“What’s that?”
“Saturday night at the Grand Regal, there will be a charity event. My firm is a part of the team helping raise money for survivors of domestic violence to get on their feet. There are some peoplewho signed up to auction off a date with them, and all of the money goes to this foundation.”
“Did you just ask me to sell myself?” I ask, raising an eyebrow.
“I guess I did,” he laughs. “The date would be that night at the diner there at the hotel. They’re covering the cost of dinner and dessert for the ones who win the dates.”
“I’d have to actually dress up,” I say.
“You would,” he says, smirking.
“Do the guys know about you asking me?” I ask.
“Not at the moment,” he says. “I should probably warn you, though…”
“That bitch is going to be there, isn’t she?” I ask.
“Yeah. Angela signed up yesterday,” he says.
“Wonderful,” I sigh. “You realize that this is a wonderful way to just make me feel worse about myself, right?”
“Do you trust me?” he asks.
“Yes.”
“You know that I would never do anything to get you hurt, right?” He continues.
“I know,” I sigh.
“Then just trust me. Don’t ask any questions. Just show up.”
“How fancy is this?” I ask.
“Uh. Pretty fancy. It is definitely formal attire,” he says.
“Okay. I’ll have to buy a dress then,” I say. “I generally avoid formal events, so I don’t have anything to wear.”
“You’ll look great in whatever. Try to challenge yourself to not wear black, because those lights get very hot up there,” he says.
“We’ll see about that,” I say. “Saturday, I’ll sneak off during lunch so I can go back to the house and get ready. I don’t feel like answering a thousand questions from them.”
“Yeah. You sneak off, and I can take them home,” Todd says. “That will give you time to get ready and leave before they get there.”
“They’ll be mad at you for helping me evade them.”
“That’s okay. You deserve a night for someone to treat you like a princess,” he smiles.
I say goodbye to Todd before going back up to my office. For a moment, I am alone, and I can sit in silence and reflect on the morning. A little while later, the guys come to my office.
“Hi,” I say when the door opens. I know it’s them, even though I have my head lying on my desk.
“Hey,” Mason says. I sit up, and he starts kneading my shoulders. It’s not out of character for him to do this, but I’m going to take what Todd suggested seriously and not let things progress. I think outside of their normal habits, I will shut everything down.
“That’s nice,” I sigh. “I have a migraine.”
“It’s just a tension headache,” he says. He hits a spot in my neck that makes me wince slightly. He presses in on that knot, and it forces a groan out of me.
“Feel better after talking to Todd?” Dean asks.
