be, Julian had no doubt that she believed it was possible for her, Julian, and DeRose to still be friends once their contract was over, and maybe...

Maybe for more "civilized" assholes like DeRose, that was possible, but for Julian, who could not imagine ever loving any woman other than Fleur...

He had already sacrificed his pride for love once, and he had no fucking plans to make the same mistake twice.

If Fleur wished out, then he would give her a fucking out, and it would be in a way that Fleur would never know how she had managed to steal his heart without even trying.

Tags: Marian Tee Romance
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