She took a deep breath. It was time to pretend to eat some humble pie. “I’m sorry I turned you down last night,” she said. “I hope I didn’t make things too uncomfortable.”
He shrugged. “No need to apologize,” he said. “It was just an invitation. If it wasn’t something you wanted, you were right to turn it down. I admit I was surprised, though. We were having a good time, I thought.”
“No, we were,” she said quickly. “It was just that I went to that dinner for work reasons. It meant a lot to me to be there, to bemeeting people and trying to get my name out there. And I really didn’t want to be seen that night as the woman who blew off the function and left with a guy—even if he was a really cute guy,” she added.
He grinned at her. “I figured it had to be something like that,” he said. “I mean, it obviously wasn’t that you weren’t interested.”
Well, that was bold. Still, it helped her cause that he felt that way about it. “Of course not,” she assured him. “If the circumstances had been different, I would have given you a different answer. I just needed to keep my mind on my work, that’s all.”
“You’re very serious about working,” he observed. “I can respect it. It’s kind of cute, to tell you the truth. But do you also know how to have a good time?”
“Maybe you’d like to find out for yourself,” she suggested. This would be so much better if he was the one to ask her out, if they went on seeing one another because he had suggested it. If it was by his request, he would have no reason to ever suspect that her motives were anything but pure.
Not that he’s likely to suspect it anyway.Not with the way he had been talking. It was so clear that the idea of anyone not thirsting for a date with him was completely outside the realm of his experience that he didn’t know how to process it.
And sure enough, he made his move. “I’ll tell you what,” he said. “Do you like basketball?”
Stephanie released the machine back to its neutral position and sat forward. “Basketball?”
“I have season tickets to see the San Valentino Vipers,” he explained. “I’d love to take you to tomorrow’s game, if you’d liketo go, and to dinner afterward. Then you and I can get to know one another better, without me interfering with your work. How does that sound?”
“Well, it sounds like fun,” she admitted. “I do like basketball a lot. I’ve been a fan for years.” That much, conveniently, was true. Shewouldenjoy a Vipers game. She had never been.
“The tickets are great,” he assured her. “Courtside seats. Only the best. How about if I pick you up tomorrow at six o’clock? Would that work for you?”
“Sure,” she said, reflecting that this had all gone better than she could have hoped it would. She’d have something to report to Oliver Norcross tonight, and she knew he would be pleased. “You know, I have to say once more—I’m sorry for the rough start between the two of us. And I’m grateful to you for giving me another chance.”
He waved a hand. “Think nothing of it,” he told her. “I had a feeling you were going to come around, and I’m not at all surprised to hear that the reason you told me no was some work thing. I’m just glad we ran into each other again so you had the chance to come to your senses about it.”
Stephanie gritted her teeth and nodded. The one thing that was going to make this a challenge was his arrogance—how could he stand there and say he had known she was going to change her mind? As though it had been inevitable?
But on the other hand, his arrogance removed any guilt she might have been inclined to feel about the fact that she was tricking him. She was playing him, deceiving him, but if anyone in the world deserved this kind of deception, it was the man in front of her. He deserved to think he was going on a date witha woman who was interested in him, when in fact she was only going to be there out of obligation and self-interest.
If it had been anyone else, Stephanie would likely have been ashamed of herself for using him for her own advantage.
But with Elijah… he just assumed way too much. He was way too cocky.
The idea of him getting played was, she could admit, a little appealing.
CHAPTER 7
ELIJAH
“That’s a jump ball,” Elijah explained. “See, the possession arrow favors the Vipers, so we get to keep it. That’s why everyone is clapping.”
Stephanie smirked at him. “I understand what a tie-up is,” she told him. “I told you when you asked me out that I liked basketball, remember?”
So she had. Elijah had remembered that, but in the heat of the moment, he’d simply slipped back into an old habit. He had brought women to Vipers games before, and he was used to having to explain what was happening on the court—though he had never been sure to what extent the women he brought here genuinely didn’t understand versus when they were making a show of it to try to set him up to feel cool and smart. Surely everyone knew what a three-point shot was, and yet he had experienced plenty of women grabbing at his arm and pointing at the scoreboard, asking whether it had been some sort of mistake.
He liked that Stephanie wasn’t doing that. There was nothing appealing to him about a person who intentionally made herself smaller to try to please someone else.
The game was drawing to a close now. They were into the final minute, and Stephanie was sitting forward with her elbows braced on her knees. She was dressed well for the occasion, in a black ruffled blouse and black slacks. He thought she had done a good job threading the needle between stadium-appropriate apparel and something nice enough for dinner after the game. Again, it was different from most dates he brought to the stadium, who would usually dress up in cocktail dresses for wherever they were going afterward.
The clock ran down. The Vipers had the lead, and they managed to hold on to it thanks to the final possession they had been granted. When the buzzer sounded, they were up by two points.
Stephanie let out a whoop and jumped to her feet, cheering.
She continued to impress him. He rose alongside her and hollered at the players as they ran off the court. Then, as the crowd around them began to gather their possessions, he turned to face her. “Still up for dinner?” he asked. “Not tired or anything?”
