“I’m beginning to get that,” he said.

We were quiet for a few minutes, then suddenly both started to speak at once.

“So what do you think about—” I began.

“Can you believe that they all —” he said.

“Go ahead.” I chuckled.

“No, what were you going to say?”

“I was going to say, so what do you think about our friends tonight?”

“That’s actually what I was going to say. I couldn’t believe they just up and left us!” He laughed, and I couldn’t help but laugh along with him. He had a great laugh.

“I know, but my girls know what they want. I couldn’t have painted two better guys for them. They’re exactly what they look for,” I confided, leaning against the window so I could watch him as we navigated the hilly streets.

“Yeah, Neil has a weakness for Asian girls—and I swear that sounded less pervy in my head. And Ryan loves him some leggy redheads.” He laughed again, glancing over to see if I was okay with his leggy redhead comment.

I was. She was.

“Well, I’m sure I’ll hear all about it tomorrow—what kind of impression they made on my ladies. I’ll get the full report, don’t you worry.” I sighed.

My phone would be ringing off the hook.

Silence crept back in, and I wondered what to say next.

“So how do you know Benjamin and Jill ian?” he asked, saving me from small talk fever.

“I work for Jill ian at the firm. I’m an interior designer.”

“Wait. Hold up, you’re that Caroline?” he asked.

“I have no idea what that means,” I answered, wondering why he was now staring at me.

“Damn, it really is a small world,” he exclaimed, shaking his head from side to side as though trying to clear it.

He was silent as I sat there in limbo.

“Hey, wanna clear that up a bit? What did you mean, that Caroline?” I finally questioned, slapping his shoulder.

“It’s just that…well …huh. Jill ian has mentioned you before. Let’s leave it at that,” he said.

“Hell no, we won’t leave it at that! What did she say?” I pushed, slapping again at his shoulder.

“Would you cut that out? You’re really rough, you know that?” he said.

There were simply too many ways I could go with that comment, so I wisely kept quiet.

“What did she say about me?” I asked quietly, now worried that perhaps she’d said something about my work. My nerves were already shot, and now they were pinging.

He looked over at me. “No, no, it’s not like that,” he said quickly. “It’s nothing bad. It’s just that, well, Jill ian adores you. And she adores me—of course, right?”

I rolled my eyes, but played along.

“And well, she might have…mentioned a few times…that she thought I should meet you,” he dragged out, only to wink at me when I met his eyes.

“Oh. Ohhhh,” I breathed as I realized what he meant. I blushed. Jill ian, that little matchmaking shit. “Does she know about the harem?” I asked.

“Would you quit with that? Don’t call them the harem. You make it sound so shady. What if I told you those three women were incredibly important to me? That I care a lot about them. That the relationships I have with them work for us, and no one else needs to understand it—got it?” he said, pulling the Rover to an angry stop at the curb outside our building.

I was quiet as I studied my hands and watched him rake his through his already messed-up hair.

“Hey, you know what? You’re right. Who am I to say what’s right or wrong for anyone else. If it works for you, great. Hit it. Mazel tov. I’m just surprised Jill ian would want to set you up with me. She knows I’m a pretty traditional girl, that’s all,” I explained.

He grinned and turned the force of his blue eyes on me.

“As it happens, she doesn’t know everything about me. I keep my private life private—with the exception of my neighbor with the thin walls and the devastating lingerie,” he said in a low voice that could melt, well, anything.

My brain was most certainly among those things, seeing as I suddenly felt it oozing out of my ears and on down to my collar.

“Except for her,” I muttered, thoroughly scrambled.

He let out a dark laugh and opened his door. He kept his eyes on mine as he strode around the car and opened my door.

I climbed down, taking the hand he offered me, and almost not noticing that he traced a tiny circle on the inside of my left hand with his right thumb. Almost didn’t notice it, my ass. It made my skin pebble and Lower Caroline sit up straight. Nerves? Shooting like fireworks all over the place.

We walked inside the building, and he once again opened the door for me. He really was charming, I had to give him that.

“So how do you know Benjamin and Jill ian?” I asked, walking up the stairs ahead of him. I knew for certain he was checking out my legs, and why wouldn’t he? I had great stems, currently flattered by my flouncy little dress.

“Benjamin’s been a friend of my family’s for years. I’ve known him practically my whole life. He also manages my investments,” Simon answered as we rounded the first floor and started on the second.

I looked over my shoulder and confirmed him peeking at my legs. Ha! Caught him. “Oooh, your investments. Have a few savings bonds left over from birthdays there, moneybags?” I teased.

He chuckled. “Yeah, something like that.”

We continued up the stairs.

“It’s curious, don’t you think?” I offered.

“Curious?” he asked, his voice slipping over me like warm honey.

“Well, I mean, Benjamin and Jill ian both knowing us, us meeting at a party like this, and you being the one that’s been keeping me nocturnally amused all these weeks. small world, I suppose?” We rounded the top stair, and I got my keys out.

“San Francisco’s a big city, but it can feel like a small town in some ways,” he offered. “But yes, it’s curious. Intriguing even. Who knew that the nice designer Jill ian wanted to set me up with was actually Pink Nightie Girl? Had I known, I might have taken her up on it,” he replied, that damnable grin back on his beautiful face.

Dammit, why couldn’t he have stayed an asshole?

“Yes, but Pink Nightie Girl would have said no. After all, thin walls and all …” I winked, making a fist and thumping on the wall next to my door. I could hear Clive prattling around behind the door, and I needed to get inside before he began to wail.

“Ah yes, thin walls. Hmmm…Well, good night, Caroline. Truce is still on, right?” he asked, turning toward his door.

“Truce is still on, unless you do something to make me mad again.” I laughed, leaning in the doorway.

“Oh, count on that. And Caroline? Speaking of thin walls?” he said, as he opened his door and looked back at me. He leaned in his own doorway, thumping his fist on the wall.

“Yes?” I asked, a little too dreamily for my own good.

The smirk reappeared and he said, “Sweet dreams.”

He thumped the wall one more time, winked, and went inside.

Huh. Sweet dreams and thin walls. Sweet dreams and thin walls…

Mother of pearl. He’d heard me.

Chapter Seven

POKE.

“Grrr.”

Poke. Knead, knead. Poke.

“Enough.”

Knead, knead, knead. Head butt.

“I realize you don’t know how to read a calendar, but you should know when it’s Sunday. Seriously, Clive.” Hard head butt.

I rolled over, away from Clive’s head butts and persistent poking, and pulled the covers over my head. Flashes of the night before kept appearing. Simon in Jill ian’s kitchen with the intro heard round the world. His friends calling me Pink Nightie Girl. Benjamin putting two and two together when he learned I was the Pink Nightie Girl. Kissing Simon. Mmm, kissing Simon.

No, no kissing the Simon! I snuggled deeper under the covers.

Sweet dreams and thin walls…Sheer mortification washed over me as I remembered his parting words. I burrowed farther under the covers.