I couldn't tell if it was his proximity with me, but his presence alone was enough to mess with my senses. Worse still, he took my hand gently and caressed my fingers.

"You were lying to me when you said you were okay, right?”

I exhaled deeply. "What about you? You had to go the extra mile to lie to George about this event.”

"Lie? The event is real of course. It's on."

I scoffed this time. “George said something about your fiancee hooking me up with the Mayor's wife. You told him she's familiar with the woman. Didn't you?”

"That part of the story is a lie. Layla is...