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Her grandmother’s mouth dropped open again before she snapped it shut. “Excuse me?”
“It wasn’t that bad.” His mother waved another dismissive gesture. “Just a few dribbles.”
“I see.” Mrs. Baron looked from her granddaughter’s dress to her face and then with a small nod, sprouted her own smile. “As Tom Hanks said inApollo 13, looks like we’ve had our one glitch for tonight.”
Jared briefly glanced in the woman’s direction. From the frown that Eve suddenly sported, he suspected that she was thinking the same thing he was. That line in the movie came just before one of the worst space disasters of all time had kicked off.
“I see the waiters are beginning to serve dinner. I don’t mind admitting I’m famished.” Lila Baron tapped the seat next to her and smiled again at her granddaughter. “Come sit between Jared and me. This way you’ll have someone young to talk to.”
Eve’s face was quite expressive as shock once again took over. “You’re Jared Gold?”
Not for the first time, his reputation obviously preceded him. Expelling a long sigh, he had no choice but to nod and hope for the best. “Guilty as charged.”
Chapter Three
Next time Eve was going to have to remember that if Jack Preston couldn’t escort her to a major charity gala, she should just stay the heck home. It wasn’t like her latest scent wasn’t going to bring in big bucks at auction if she wasn’t there to pimp it. Tonight was serious business and being saddled all night with one of her brother’s playboy cohorts was not how she wanted to spend an already difficult evening.
“I’m sorry.” Her grandmother frowned. “Do you two not know each other?”
Jared cleared his throat. “I’m sorry to say we’ve only just recently met.”
“You could say that.” Eve did her best to offer a friendly smile, but she still wasn’t completely convinced she’d have spilled the caviar down her dress if he hadn’t shown up when he did. She extended her hand. “Eve Baron. Nice to officially meet you.”
“The pleasure is all mine.”
The waiter appeared with a tray of salads and as Mrs. Gold took her seat, Eve realized that she was designated to sit between her grandmother and Jared. Just what she didn’t need tonight, a handsome man with not only a history of partying hard, but a voice as smooth as silk and terribly distracting.
Halfway through the salad, her grandfather engaged Jared in a lengthy conversation about two season breeding. Spring and Fall. She’d been a part of the ranch family her whole life and somehow had missed that the family ranch, like the Gold ranch, had a bumper crop of calves not once but twice a year. The conversation continued with small detours to feed and fence lines for most of dinner. She’d barely had time to close her knife and fork when Jared leaned in and softly said, “Dance with me?”
She glanced over her shoulder at the dance floor. At least other couples had already finished their meals and began moving around the square wooden surface. For a few seconds she considered options for politely declining. Wishing that the MC for the evening would cut off the music and start the auction, she knew as well as anyone else that it was in the charity’s best interest to juice up all the attendees with food and alcohol. Two things that helped open checkbooks and increase profits.
“What a lovely idea.” Her grandmother turned to her husband and gently lay her hand on his as he regaled the person to his other side about the current political climate in Texas versus back in his day. “Governor, shall we dance?”
The old man turned to his wife and glancing down at her gentle touch on his hand, he smiled up at her and pushed to his feet. “It would be my absolute pleasure.”
Before Eve could react, Jared was on his feet, his hand extended in front of her. Despite every alarm in her head screaming for her to say no, that men this good looking and as rich as the Golds could only mean trouble, she was too polite and thoughtful to do anything except nod and follow Jared to the middle of the dance floor. His grip on her hand firm but not too tight, his other hand at the base of spine held her close, but not too close. The man took one step, the pressure on her back increasing as he urged her along and her heart leapt.
If nothing else, the man could dance. Really dance. They’d done a full turn around the dance floor, gliding in perfect synchronization. He even managed to throw in a twirl or two and she didn’t trip over her own feet, or his. In college she’d dated a guy who had the unpleasant nickname of twinkle toes. She loved how well he danced and that he’d taught her. He, on the other hand, had hated the nickname and finally opted to change majors and colleges and she was left dating guys who on a good day swayed awkwardly to music.
“Thank you.”
“For what?” She tipped her chin upward to better see his face.
His eyes danced with merriment. “That was my line.”
It took her a few moments to connect the dots. Those where the unexpected words that had startled her into spilling her caviar the second time. “It was, but thank you for what?”
“Not throwing your dinner in my face when I asked you to dance.”
“Well. That wouldn’t have been very lady-like, would it?”
“So you did consider it.” His smile broadened and the twinkle in his eyes brightened.
She couldn’t help but chuckle. “Not quite.”
“All the more reason to thank you for this dance.”
The choice of words made it sound like he was going to return her to the table when the song ended, and much to her surprise, she was more disappointed at that prospect than she had been upset at the unpleasant accident. “It’s nice to take a turn around the floor with someone who doesn’t step on my shoes or my dress.”
