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Lucian ordered lamb with a delicious mint jelly. There were baby carrots in some sort of glaze and tiny roasted potatoes. A person at a nearby table ordered snails and Slade looked at the dish longingly. She enjoyed thinking that it might’ve been her snappy comeback that made him too apprehensive to order the dish.
Scout one. Slade zero. Suck it, asshole.
Rather than take the limo back to Patras with them, Slade hailed a cab and headed home. Lucian pulled her to his side as they rode back. “Your friend doesn’t like me.”
“That’s not true,” Lucian said, holding her fingers in his where his arm draped over her shoulder.
“Yes it is. He told me.”
Her fingers dropped.
“Slade told you he didn’t like you?”
“Yup.”
His eyes moved as if he were thinking. “Well, he’s full of shit.”
“Lucian, it’s okay. I don’t expect all of your friends to like me. Parker doesn’t like you.”
“That’s different. I understand why Parker doesn’t like me. Slade has no reason—”
She faced him. “Why does Parker not like you?”
Taking a moment to process her interruption, he frowned. “Because he’s in love with you.”
Her smile faltered. “Wha—Parker’s not in love with me.”
He stared at her for a long time. No words. It seemed everything he needed to say was in that meaningful look.
Scout was still reeling from Lucian’s comment when they returned to the penthouse. She went to the bedroom and pulled out a nightgown and began removing her clothes.
Lucian came in quietly behind her and undid the clasp at the back of her bra. Moonlight formed puddles of blue on the floor around them. She turned slowly in his arms and faced him. His knuckles caressed the side of her breast and he watched as her skin drew taut. He gently stroked the side of her other breast.
Scout’s chest rose and fell slowly with each breath. He reached down and took the gown out of her hands and slipped it over her shoulders. Not knowing what else to do, she docilely let him pull her arms through the straps and waited. He kissed the corner of her mouth and stepped back.
“I have some work to finish up.”
She tried to hide her hurt, but she was really beginning to develop a complex. Nodding slowly, she climbed into bed. She didn’t hear Lucian come to bed that night.
When she awoke next it was morning. Masculine voices from the other room mixed with the scent of coffee. After using the bathroom and brushing her teeth, she slipped a bulky Patras robe around her and knotted the front. The thick fabric engulfed her. The robe formed a train as she crept into the hall hoping to sneak discreetly into the guest room where her clothes were.
“Evelyn.” She stilled. Lucian came around the corner and kissed her hair. “Did you sleep well? Come and have breakfast.”
He took her hand, the billowy sleeve falling over their clasped embrace, and led her to the common area of the suite. Great. Slade was there.
Lucian gestured for her to sit at the couch and placed a dish in front of her. He lifted the top and there were two sunny-side eggs and a fat slice of French toast topped with strawberries.
Lucian’s eyes creased with mirth. “Since the French toast is already rich, I figured you might want to skip the chocolate sauce this morning.”
Confused, she glanced up at him. He smiled and placed an ice cream sundae next to her plate, sans the hot fudge. She blushed and he chuckled.
He left her side to return to his business with Slade. They made a conference call while she ate and listened, not really paying attention to what was being said. Once finished eating, she was stuffed. Slade nonchalantly tossed a newspaper on the table and her gaze immediately focused on the large picture on the page folded to the front.
It was Lucian, smiling, holding a gorgeous woman in his arms. The woman was smiling up at him, her dark hair a billowy cloud behind her curvaceous body, her dark eyes staring into Lucian’s smiling face adoringly. Scout’s delicious breakfast settled into the pit of her stomach like acid.
She couldn’t tear her eyes from the picture. He wore the pinstripe suit she recalled from the other day when he had “brunch.” This was a recent photo. Memories of asking him how his meeting had gone and the starry gleam that filled his eyes took on a whole new meaning. He said it went good . . . really good.
Scout’s teeth clamped together and she breathed hard through her nose as she glared at the paper. Not wanting to draw attention to the issue she was having, she laced her fingers together and held still so she didn’t accidentally shred the image and throw it across the room.
The conference call ended and Lucian excused himself to use the restroom. Slade settled in the chair across from her triumphantly.
