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Hannah’s hand found his under the table. ‘I convinced him to. Better now than in a couple of months when there’s speculation about why he’s entering a hospital. It was just the right time.’
‘It was,’ he agreed, and Hannah wondered if that meant that she was forgiven for having kept this secret. Or maybe it was something else entirely. All she knew for certain was that sitting here with Matt, in this place that seemed so magical, it was getting easier to pretend that they were something real.
Hannah guessed her life would resemble tonight a great deal if they lasted past these next two months. She’d have a team mate with whom to raise a child. They’d make appearances together. They’d share looks when something made sense only to them; it didn’t seem like the worst idea to live this way. She could do that. Because right now she was happy.
Before their meal was served, Matt was called on to make a short speech. She watched him speak so warmly, as if he were addressing each person in this massive hall individually, welcoming investors and potential clients alike. He encouraged them to mingle and show off the power house that was Command Technologies.
That first night at the club in Melbourne, she had thought him to be a natural charmer: she was absolutely certain of it now. He held the entire room in his palm and she was overcome with pride. Then he looked over at her and she smiled broadly at him. His words halted for just a second before he drew his speech to a close.
When he took his seat she leaned over, whispering in his ear, ‘If our son is anything like you, I think I’m in big trouble.’
He grinned. ‘Let’s hope.’
She laughed and picked up her utensils as their meals were served. Despite being watched so closely that Hannah could tell exactly when someone moved, she was enjoying their night.
She tried to pay attention to the conversations around the table but all she could really focus on was the accidental touches every time she or Matt moved. Now his leg was pressed against hers and it felt as if her entire being was focussed on that point. It was ridiculous. Her brain was short-circuiting because a non-erogenous part of her body was touching Matt. She knew what his naked body felt like on hers, so why did she feel doused in flame?
Matt’s lips brushed her ear, his hot breath sending shivers down her spine. ‘If you keep looking at me like that, we’re going to get arrested for indecent exposure, and my investors won’t be happy.’
She hadn’t even realised she was staring. When she looked into his eyes now, they were dark.
‘I—I need the bathroom.’
Hannah excused herself from the table. Thankfully there was no queue. Pretending that she wished only to fix her lipstick, Hannah approached the mirror, going through the motions. What she was really doing was getting her breath back. Trying to control her heart, because his words had set her on fire. In that moment she hadn’t cared that there were hundreds of people around. All she’d wanted was his lips on hers but throwing caution to the wind was how they had ended up here with a baby on the way.
She needed to get it together. Yes, he seemed to want her, possibly as much as she wanted him. But she still wasn’t sure that he would find her attractive any more once he got her out of this dress.
Taking a few deep breaths, Hannah injected steel into her spine and marched confidently back to the table, only to find everyone mingling on the floor. It would be a nightmare to find Matt in the crowd, but she needn’t have worried. Her body sensed him first, then her eyes followed. He was standing with a tall, beautiful brunette. Her hand was trailing down his arm and Hannah had to fight the wave of jealousy that threatened to consume her.
She watched Matt’s eyes turn cold. His jaw clenched. Hannah could see the warmth she adored so much leave him, but the woman was oblivious, only looking at him with ill-concealed lust. No one seemed to notice that he was tense.
Anger bubbled to the surface. Matt was undoubtedly the most beautiful man Hannah had ever seen, but he was also funny, smart and caring and most definitely not a piece of meat. There was so much more to him than the magnificent package he came in. Actually feeling the confidence she usually tried to feign, Hannah marched up to the pair of them and placed her left hand on Matt’s chest, showing off her very conspicuous engagement ring.
‘There you are. I’ve been looking all over for you.’
He pulled her close, instantly turning back into the man she knew. ‘You found me.’
‘Want to dance?’ Hannah asked, determinedly ignoring the woman that Matt seemed to have forgotten was standing with them.
‘With the most beautiful woman here? You bet.’ He turned them in the direction of the dance floor and, when his arm came around her waist, the woman faded to a memory.
A light projection of the Command Technologies logo was dotted all over the dance floor, moving around the polished wood or catching people in its beams as they swayed under the lights.
Matt pulled Hannah against him as classical music floated around them. She had danced with him before, but it hadn’t been like this. Then it had felt like foreplay—the lighting of a fuse for what wound end in an explosive night. This was different. It was sweet and safe, the stoking of a flame.
He dipped his head down against hers and Hannah couldn’t help but close her eyes and lose herself to this moment.
‘Thank you for that,’ Matt said softly so only she would hear. The sincerity in his voice made Hannah look at his face. His eyes were closed and his jaw clenched. Whatever had happened with that woman had bothered him.
‘You know,’ Hannah said quietly, ‘that’s the second time I’ve seen you shudder at a woman’s touch.’ The question hung in the air between them.
The seconds stretched. She was sure he wasn’t going to answer but then she heard him mutter under his breath, ‘Why do I always want to tell you more than I should?’
He took a breath. ‘I hate the way they look at me. Though they don’t really—not at me. They’re looking at what they can get from me—fame and money. I’m tired of it, this vapid world.’
Hannah could see then the man who wanted more. Who wanted something deeper, something real. It was the man she’d met in a city halfway across the world. Convinced now more than ever that he’d never really been the playboy, Hannah was determined to be there for him.
‘As long as you have me, you won’t have to deal with that any more. I’ve got you too, Matt. I just hope you’ll learn to trust that. Trust me.’
