“My sisters say I am not. When I return home, I shall sleep for a week and allow myself to say no to all favors and requests. But for now, your wish is my command.”

“Like the genie in a lamp. Can you get me a clone to answer all my work demands?”

He quirked a brow. “Have you not explained to your partners you are on call for only emergencies?”

Guilt rose. I should have. Kate had insisted, yet I felt too many things would get screwed up without me involved. Was it the reality? Or only my ego? “I don’t trust anyone else,” I admitted. “I like to be in control.”

He nodded in understanding. “So do I. But I have learned through the years on this job, people will always surprise me. I can plan and pretend I’m in charge, but many times, I need to surrender.”

“Go with the flow?”

He frowned. “Sorry, I don’t know that expression.”

“Allow things to happen without fighting it.”

“Ah, yes. Perhaps you can take a chance and try to pull back? Just for a few days and see what happens?”

“Maybe. But I have a feeling I’ll still require a backup plan.”

His grin was all male mischief. “Is it just work, or do you require a backup plan with your relationships too?”

I let out a snort. “More like an escape plan.”

He laughed. “Clever girl. We are much alike.”

“Afraid of marriage? Commitment? Or even worse?”

“What’s worse?” he asked with interest. His cologne drifted around me and I wished I could bury my nose in his neck and sniff. Pheromones, maybe? Something about him just pulled me in.

“When you’re not even scared of getting intimate. You just don’t want to be bothered.”

We both seemed startled by my confession. Why had that type of truth spilled out in the middle of a hotel lobby? I meant to shrug it off and say something funny, but his dark eyes turned serious and he took a step toward me, so we were inches away. My heart slammed against my chest. “Yes, bella signora. That is much worse. I find myself wondering too many times if there is a woman out there who could compete with my job—or even want to. I haven’t found her yet. But it would be nice, just once, to have a choice.” He paused. “Don’t you agree?”

We stared at each other as the air shifted between us. I ached to touch him. Run my finger over his rough cheek and blunt nose. Trace the line of his lips. Step into his arms and be held tight. God, it had been so long since a man had held me or I’d experienced an intimate touch.