Claiming Leila

Chapter 9

Leila stayed exactly where she was.

She watched Adrian walk away with his staff member, then forced herself to look elsewhere.

That was the normal thing to do.

She was not his girlfriend.

Not his friend.

Not even officially part of his life.

So she definitely was not going to follow him through the gallery like some curious detective.

Absolutely not.

Instead, she adjusted her camera and focused on work.

Or at least she tried to.

The gallery buzzed around her. Guests chatted over drinks. Someone laughed too loudly near a sculpture. A waiter nearly walked into a painting and was saved at the last second.

Leila took photos.

A couple standing near a canvas.

An investor shaking hands with an artist.

A woman pretending to understand abstract art.

Normal things.

Her eyes drifted toward the hallway Adrian had disappeared into.

Leila immediately looked away.

"Get a grip," she muttered.

Three minutes later, she looked again.

Her phone buzzed.

Simi:

How's billionaire drama night?

Leila:

Fine.

Simi:

That sounds fake.

Leila:

Something came up.

Simi:

With him?

Leila hesitated.

Leila:

Maybe.

Simi:

You're worried.

Leila:

No.

Simi:

That's how you answer when you're worried.

Leila rolled her eyes.

Sometimes Simi knew her too well.

She was typing a reply when a familiar voice spoke behind her.

"Interesting."

Leila froze.

Then slowly turned around.

Adrian stood there.

Calm.

Collected.

And looking entirely too amused.

She immediately locked her phone.

His eyebrow lifted.

"Should I be concerned about whoever you're texting?"

"No."

"That sounded suspicious."

"It was my friend."

"The dangerous one?"

"The very dangerous one."

His mouth twitched.

"I was right."

Leila folded her arms.

"You're back."

"I am."

"You were gone a while."

The second the words left her mouth, she regretted them.

Adrian noticed immediately.

His eyes lit with amusement.

"A while?"

Leila sighed internally.

"Don't start."

"Start what?"

"The thing you're about to do."

His smile grew.

"Were you keeping track?"

"No."

"You sound defensive."

"I'm not."

"That's usually what defensive people say."

Leila narrowed her eyes.

"You are unbelievably annoying."

"So I've been told."

His expression was far too pleased with himself.

Leila hated that.

Mostly because she knew exactly why.

He had caught her.

Again.

Adrian slipped his hands into his pockets.

"You kept looking at the hallway."

"I did not."

"You did."

"I was looking around the room."

"The hallway isn't the room."

Leila opened her mouth.

Closed it.

Opened it again.

Nothing came out.

Adrian looked victorious.

It was irritating.

"You're enjoying this."

"A little."

"A little?"

"A lot."

She pointed a finger at him.

"See? This is why people find you annoying."

"And yet you're still talking to me."

Unfortunately, he had a point.

That made it worse.

For a moment, neither spoke.

Then Leila looked at him more carefully.

The calm expression was back.

The businessman mask.

But she could still see traces of tension underneath it.

Something had happened.

Something important.

Before she could stop herself, she asked,

"Is everything okay?"

Adrian's eyebrows rose.

Leila instantly regretted it.

There it was.

The smile.

Small.

Slow.

Dangerous.

"Oh?"

She sighed.

"Don't."

"You were worried."

"I was curious."

"That's not what it looked like."

"I don't care what it looked like."

His smile widened.

Leila considered throwing her camera at him.

Not seriously.

Mostly.

Adrian tilted his head slightly.

"You know, for someone who claims not to care, you ask a lot of questions."

"I asked one."

"It was a concerned question."

"It was a normal human question."

His eyes laughed before his mouth did.

"You care."

"I don't."

"You do."

"I really don't."

Adrian looked unconvinced.

Actually, he looked entertained.

Which was somehow worse.

Finally, he relented.

"The situation has nothing to do with you."

Leila felt relief instantly.

Which was unfortunate because Adrian noticed that too.

His gaze sharpened.

"There it is."

"There what is?"

"Relief."

She looked away.

"There was no relief."

"There absolutely was."

"I hate talking to you."

"No, you don't."

The answer came too quickly.

Too confidently.

Leila hated that she couldn't argue.

Adrian studied her for a moment.

Then his expression softened slightly.

The teasing remained, but something gentler slipped underneath it.

"The issue is with one of my companies," he said.

Leila looked back at him.

"What happened?"

"A bad investment."

"That sounds expensive."

"It is."

She winced.

"How expensive?"

Adrian laughed.

"The fact that you're asking means it's probably better you don't know."

That couldn't be good.

Still, he looked calm.

Too calm.

"You don't seem worried."

"I've had worse problems."

That surprised her.

"You have?"

"Many times."

Leila stared at him.

"You make everything look easy."

For a second, Adrian's expression changed.

Something honest crossed his face.

"Most people only see the finished version."

The answer was quiet.

Real.

It caught her off guard.

For once, neither of them joked.

The noise of the gallery faded into the background.

Then Adrian ruined the moment.

"You really were worried."

Leila groaned.

"There it is."

"There what is?"

"The reason people want to throw things at you."

His laugh came easily.

The sound made her smile despite herself.

Which, unfortunately, he noticed too.

His eyes warmed.

"There's the smile."

Immediately, Leila stopped smiling.

"Too late," Adrian said.

"You saw nothing."

"I saw everything."

"That's creepy."

"I prefer observant."

"You would."

He looked entirely too pleased.

A guest called his name from across the room.

Adrian glanced over his shoulder.

Duty.

Business.

Reality.

Waiting for him.

When he looked back at Leila, the amusement was still there.

"I should go."

"You probably should."

He didn't move.

Neither did she.

A strange silence settled between them.

Comfortable.

Dangerous.

Then Adrian spoke.

"You know something?"

Leila already disliked the tone.

"What?"

"You are terrible at pretending."

Her eyes narrowed.

"Pretending what?"

"That you don't care."

Heat rushed into her face.

Immediately.

Completely.

Adrian smiled.

Not a smug smile.

Not quite.

Just enough to let her know he'd won.

Again.

Leila shook her head.

"You are impossible."

"And yet here you are."

She pointed toward the crowd.

"Go deal with your expensive problems."

His laugh followed her words.

"Yes, ma'am."

He started walking backward.

Still looking at her.

Still amused.

"Goodnight, Leila."

"Goodnight, Adrian."

This time he actually left.

Leila watched him disappear into the crowd.

Only for a second.

Maybe two.

Fine.

Five.

Then she sighed and lifted her camera.

Because Adrian Kincaid was becoming a problem.

Not because he kept showing up.

Not because he kept teasing her.

But because she was starting to enjoy it.