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"Is John coming tonight?"
“No, unfortunately,” Luke said and frowned. “I don't think he can come. Sorry to disappoint. All you’ve got is me tonight.”
I smiled. “That’s fine. I just thought…”
He nodded. “You just thought since we were business partners that he’d be here at the dinner. No,” he said and leaned back in his chair. “He was invited but had other plans. This is all family and their business colleagues. My family. A pack of wolves if there ever was one.”
I frowned. “Really?”
“You don't know much about my family, do you?”
I felt really stupid for other than my google search on his failed engagement, I hadn’t done much reading up on Luke Marshall and his family fortune, relying on Candace to fill me in. I knew Marshall was a big name in the business world, but I wasn’t much into the local business scene. I was studying treaties. What did I know about business?
“Sorry,” I said. “I’m not from Manhattan. I'm pulling a blank.”
“You know Er--," he said and then stopped and frowned, adjusting his tie. "I mean, you met John, though.”
I had to think fast. “We didn’t do a lot of talking…” I raised my eyebrows suggestively, hoping that would shut him up.
He grinned and laughed nervously. “Of course not. It’s just that I’ve never done this before,” he said and pointed to me, and then to himself. “I’ve never hired anyone before, to, you know. Go on a date. Or have sex. I’ve never really needed one.”
I nodded, trying to appear sympathetic but he sounded like an arrogant dick.
Never needed one...
“Of course you never needed an escort,” I said, and rested my chin on my hand, trying to look at him adoringly, when I was really thinking he was a spoiled brat. “I can’t imagine you’d be single for very long – or have to pay for sex.”
“I haven’t been and I don’t.” Then he took in a breath, like he was steeling himself for something unpleasant. “Let’s go downstairs. I hope you can put on the performance of your lifetime. Pretend we’re old friends from college. I went to Columbia for my undergrad so we can say we met then. We started to see each other only recently, but are very much in love. How does that sound?”
He raised his eyebrows, waiting for my response.
“It sounds like a good story,” I said. “I happen to be a student at Columbia and while I was never in any business classes, maybe we met at the pub. It could have happened. I can fake it with the best of them.”
He stood up and held out his hand. “It totally could have happened. But,” he said and pulled me close, holding my body against him with a hand on my lower back. "No faking it with me if we get into any extra-curricular activities later. Okay?"
"I won't unless I need to," I replied, narrowing my eyes suggestively.
"You won't need to," he said, his voice sounding husky, like he was already getting ideas.
Who was I kidding? I was already getting ideas…
Then he kissed me, a full-on lip lock, and it wasn't just a friendly kiss. It was enough to set my heart racing, and my traitorous body responded like Pavlov's Dog to a bell, swelling and wet and ready.
When he let me go and grabbed my hand, it took a few seconds for me to recover and I couldn't help but smile to myself. When I saw his own smile, it made my back stiffen. He was not going to control me so easily.
Mr. Big Shot 69, arrogant cheater on his fiancée…
I took in a deep breath and tried to get ahold of myself. It had been a loooong while since I was with a man and I was not going to just fold up like a chair at the first handsome, sexy, wealthy, alpha male billionaire that kissed me.
At least I'd try not to…
* * *
We walked past the empty tables to the marble staircase.
"Here goes everything," he said and took in a deep breath. Together, we made our entrance to the event.
I felt eyes turn to see us as we emerged from the staircase to the main ballroom and several people pointed. It made me feel a bit like Cinderella at the ball with her Prince, except Luke wasn’t charming. Well, he was, superficially, but he was still a jerk. He was totally a business man, doing business, an exchange of money for services rendered, and was trying to make someone jealous.
