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“I’ll be the official taste tester. I’m all about being a team player, as you know.” Tony picked up a flute and filled it.
“Selfless,” Skyler said.
Hope and Skyler stood next to each other, watching as he took a sip.
“You were right. It’s fine.” He sighed, as if suffering. “I suppose it will work since we have nothing else.” He stuck the glass back under the waterfall.
“Want one?” Skyler asked Hope.
“No.” She needed every advantage she could gather where Rafe was concerned, which meant she had to keep her mind clear, even if that meant forgoing a glass of one of the best sparkling wines on the planet.
Skyler took her first sip and her eyes rolled back. She bent her knees in a mock swoon. “Oh, there so is a God.”
“It’s that good?” Hope asked.
“Better than that. Orgasmic, even.”
“You make that face when you orgasm?” Tony asked.
“Do not answer him!” Hope snapped.
Skyler made a circle over her head, indicating she had a halo.
“Business. We’re here for work,” Hope reminded them. They’d talked to seventeen candidates and ended up with four who might consider a BDSM relationship with the right millionaire.
Tony was on his second champagne when the first potential date arrived. Destiny Faulks owned a graphic design firm. She was petite, energetic, and had a brush of purple streaked through her blonde hair. Skyler went to say hello while Tony met Charlotte Lewiston, who played with the symphony. He led her to the center table where he offered her a glass of champagne.
Minutes later, Hope welcomed their third guest, Norah Minturn. Though young, the woman worked for a hedge fund management group and had already started to earn a reputation as being savvy and bold. She was from old money but left her trust fund untouched, preferring to make her own mark on the world.
Even though she was deep in conversation, Hope knew the moment Rafe opened the door. Oxygen rushed from the room. Her heart rate turned thready and words died in her throat.
She was caught in his unseen tractor beam. Unable to stop herself, she turned toward him. Their gazes locked, and he tipped his head to acknowledge her. Heat flooded her, as well as her instinct to succumb to his dominance. Realizing she was ignoring Norah, Hope shook herself. She made eye contact with Skyler, signaling she needed assistance. Then she turned back to Norah with a polite and practiced smile. “If you’ll excuse me for a moment?”
“That’s Rafe Sterling.”
His gaze was a livewire, and Hope shivered at the force of his attention. She hid her annoyance at Norah’s non-question. “Do you know him?”
“No.” She stared at him, unblinkingly. “But I want to.”
After unclenching her back teeth, Hope smiled. “You’ll get a chance.”
“When you said you had a successful businessman for me to meet, I had no idea you meant him.” Hunger and interest laced her tone. “He stands to inherit a billion dollars.” Norah took a breath before cupping her hand near her mouth to keep the conversation private. “He wants to tie me up and order me around?”
For a reason she didn’t dare name, Hope’s smile faded. “As I mentioned, that would entail a personal discussion between you and Mr. Sterling.”
Skyler finally arrived with Destiny to include Norah in their discussion.
As if he were royalty, Rafe had remained where he was, just inside the door, waiting for Hope to come to him. As if he were royalty, she went.
The air around him sizzled, supercharged.
She hesitated. In this business setting, it would be inappropriate to hug him, and a handshake would be ludicrous.
Seeming to enjoy her struggle, he waited her out, studying her, not making any move to extract her from the conundrum.
In the end, she opted not to touch him. It was much safer that way.
In a voice loud enough for others to hear, she said, “Excellent choice of venues, Mr. Sterling.” Did her words sound as forced to him as they did to her?
He continued to hold her gaze. “The view is second to none.”
With a broken inhalation, aware of Skyler watching them, Hope continued. “Everything is perfect. All the details. The room…” She was babbling. Damn it. Damn him and the smile toying with the corners of his lips.
