The Jewel of His Collection by Fae Mallory

pick up a pizza on the way and get straight into her pajamas as soon as she got home. There were at least five episodes of The Bachelor sitting on her DVR, and binge-watching mindless television and eating pizza on her couch sounded like heaven.
    Someone cleared his throat.
    Violet yelped, sitting up so fast that her neck cracked. In front of her stood Ian, his eyebrows lifting in surprise at her reaction. “Sorry.”
    “I didn’t hear the bell,” she gasped, putting one hand on her chest to try to calm her racing heart.
    “Leroy and I crossed paths,” he explained.
    “That explains it,” she said inanely, blushing that he’d caught her slumped over her desk like roadkill. Sucking in a deep breath, she smoothed her hair back, trying to look professional. “Can I help you?”
    “I’m concerned about the exhibit,” he announced, gesturing for her to accompany him as he headed for the gallery.
    Violet’s heels clacked against the floor as she hurried to keep pace with him. “Concerned? Why?” The reviews of the exhibit had been universally positive, and she couldn’t begin to guess what Ian could find to quibble about since he’d signed off on all of her ideas. Surely he couldn’t intend to pull his paintings now?
    Assuring herself that she had a signed contract guaranteeing the loan, Violet followed him into the gallery, watching as he turned in a slow circle, taking it all in. “It’s missing something.”
    “All the reviewers loved it,” Violet reminded him.
    Ian turned to her and tucked his thumbs into his belt. “You don’t agree with me?”
    That was a dangerous question. If she agreed with him, she’d be giving him ammunition to break their deal, but if she argued, she risked angering someone who was rich and powerful enough to make her life extremely difficult. “The feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, and you said it was impressive when you gave us your final approval.” Reminding him that he’d approved of the exhibit couldn’t hurt.
    “I don’t want to hear what everyone else thinks. I want to hear what you think. In your honest opinion, is the exhibit complete?” His eyebrows drew together, Ian looking oddly angry at her diplomatic response.
    “Changing the exhibit at this late date would be impractical.” Making anything but the most minor changes would require closing the exhibit for at least a day, a decision that was certain to anger the very people she was depending on for the museum’s survival. They were still building momentum. She didn’t dare do anything that might jeopardize that.
    Ian made a frustrated noise. “Violet. What do you think?”
    He was watching her with an intensity that seemed out-of-place in a conversation about an exhibit of paintings, his body tense, reminding her of a snake about to strike. The thought of Ian eating her whole made Violet flush, and she took a step back, desperate for breathing room to calm herself. “I…I should lock up.”
    Before she managed another step, Ian’s hand wrapped around her wrist, holding her in place. “Answer the question, Violet.”
    Conscious that he could no doubt feel her racing pulse under his fingers, Violet blurted out the first thing that came to mind. “All the reporters liked it. We should leave it alone.”
    Ian’s lips tightened, her words appearing to anger him. “Do you care so much about what reporters think?”
    “Good publicity is important,” she said, aware of the thready note in her voice as Ian tugged her a little closer. They weren’t talking about the exhibit anymore, but she wasn’t sure what they were talking about.
    “Stop talking about reporters and ‘shoulds,’” Ian demanded, his voice soft. “What do you want, Violet?”
    With Ian looming over her, his dark eyes glittering with something she didn’t understand, there was only one thing Violet could think of. Shaking off his grip on her wrist, she reached up and grabbed the front of his shirt, the hunter-green fabric