understanding of the situation, without divulging anything that would betray Lexi’s trust.
“Room service,” Lexi said, stopping short when she saw that all three guest chairs were filled. “I’m sorry, I didn’t know you had company.”
“It’s okay,” Marc said, smiling and standing. “We were just finishing up.”
His brothers did the same, and Lexi felt her mouth go dry. How was it possible for one room to contain so much hotness? One DeLuca was potent enough. The lot of them together packed enough testosterone to turn a convent of nuns.
Even though they all had that trademark DeLuca hair and eyes, dark and melt-in-your-mouth darker, they were as different as they were similar. Gabe was handsome in that sophisticated, corporate kind of way. Known for being the most impeccably starched and tailored of the brothers, today he had opted for faded jeans and an old college tee with glue and pink glitter stuck to the sleeve, and even though he looked tired, she couldn’t remember a time growing up when he’d seemed so happy.
Trey, on the other hand, seemed irritated, which wasn’t unusual. Like Marc, Trey had inherited their father’s charm and panty-melting grin. Unlike Marc, though, he’d come out more hotheaded than easygoing.
Lexi wouldn’t describe Nate as easygoing or hotheaded. More serious and intense, which on him was seriously sexy. He was rangy and athletic, with olive skin and work-roughened hands that spoke of long days in the vineyard, and his weighted smile advertised that their parent’s deaths had hit him hard. And he was still recovering.
And Marc, well, he was everything that his brothers were, just more. Taller, bigger, brighter, funnier, sweeter, and, as far as Lexi was concerned, sexier. Although right now he didn’t seem his usual charming, laid-back self. He seemed tense and frustrated and was staring right at her. They all were.
Her palms went sweaty as she took in the tight faces, felt the energy all but crackle in the room and knew that they weren’t almost done, and by the way Wingman, leash in mouth, skulked over and plopped himself at her feet and how Marc looked ready to snap, she had interrupted a pretty heated discussion.
She smiled, and Gabe was the only one who smiled back. The other two busied themselves with glaring at Marc, who was glaring back, which let her know that she had been a part of that discussion.
“Um, I’ll come back later.” Like never. Carrying on this fauxmance in front of the town had been harder than she thought. Trying to convince his brothers would be impossible. One look at the two of them together and his brothers would know the truth.
“Nah, we were just heading out.” Gabe reached down and grabbed a newspaper from Marc’s desk, stopping midreach. He sniffed the air and closed his eyes, releasing a small groan before standing. “What is that?”
“That,” Lexi said, opening the lid just enough to let the aroma fill the room, “is what’s going to land me my new client.”
Not just a client, she thought giddily. It was for a local Internet company, and if she got the account it would mean catering all of their events, including their weekly board meetings.
“There are four different choices.” Two of which she had already discounted but brought anyway, just to see what Marc thought. It had been their routine over the past few days. He would work in his office, she would cook in her apartment, and then, every few hours as she perfected a new dish, she would bring it and a few other choices over and have him do a blind tasting. She had come to love the last part of the process. “There’s enough for everyone.”
When none of them moved, except to get a better whiff, she shifted the tray higher on her palm and skirted around the desk, greeting each brother by name and only stopping when she was right in front of the DeLuca who mattered most. She couldn’t fool them by flirting or doing girlfriend-like things, but maybe she could distract them with her cooking.
She looked up at Marc and smiled. “You hungry?”
He conducted a slow, sensual inventory of her body, and even though she was wearing her old apron and cutoff shorts, by the time he got back to her face she felt completely stripped. God, he was hot. Especially when he leaned in and whispered, “Starved.”
Needing something to keep her mind off the heat climbing through her body, she set the covered tray on the desk and