Free Hero: A Bad Boy Mafia Romance by Lara Swann Page B

about it.
    As it turns out, being someone else’s agent wasn’t nearly as natural to me as being my own.
    And I kept thinking about Jason. His handsome figure as he’d strode out of the door, those stunning green eyes with so many shadows, the way his gaze would turn surprised and then amused with every direct, out-of-place comment I made.
    It was damn distracting - especially with Jorge around.
    It’s just an adjustment period. You can do this. You know you can.
    I kept telling myself the same thing that had gotten me through the first few weeks after I’d realized what I was doing with my book - remembering how I’d jumped at shadows, assuming every word or look was going to find something out, reveal me.
    I tried hard as fuck to be normal but it bothered me that the instincts I relied on were a little screwed.
    Being around my family didn’t help, trying to act like nothing had changed. I’d never told them what I was doing with Jorge, but they’d always known there was something more. Now, it felt like I was actively concealing something. Keeping secrets.
    And I respected them too much to feel comfortable with that.
    When the agreed day finally rolled around and I managed to get away from both Jorge and my family, I found myself breathing a sigh of relief and already anticipating seeing Jason again at the hotel he’d picked out.
    I didn’t like not being able to contact him all week, and not just because of my stupid fascination with the man. I wasn’t sure whether it was a good idea to be able to, but I knew I’d feel a whole lot better if there was something more than just these agreed meetings.
    Walking into the lobby had me pause suddenly, realizing that he’d never mentioned how this was going to work. And given my newfound caution, I wasn’t sure walking up to the desk and asking for him made sense. Not to mention I didn’t even know the damned man’s last name—
    “Can I offer you an escort, miss?”
    I jumped at the silent man who’d appeared at my elbow, and then cursed myself for it. This was getting ridiculous.
    “Umm, err—”
    I almost mentioned that I wasn’t sure where I was going, before I noticed the nondescript clothing he was wearing. This wasn’t a hotel employee.
    Drawing myself up with a confidence I insisted I felt, I nodded at him.
    “Yes, thank you.”
    He took me through the lobby and into the elevator without another word, swiping his key to take us up to one of the executive floors. I frowned briefly, but decided to trust Jason’s word that we weren’t paying for it.
    Yet another luxury hotel…not exactly your scene, Lottie.
    Still, as unnerving as my daily life had been this week, this stuff didn’t bother me. I’d never been the kind of person to feel out of place - the flamboyant part of me liked the idea of the adventure too much. It was something new, the chance to be someone I wasn’t.
    You’re getting good at that.
    The inner thought amused rather than discomforted me, and I found myself stepping out of the lift with a smile.
    Straight into the fucking room .
    Still confused about the lack of the expected corridor, I corrected myself. Not the room.
    The suite. The floor. Whatever insanity you got at the top of a luxury hotel.
    My eyes whipped around, no doubt larger than they should be, and caught on Jason immediately.
    And then I forgot about the room. He didn’t look all that different from the last time I’d seen him - sharp suit somehow managing to reveal the fit-as-hell body, face cut with handsome features and those intoxicating eyes.
    But somehow, not seeing him for a week had made me forget all that. Or I hadn’t realized how much better reality was than my memory.
    Strange that - wasn’t it meant to be the other way around? The mind exaggerating the good qualities, blotting the bad.
    Okay, this might be a problem.
    I refocused on the room.
    “What the… Fuck, Jason . This is not what we agreed.”
    His face softened with amusement, and I