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Wendy.
He wondered if Ginny’s mother had said anything to her, and he almost laughed. Of course she had. Wendy wasn’t the type of woman who would hold back.
“We have drinks straight ahead,” the man said, and Cayden blinked to focus back on the conversation. “Once in the first room, you’ll find the food. Beyond that are the gems. Have a great evening.”
“Thank you,” Cayden murmured, and he went first into the building. He hadn’t been inside this one, and the hallway in front of him was long and dark. It opened up into a cozy room with a western theme. Dark brown leather couches dotted the room, with black and white cow-patterned rugs in front of them. A longhorn skull sat above the fireplace, and all of the tables looked handmade from hewn logs. A pair cowboy boots acted as a lamp base on the light fixture closest to him, and Cayden reached out to touch it.
Cowboy boots. He wore a pair right now, and he was actually surprised Ginny’s mother would allow such décor anywhere on her property.
“Sir,” someone said, and he turned toward a man who held a long tray with several glasses on it. “Would you like to try one of our gins?”
“I would,” Beth said, stepping to Cayden’s side. “Tell me what you’ve got.”
He smiled at her like he was the happiest man on earth. “Down here is our classic gin,” he said. “It’s got that juniper taste you associate with gin. Next to it is our orange blossom gin. It’s got the strongest citrus flavor out of any of our fruit-flavored gins.” He continued to outline the alcohol on the tray, and as Cayden wasn’t a fan of whiskey or gin or any alcohol really, he declined them all.
Beth selected the orange blossom, and Trey picked up the one with more anise in it. He took one sip and made a face. “This is why I don’t drink.”
The waiter had already moved away, thankfully, and Trey simply put his glass on the table next to those cowboy boots. Beth nursed hers as they looked around the room and then went through the doorway and into the next one.
This room was twice as big as the one with the cocktails, and there were far less people. Apparently, the drinks were more alluring than the food. Not to Cayden, and he took whatever the first man had on his tray and popped the whole thing into his mouth. Something salty and vinegary mixed with the beef, and then a bright pop of cilantro exploded in his mouth.
“Tartar,” he said. “That wasgood.”
“The chef made it with farm-raised cattle right here in Kentucky,” the man said, beaming as if he personally owned the farm.
Cayden wanted to pull him aside and ask him if he really was that happy to be working here tonight. He suspected the Winters paid very well, and that they insisted their people wear smiles for miles.
Instead, he picked up another wafer with the beef tartar on it and threw it back as if he was eating oysters.
He hadn’t seen Ginny yet, and some of the tension he’d been harboring in his chest and shoulders dissipated. She’d likely be in the gem room, where all the goods were. Sweet Rose had partnered with Down Home Jewelry for the event, as both were local Dreamsville corporations that had expanded to worldwide giants while maintaining their Kentucky roots.
Cayden drifted away from Beth and Trey and toward another tray of food. Then another. If he ate enough, coming here tonight would be worth the risk to his heart. As if on cue, it skipped a beat, and he reached for another Southwest eggroll.
Ginny had pulled out all the stops for tonight’s event. Low music played in this room, and there were multiple places to sit and relax. Talk and get food and order additional drinks. Nothing ever ran out and while Cayden had seen behind the curtain at an event like this, he suspected most of the people here had not.
Trey appeared in front of him. “We’re going in. You’ll be okay here?”
“Yes,” Cayden said, biting back on the sarcastic remark that popped into his head. He watched Trey and Beth duck through the door at the back of the room, and he took another crabcake when the tray came around again.
He’d just finished it when Ginny exited the room where Trey had gone.
Cayden got to his feet without even knowing that he had. He soaked in the sight of Virginia Winters, sparks flying through his whole body.
Beth had been wrong; the reminder wasn’t for Ginny. It was for him.
Go talk to her, he commanded himself. He had to talk to her tonight. He had to explain that he’d gone silent because of her mother.
He couldn’t believe he’d cared what Wendy Winters thought of him. He couldn’t believe he’d given up the curvy, gorgeous woman currently smiling at a couple of men. Ginny wore an elegant off-white dress with plenty of lace everywhere. Her dark hair had been piled up on top of her head and secured with glinting gems that probably cost more than most people made in their entire lifetimes.
Her heels made her legs tight and slender, and Cayden’s mouth turned dry.
It was her eyes that always captured him, and as she laughed and looked his way, he caught sight of those navy blue pools that pulled him in every time.
He knew the moment she saw and recognized him. The smile slipped from her face, and her eyes widened.
One hand flew to her mouth, which had dropped open, and then lowered to press against her chest. Her dress had wide straps that went over her shoulders and left a lot of skin to be observed.
Cayden couldn’t move, though he wanted to. He could at least wave or something to indicate to her that he’d seen her. If he could just get his blood to stop burning him up from the inside out, he’d go talk to her.
