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My hand gripped the phone hard, my knuckles turning white. I needed to go since his request for me to bring a date was actually a semi-politely worded demand. These men liked their own kind and showing up younger, richer, single, and without a date would do nothing to bridge the already wide gap between us professionally. Some of them would be bringing their wives, but many of them would be with a girlfriend or, more likely, their current mistress. Conservative family men, my ass. It’s all about appearances with them, and a mistress is much less fodder for the tabloids than being in a relationship with your step-sibling. Although, to be fair, not all of them were such hypocrites.
I certainly couldn’t take Jade and I wasn’t about to take another woman. Damn it! I was about to toss my cell at the wall when I heard a soft knock. I looked up to see Jade lounging in the open doorway. She looked tousled and sleepy in one of my t-shirts, fucking adorable. Seeing her there, wearing my clothes, made the possessiveness I felt for her jump up about ten notches.
“Hey,” she greeted softly, “Everything alright?”
I smiled tightly, as tension built in my muscles. “Sure. Are you hungry?”
Her eyes lit up and she smiled brightly. “Starved.”
I laughed and crooked a finger at her before patting my lap. She rolled her eyes, but padded over and curled up in my arms.
My hand began rubbing circles on her back and I kissed the top of her head. “What would you like to eat?”
“Mmmmm…I could really go for a nice, juicy, steak.”
The little moan had my cock digging into her round little ass. One more moan like that and I could not be held responsible for my actions.
Steak? Her food choice broke into my thoughts. Maybe… No, what a stupid idea.
“Have you ever been to L’étang?” I asked, then immediately wanted to kick myself. Shut the fuck up, St. James.
“The steakhouse?” Her voice was incredulous as she leaned back to stare at me. “It’s like one thousand dollars a plate!”
I chuckled and shook my head. “Exaggerate much?”
She smiled and shrugged.
Ask her what she wants to order in. “I have a last minute work thing there tomorrow night. Want to go with me?” What the actual fuck, man? I almost winced at the voice screaming at me in my head. Yeah, that was stupid.
She hadn’t returned to her spot tucked into my chest. Her head was still up and she was studying me.
“As your date?” she asked cautiously.
Tread carefully. “Well, no. I can’t have you as my date.”
Her green eyes began to cloud with a dark emotion. Way to go, now get your foot out of your mouth.
I went on quickly, “Obviously, I’m not going to take any date. If I did, it would, of course, be you. I can’t go alone, though, not with this crowd anyway.”
Her face warned me of an impending storm, a riot of feelings I couldn’t quite nail down.
She raised an eyebrow. “So, you want to take me, but you can’t?”
Ah. No wonder, I wasn’t being very clear. I smiled, certain she’d be happy when I explained I’d still be taking her with me. “I wouldn’t have invited you if I didn’t intend to take you, sweetheart. You’ll accompany me as my step-sister. A sibling is always an acceptable substitute for a date.”
The dark emotions in her eyes turned into a full-blown black cloud and she jumped off my lap. Rounding on me, she slammed her fists onto her hips. Let’s be clear, I was doing my very best to pay attention, but when her large tits were bouncing at eye level because she was breathing heavy, it was impossible for me to keep from drifting to thoughts of sex. I was a man. She’s got fucking amazing tits. Not my fault. Case closed.
Apparently, Jade was not aware of this ruling because she snapped her fingers in front of my eyes and yelled, “My eyes are up here, jackass.”
I dragged my gaze up to her fiery green one, blazing with hurt and anger. I reared back a little at the intensity.
“You want to take me, the woman who is pregnant with your baby, to a work function and introduce me as your step-sister?” she shrilled.
Shifting uncomfortably, I grumbled, “Well, when you say it like that.”
“How would you say it, Lucas?”
I sighed, “I want to be with you, Jade. Out in the open. This dinner gets us one step closer to making that possible. It would be better if I took a date, but I can get away with bringing my new-found family member.”
She was still fuming, so I smiled and gently grasped her wrist, bringing her back to my lap. She reluctantly obliged and I wrapped my arms around her.
“I’m sorry, sweetheart. Will you please come with me?”
9
Jade
I shouldn’t have let Lucas off the hook so easily. I was a strong woman, one who’d proven she was able to stand on her own two feet. Yet, I crumbled anytime it came to him. Self-control was a thing of the past whenever I was near him. It had been from the first moment we’d met. Clothes flew off my body at the drop of a hat and yes seemed to be the only word I was capable of saying. He’d practically called me a gold-digger and I let him take me on a desk without a single word of apology. Then he told me I couldn’t go to his elegant business dinner as his date, even though we’d spent an amazing afternoon together after learning I was pregnant with his baby. My response should have been heck no, but instead I’d said yes, gone out the next day, bought a fancy dress, and got my hair, makeup and nails done.
I’d wanted to look my best, even if I was only attending the dinner as Lucas’s step-sister and not his date. Judging by the look on his face as I walked down the stairs, it was well worth all the effort. Before my foot hit the bottom step, he was moving towards me.
“Are you sure you want to have dinner out with my boring board members instead of a night home alone with me?” His question was said in a teasing tone, but the intense look in his eyes was anything but a joke. The way his fingers gripped my hips as he pulled me closer made me think he might toss me over his shoulder and carry me up to his bedroom. When I was flush against him, the feel of his hardened length told me exactly how we’d end up spending the night if I said I wanted to stay home.
I could always wear the dress another night. “Let’s—“
My answer was drowned out by the sound of my growling stomach. The anti-nausea medication was working its magic, and I was starving.
“That sounds like a resounding yes for dinner,” Lucas said with a chuckle.
I grumbled a little as he led me to the car. I hadn’t really gotten a vote, but apparently the sex marathon idea was out and a steak dinner was in. Or maybe I’d get lucky and I could have both. The night was still young after all.
A mere two hours later, I wasn’t as hopeful. Was this night ever going to end? When we arrived at L’étang, Lucas escorted me around the private room and introduced me to everyone as his step-sister. This meant I couldn’t visibly react when several of the women present practically devoured him with their eyes even as they held onto the arms of their own dates. I didn’t object when he got me settled in my seat and then left me there to go talk business with a small group of men huddled in the corner before dinner was served.
The meal was spent with the men discussing business while the women pushed their food around their plates and looked pretty. Except for me. I enjoyed the heck out of my ridiculously expensive steak. After dessert had been served, the men excused themselves for an after-dinner drink at the bar. Lucas gave my hand the briefest of squeezes before joining them. I tried to take comfort in the small gesture and to remind myself that the situation was only temporary, but what I’d really wanted to do was hold tight and make him stay with me. I couldn’t do that and it killed me. What sister would mind if her brother left her side after all?
Oh, just the kind whose step-brother knocked her up, that’s who. I snort giggled into my hand at my own joke, glancing around and hoping I didn’t catch anyone’s attention. It was too much to wish for, though, bec
ause a guy was staring at me from across the room. I quickly looked away, my gaze dropping to what was left of my dessert. Not just mine, Lucas’s too since he’d been incredibly sweet and told me to order the chocolate soufflé and he’d gotten the crème brûlée so I didn’t have to choose. He’d barely taken a bite of his dessert before nudging it my way. Although any goodwill he’d earned from the gesture had been used up within the last thirty minutes or so.
Another glance up confirmed that his business colleague was nearing me. Maybe I’d drawn this guy’s attention because I was the only woman eating anything at this shindig. A glance out of the side of my eye told me that wasn’t the right guess. He was striding towards me, the speculative gleam in his eye making me uncomfortable. Did he know about Lucas and me? Was he going to cause trouble for the company? Crap, when was Lucas coming back anyway? I glanced frantically around the room hoping he’d returned from smoking a cigar on the terrace.
“It’s a shame to see a gorgeous woman like you sitting alone.”
