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"Here." Mira grabs the bottle of water then walks around the table and hands it to me. "You take care and if you need anything, call. We’re here."
"Thanks."
"Call us, anyway," Penny calls out as I head toward the exit.
How did he know where I was? And how did he know when to send a car?
I walk out of the bar, and sure enough, there’s a Mercedes with dark glass idling by the curb. The driver gets out of the car, walks around, and opens the door for me. "Ms. Warren?"
I nod.
"Mr. Kingston is waiting for you."
40
Cade
"You’re what?" The Mullet gapes at me from across the table.
I’m sprawled in the armchair in the room adjoining the restaurant where I’ll be announcing my forthcoming engagement to the press. Of course, she’s late—not that I was on time. When I arrived, I found that not only was she not at the venue, but also that my agent was waiting for me. I’d called him over to update him on the changes I intended to make to my career.
Not that I needed to do that. He earns a hefty percentage off all the sponsorship deals he negotiated for me, and from my earnings from playing on the cricket team, so he’d best find a way to adapt the changes I ask of him, regardless of how little notice he gets for this. Still, I suppose it doesn’t hurt to keep him abreast of my plans.
"You’re getting engaged?" he asks again.
"Fake engaged." I lean forward, glance at my watch.Where is she?I called the operative I have on her, who told me she’s at a bar drinking—with her girlfriends. The only saving grace is that she’s out with girlfriends, else I’d have been liable to spill blood today. But she’s out, no doubt, savoring her last minutes as a free person, because once I get my ring on her finger, I’m going to damn well make sure she won’t be doing a thing without first letting me know about it.
"King, you were saying?"
I glance up.What was I saying? Oh, yeah."It’s a publicity stunt to mend my reputation in the media and to assure the fans and the sponsors that I’m settling down, that my days of whooping it up and being seen with a different woman every day are behind me, etc., etc."
He nods slowly, then chortles. "Genius, King. In one swoop, you’ll have mended your reputation and added the string of ‘family man’ to your bow. That’s going to open up a plethora of sponsorship opportunities, which means, even more money coming your way, my man."
I frown. I hadn’t thought of how news of my engagement—I mean, myfake engagement—would expand my money-making opportunities. Which is an added bonus, I suppose. Still, the thought of leveraging my engagement to Abby, to make money is… Not what I had in mind.Of course, I’m doing it to bolster my reputation, to signal that I’m a changed man. But to also use it as a means of bagging more sponsorships?I shake my head.Why the hell does that feel wrong? I want to use every opportunity to grow my bank balance, correct?
"King, you alright?"
I scowl at him. "Of course, I am."
"So shall I reach out to a wider net of sponsors who’ll be able to leverage your image as a fiancé and husband to-be?"
I shove aside the twisting in my guts and jerk my chin in his direction. "Do it.”
"Excellent." He holds out his hand. "Pleasure doing business with you."
I glower at his hand and then at his face. "Leave," I snap.
He blinks, then recovering quickly, he jumps to his feet. "Of course. Anything you say, King." He wheels around and out of the room. I glance around the tastefully appointed space.
James Hamilton, the leading chef on the continent, owns the restaurant. Not only is he a friend, he’s also a fellow member at the 7A Club. Which means, he was more than happy to host the event. Not that he needs it, considering the waiting list for his restaurant is months long. But it’s an opportunity that will both benefit him and give me a venue I need at short notice.
I could have had Abby organize the event, but given how pissed she was with me yesterday, I decided to hold off on that request. Instead, I put in a call to Isla Kincaid, who’s diversifying from weddings to planning events; she dropped everything and prioritized this event. She also told me that she was used to putting events together on tight deadlines—the Seven gave her more than enough practice, with each of them getting married with very short notice.
Even for her, organizing an occasion of this caliber within twenty-four hours was pushing it, but she couldn’t resist the challenge. Which worked to my benefit. In short, everything is in place—except my to-be-bride, who is not yet here. The operative who’s bringing her here messaged me to let me know she’s on her way, and when I see her, I’m going to give her a dressing down. I’m going to turn her over my lap and spank that incredible arse of hers and—
"How did you track me down?" She blows into the room, and all thoughts empty from my mind.Jesus, I missed her. How could I miss her when I just saw her less than twenty-four hours ago?
She stomps over to me, her hair flying about her shoulders. Her cheeks are flushed, her eyes sparkling with an inner light that signals she’s ready for a fight. My cock instantly thickens. I take in the dress she’s wearing, a simple pink one that flows down to below her knees. It also clings to her curves and is sleeveless, so it shows off her shapely shoulders. Also, it’s cut low enough to hint at her cleavage.Fucking hell.I shrug out of my jacket, then close the distance between us and drop it over her shoulders. I button the jacket all the way down, then step back and survey my handiwork.
