The Italian's Bedroom Deal by Elizabeth Lennox

“She knows about the guards.” Max took a sip of his brandy, thoughts tumbling through his mind a mile a minute.
     
    That surprised James. “She does? How does she know? They’re supposed to make sure they blend in and remain in the background.”
     
    Max raised an eyebrow at the man’s obtuse attitude toward his only child. “She’s not stupid, James.”
     
    That stunned him. “I know she’s not stupid but I hired the best! How did she figure it out? I thought they were pretty good myself.”
     
    Max smiled derisively. “She’s very intuitive. Perhaps after several years of seeing the same men wherever she goes, she put two and two together.”
     
    James’ shoulders slumped in defeat. “Well, yes. I suppose.” He considered that for a long moment before relaxing once again. He stared into his drink, contemplating something deeply as he frowned. “So she knows about the body guards. Is she angry?”
     
    Max couldn’t fathom why the man asked him. Didn’t he know his daughter at all? “She endures them for your sake.”
     
    James looked up, confused. “Why for me?”
     
    He shrugged one shoulder dismissively. “She doesn’t want to worry your mind.” Max couldn’t believe that he’d known Clarissa for only a few months but he obviously knew more about her than her own father did.
     
    After a moment of stunned silence, James chuckled as Max’s words sank in. “She’s just as sweet as her mother, isn’t she?” He cleared his throat once again. “Well, thinking about it, I know I need to do something about getting her a husband. I’m sure she’s having a hard time meeting men being alone so much. I’m not sure what she does all day in that tiny little cottage she refurbished. I guess she reads a lot of books.”
     
    Max wanted to punch the man for being so unaware of Clarissa’s life. How could anyone be so unengaged with their family, much less their only child? “She’s a translator. She works independently but she’s pretty good. I found out that one of my companies has used her on several occasions.” Dios, Max thought. How could a father not know anything about his daughter’s daily activities?
     
    “A translator?” James asked, stunned. “Really?” His smile started off slowly but grew to encompass his entire face. “Well, I’ll be.” James shook his head at that revelation. “Her mother always wanted to write books. That’s how I met her. She was in the park, doodling on a notebook.”
     
    “She’s good,” Max replied, taking another sip of his drink and trying to smother his irritation. Deciding that the liquor wasn’t going to work, he set his glass on the table in front of him and started to stand up. “I have to go.”
     
    James stopped him, laying a hand on Max’s arm. “Bear with me for a moment, if you could. I had an idea and I think you might be just the man for the job.”
     
    Max looked at James for a long moment, considering how he could deal with a man who was so oblivious to such a stunningly beautiful and intelligent daughter who lived right under his nose. Accepting that there was more to the relationship than he could understand, Max nodded and sat back down. “What’s on your mind?”
     
    James leaned forward so his elbows were resting on his knees, the drink half forgotten between both his hands. “Clarissa needs to find a husband.”
     
    Max gritted his teeth. “You’ve already mentioned that, James,” he replied with as much patience as he could muster under the circumstances. Instantly, he didn’t like the path this conversation was taking. He didn’t like the idea of another man touching Clarissa. A husband would have every right to touch her, caress her, show her all the passion she was craving.
     
    “I’ve seen the way Clarissa looks at you,” James started out, glancing up at Max to see how he was reacting. James noticed the shuttered eyes and gritting teeth. If his instincts were right, Max was the perfect man for