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security of family and a strong man.”
    He paused a moment, his dark gaze full of conflicting feelings. “It doesn’t sound crazy. I just don’t have much experience in that area.” He covered her hand with his. “I want to spend more time with you.”
    “I want the same,” she said quietly.
    “Then come and live with me in my apartment. I’ll make sure you won’t regret it,” he said, lifting her hand to his lips.
    Even though they hadn’t known each other long, Calista was more than a little tempted. There was a strength about Leo that drew something from deep inside her. His magnetism almost made her forget her purpose with him. Almost. His charm, though, belied any chance for security. He was accustomed to getting what he wanted from women without making a commitment. She wondered if she would possibly be able to seduce him to the point of marriage. Doubt surged through her.
    “I’m sorry. I can’t. I just can’t,” she said and fought thefear that rose in her throat. “I really do understand if you don’t want to continue with me. I’m sure you’re used to a different kind of arrangement with women.” She glanced outside the window. “Maybe we shouldn’t have gone out in the first place, but I just couldn’t resist you.”
    The limo stopped in front of her apartment building. She turned to Leo. “Thank you again for a wonderful time.”
    He helped her out of the limo and walked her to the security entrance. “My pleasure,” he said. “Good night, Calista.”
    Calista tried to read his inscrutable expression and felt a sinking sensation in the pit of her stomach. He’d decided she wasn’t worth the wait or the effort. She watched him walk out of her lobby and most likely out of her life. Though her ego stung, she was far more worried about her sisters’ futures.
    Swearing under her breath, she took the elevator to her small apartment. What was she going to do now? Pacing the length of her den, she tried to summon a plan B. If she went to bed with Leo, she would have no hope of marrying him. Plus, even though she found him physically attractive, she wasn’t sure when her real feelings and thoughts about what he’d done to her father would leak past her facade. What if she slipped and told him she felt he was responsible? If he knew the truth…
    Calista squeezed her eyes shut, feeling hopeless and trapped. She hated being deceptive, but she’d made this decision and she wasn’t going to castigate herself for it. Her sisters deserved a good education and a better start than they’d had. They’d suffered the brunt of her family’s implosion because of their youth. She would never be able to erase the shattered expressions on her sisters’ faces whenfirst her father had died and then less than two years later, they’d lost Mom, too.
    Her head throbbing with tension, Calista tried to calm herself. Maybe she’d misread Leo. Maybe he would call her again.
     
    Two weeks later, after no word from Leo, Calista saw the writing on the wall. Leo wasn’t going to call. He was done with her. Bummed, but still obligated to attend the Brother-Sister Charity Auction, she accepted an invitation from Robert Powell, a man who worked in her office building. Amusing and seemingly easygoing, he’d asked her out several times. She hoped Robert could distract her from her disappointment.
    Wearing a Betsey Johnson Spring dress she’d bought on sale, she greeted Robert in her lobby. His appreciative look provided a balm to her still smarting ego. At the auction, Calista mingled and introduced Robert to her acquaintances.
    He slid his arm around her waist. “Do you realize I’ve been asking you out for months? You’re worth the wait,” he said and dipped his gaze suggestively over her.
    Not wanting to encourage the flicker of sensual interest she glimpsed in his gaze, she shook her head. “Oh, not really. I’m not worth the wait at all. I’m just the good friend type, you know. Boring, works too