I nod at Lila, since I don’t care for bad apples, alligators, or ex-girlfriends who hide their crazy far too well. “I hear ya. I appreciate you saying you can trust me, and I’m glad you feel that way. Means a lot.”

“Plus, you finished on time, and in Manhattan none of my friends have found a single contractor who does.” She slashes her hand through the air and raises her chin, as if she’s offended by the indignities her friends have suffered in this regard. “You’re a rare breed, Wyatt, and the thing I need most is to finish on time, since I want to have this place ready to host a gala for one of my favorite charities. A local philanthropist, Sophie Winston, is going to help me set it up. Will it be too hard to manage the work from afar?”

I turn around and drink in the layout once more. It’s an open floor plan with copious space, a sunken living room, and gorgeous bedrooms. The style is modern and clean. White walls, simple furniture, and light hardwood floors. The kitchen, by contrast, is a mismatched mess, like a drunk monkey designed it while noshing on a spiked banana.

Natalie strides out of the kitchen where she’s been taking measurements. She exits purposefully, her closed laptop in her hands, scribbling on a notepad on top of the computer.

“Hey, Natalie,” I call out. “Think we can manage this job? We’ll need an electrician, and we’ll need to find some local suppliers for parts.”

“Actually,” Lila says, holding up a finger to chime in, “you won’t even have to do that. You can use all your regular suppliers in New York and fly everything out on my plane.”

I rein in a grin. Jesus fucking Christ. She is a fairy godmother. She’s trying to make all my work dreams come true.

Natalie stands next to me. “And when it comes to an electrician, I already have one. I talked to a friend who runs Edge, a nightclub here. He’ll hook us up with his guy for the electrical, as well as anyone we need for other specialized jobs. You’d just need to be here to do the labor,” Natalie says to me, then she turns to Lila. “We can do it. I can manage it all remotely, and Wyatt can be on-site to do the work. We’ll make it happen.”

“Wonderful! I’m so thrilled,” Lila says, her grin as wide as the Strip. “This benefit is so important to me, and I want my home to shine. Do you have a sense if you can meet the budget?” she asks, then tells me what she’s willing to spend. The number has many zeros and nearly unhinges my jaw.

“I don’t think that should be a problem. Why don’t we go work on an estimate, send it to you, and then—”

Lila jumps in. “And then I can sign off on it tonight!”

Bibbidi-bobbidi-boo indeed.

Once inside the elevator, it’s just Natalie and me while Lila stays behind. The doors close with a soft whoosh, and I turn to my assistant. “Can I just say it now?”

“The part where you’re giving me a twenty percent raise?” she asks playfully.

I laugh. “Pretty sure I said ten percent.”

“Ten percent. Twenty percent. What’s the difference?”

The car descends softly. “Seriously, though. I will need to pay you extra for this. It’s a ton of work.”

“Twist my arm,” she says and hands me her arm.

I pretend to torque it into a corkscrew.

“Ouch, ouch, ouch,” she says, contorting her face.

I let go. “But officially, the answer is yes. The raise starts today. Thanks to Lila.”

“Even though she hasn’t officially signed off?”

I wave a hand in the air. “It’s as good as a done deal.”

I offer her a hand to shake, and instead she throws her arms around me. “Thank you so much,” she says in the most heartfelt tone, her lips near my neck, her breasts snug to my chest, her fingers close to my hair.

“You’re worth it,” I say.

And you smell fucking amazing. And you feel spectacular. And I am a motherfucking master of self-control because all I want to do is hit the stop button, hitch your leg around my hip, and screw you hard.

“I can do my videos now.” She pumps her fist in victory as we separate.

“Videos?”

Her entire face is animated. Her eyes are lit like sparklers. “I just started working on a series of self-defense videos. Like the kind you see on YouTube. I want them to be well-produced, and I think if they are, I can attract new students to my classes.”

I smile. “Never knew that. That’s fantastic. Are you shooting them yet, or still in the planning process?”

“I’ve made a few, but I need them to be a better quality. They’re missing a certain something. I think I know what it is, but I didn’t have the funds to keep making them at the level I need,” she says quickly, then her tone switches, as if she’s apologizing for her hopefulness. “It probably sounds silly—my self-defense dreams.” She gives a dismissive wave.

I grab her arm. “No. It doesn’t sound silly in the least. Dreams never are. Now you can go after them the way you want.”

She shoots me that smile that always disarms me, that hooks into my heart and threatens to wreak havoc with my life. It’s such an honest smile; it says she’s this totally straightforward person who lays it all out up front. Who doles out compliments, who shares in excitement, who doesn’t hide who she is or what she wants. All of that from the curve of her lips, the way her blue eyes light up, how her entire face glows . . . Fuck, I’m getting lost in this one part of her, and I’ve got to get it together. To remember the alligators . . . the crazy alligators, even though I can’t possibly put Natalie in that reptilian category.