I didn’t say Jenese’s name. I didn’t tell himhowI’d truly lost that bid. How I’d been blackmailed and boxed in. How desperateI’d been to cover the loss before anyone noticed the crown jewel of King Developments was gone.
“So you panicked,” he said.
“No,” I snapped, but then sighed. “Yes. Maybe. I don’t panic, I just—” I exhaled sharply. “I don’t sit and cry about what I’ve lost—I replace it. I win something else.”
He tilted his head. “Even if it’s the wrong thing?”
I hated how that question hit. I hated that he asked it so softly. I hated how much it made mefeel.
“Go ahead—gloat. You want to rub my face in it? Say it.”
He was quiet for a beat.
“We’re partners, Serena. I don’t know how many times I have to say that. When you win, I win. When you hurt, so do I. We might not like our arrangement, but I’m not gonna sit here and bask in the fact that you made a mistake. I know it’s going to take some getting used to, but you can trust and depend on me.”
He stepped closer. “You’re brilliant. You’re cutthroat. I admire the hell out of that. But you don’t get to treat me like I’m an employee. Like I don’t matter.”
My gaze slipped from his, landing on the cracked floorboards.
“I don’t treat you like an employee,” I murmured.
Miles chuckled. “You’re gonna fight me to the end?”
“No. I…agree. With everything you’ve said.”
Miles nodded. “I think we need to make a decision right here, right now how we’re gonna work.”
“You hate meetings.”
He blinked. “I do.”
“And I hate sweating in jeans.”
That made him smile, just a little. “So?”
“So I’ll handle the logistics. Permits, paperwork, scheduling, meetings with city officials, supply tracking—all of it.”
“And I’ll run the crew,” he said. “Keep construction moving. I’ll bring you in when we hit milestones.”
“You’ll give me progress reports?”
He stepped even closer, eyes dipping to my mouth. “Only if you say please.”
I hated that he made me smile.
“Fine… I guess we can work together.”
“That’s my girl,” Miles murmured.
We finished the rest of the walkthrough in near silence, save for the creaking floors and my internal monologue screaming bloody murder.
Mrs. Fontaine really had played me.
By the time we stepped back outside, I was vibrating with rage. The kind that made me dangerous. A table had been set up outside, and we walked over and spread out the floor plan.
“Well, let’s make it worth it,” Miles said, and I watched as he looked over the blueprints in front of us. He seemed…excited.
He pointed at the current kitchen layout. “We knock this wall out, expand the space, add an island. Flow matters. If it’s gonna be used for events, we need functionality over fluff.”
