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He frowned, concern shifting through him. “Are you in some sort of trouble?”
She shook her head quickly. “Oh, God, no,” she assured him as they reached the elevators, and the lack of fear in her voice and expression made the crazy and unexpected protective vibe in him ease. “I can handle the person just fine. I’d just rather avoid them right now, and preferably for the rest of the night, if possible. Are you okay with going up to my apartment for a bit?”
Her final question was giving him an option and an out if he didn’t want to be completely alone with her. But truth be told, he was partied out. The noise. The people. The forced smiles and small talk. He’d met his quota for the year.
Going somewhere quiet appealed to him immensely, and clearly Tempest needed a breather, too. Going up to her apartment was all about business, he told himself. Nothing more.
“Let’s go,” he said, and pressed the call button for the elevator, and the gratitude that filled her eyes told Remy he’d made the right decision for Tempest.
He wasn’t so sure about himself.
Chapter 3
The moment Remy agreed to accompany Tempest up to her apartment, genuine relief filled her. After catching Kyle looking around the ballroom, most likely searching for her since she’d done her best to avoid him tonight, she’d made the split-second decision to take her conversation with Remy somewhere more private. A short reprieve to discuss hiring Remy for her upcoming project, and then she’d return to the ball and Remy would undoubtedly beeline it for the exit as he’d already tried to do twice.
The elevator doors opened and they stepped inside, with Remy keeping a proper distance between them. With tonight’s ball and so many guests in attendance, the upper floors had been locked out to everyone except those who held a key card that would allow them up to the MadX-Tech offices. As for the apartments above that floor, they required more specific encoded data on the magnetic strip to bypass the system, which only select people had access to.
After the heavy steel elevator doors slid closed, Tempest discreetly reached into the slit in her dress and retrieved her key card, watching as a comical what-the-fuck look appeared on Remy’s face when she produced the rectangular piece of plastic from beneath her dress as if by magic.
A confused frown marred his brows. “Where the hell were you keeping that?”
She laughed as she swiped the magnetic strip so the elevator could begin its ascent and could only imagine that all sorts of hilarious scenarios were running through Remy’s mind right now. “It was tucked into a garter I’m wearing.” She flashed him the opposite leg from the one exposed by the high slit in her dress, showing him the sexy black lace band secured around her upper thigh with a built-in pocket, which came in handy when she didn’t want to carry a purse. “I designed them myself, and I sell them, too. They’re pretty and very functional.”
His gaze lifted from the garter to her face. “What do you mean, you design and sell them?”
She released the silky material of her dress, covering her legs again. “My current business, Wilder Passion, is designing lingerie and selling the exclusive pieces through monthly subscription boxes. I included the garters one month, and they were such a huge hit I now sell them on the website.”
He blinked at her in surprise. “I had no idea that’s what you did for a living.”
No doubt, he probably thought she sat around and ate bonbons all day. They arrived on her floor and the doors opened directly into her apartment’s marble foyer. She stepped out, followed by Remy.
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“You know, I’m not the spoiled princess you think I am,” she quipped in a teasing tone, referencing his earlier comment about her. “I might be fortunate enough to live a comfortable life with certain luxuries thanks to my brother’s wealth and generosity, but I don’t depend on Maddux’s money to support me beyond this apartment he gifted to me. I’m actually a successful businesswoman in my own right.”
“I’m impressed,” he said, the praise in his voice surprisingly warm and authentic.
“Thank you.” She smiled at him, his compliment meaning more to her than it should. Probably because all the men she’d dated recently thought of her business as an insignificant hobby instead of a real job. Including Kyle.
They reached the open-concept living room and kitchen area, which was huge and spacious. Remy stopped and glanced around, taking in all the changes through his contractor eyes—her bold red, black, and gray décor, the funky style of her furniture, and a lot of the accessories she’d added over the past few years since he’d finished construction on the building and apartments.
“Wow, the place looks great,” he said, his gaze meeting hers again. “Last time I saw your apartment, it was just painted walls and empty other than all the kitchen and bathroom fixtures.”
She saw him surreptitiously glance down the hallway toward the back rooms and imagined he was curious to know how those had turned out, too. “Would you like a tour of the apartment you designed and built?” she offered.
While he’d definitely thawed since she’d first approached him downstairs at the ball, he was still guarded, and she expected him to quickly turn down her invitation.
Instead, he shocked her with his enthusiastic reply. “Yeah, that would be great. I’d love to see what you did with the space.”
She laughed. “You’re like a contractor geek right now.” And really, it was adorable seeing his enthusiasm.
“I kind of am,” he admitted unabashedly. “You build all these spaces for people, and you rarely get to see how they look once they put their personal touches on everything. The before-and-after fascinates me.”
“Okay, then, follow me.”
She walked down the hallway that led to the far side of the apartment and showed him how she’d furnished and decorated her bedroom and the gorgeous ensuite he’d designed for her that included an enormous shower enclosure with a waterfall showerhead, a sunken tub, and a long, mirrored vanity most women would envy. Across the hall from the master was a guest bedroom with an attached bath. She’d taken the red, black, and gray theme and had incorporated it throughout the apartment and in each individual room except for the one area she had him build for her workspace.
It was the biggest room in the apartment by far, with a pair of decorative sliding doors that were located right off the living room. She saved that to show him last, because it meant the most to her. During the planning stages of construction, she’d requested this expansive room with shelves and drawers and various build-outs, and the grumpy, closed-off man at the time hadn’t asked questions. He’d just kept his head down and gotten the job done, giving her exactly what she’d envisioned.
