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Chapter Thirteen
Siobhan had no idea which was more entertaining, the shock on Jack’s face as she did her best to strut across the ballroom, or that just-sucked-on-a-lemon look on Mitch and Chase’s faces. When Eve swore on her favorite chocolate martini that this was the dress that would knock Jack off his feet, Siobhan had her doubts. She really liked the red dress with the drop back or the gold dress with the sweetheart neckline. All Eve did was shake her head and point to the deep royal blue option over and over.
She could still hear Eve repeating, “Jack’s a leg man. The peek of leg on the side slit will drive him crazy. The cleavage won’t hurt, he is a man after all, but it’s the leg he only gets a hint of that will drive him nuts.”
Time would tell if Eve was right.
“Isn’t there a shawl or wrap that goes with that dress?” Chase didn’t know where to look. Every time his gaze dropped to her neckline or bare shoulders, it immediately shot back up to her face.
It took everything in her not to laugh.
“If it had one, she’d be wearing it.” Eve actually rolled her eyes at their brothers.
Mitch glared at their sister. “Whose side are you on?”
“I don’t take sides.” Eve reached for her brother, the senator’s, hand. “Come on. I like this song. Let’s dance before all the rich women in the room claim you.”
“But…” Keeping his eyes on Siobhan, he was practically digging his heels in as Eve dragged him onto the floor.
“There you are.” Paige appeared beside her brother. “I love this song. Let’s dance.”
Chase whipped his head left at Paige then back to Siobhan before scowling at Jack. “Later.”
“This song will be over later.” Sticking her arm straight out, Paige snatched Chase’s hand. “Come on, big brother. Make your sister happy.”
Still scowling, he shifted his gaze from Siobhan to Jack as Paige dragged him into the middle of the floor beside Mitch and Eve. Bless her big sisters. They understood what Siobhan was going through and how hard it was to force her brothers to view her as a woman fully grown and not the baby of the family.
“Shall we?” Jack held his elbow out to her.
She couldn’t stop the smile from taking over her face. “I’d love to.”
Together, they slowly strolled across the wooden floor to the center of the dance area. As if they’d been dancing together their entire lives, his hand wound around her waist and the other hand enfolded hers in his. One step back and in seconds they were gliding around the room like Fred and Ginger. Another minute and doing something equivalent to a fancy two-step, Jack twirled her in place before pulling her back into his arms. She couldn’t help but chuckle and smile up at him.
From the corner of her eye, she spotted Mitch, his lips pressed tightly together, shooting daggers at Jack. Another twirl around the floor and Chase had maneuvered his way over to them. Just like her other brother, Chase silently scolded Jack with his piercing scowl. Not wanting to laugh out loud at her brothers, she buried her head in Jack’s shoulder, muffling her laughter.
“Are you trying to get me killed?” Jack teased.
Without moving away, she shook her head against him. “I can hear your heartbeat.”
She also felt him swallow and suck in a deep breath. Instantly his heartbeat slowed. “That’s probably a good thing, because I’m pretty sure it stopped when you walked into the room.”
Barely inching back, she lifted her face to see his eyes. “Really?”
Chuckling slightly, he nodded. “Most definitely. You, Siobhan Baron, are a knockout. And if you haven’t noticed, you’re driving me crazy.”
“I think I like that.” Smothering a smile, she leaned against him again.
To her surprise, at no point did Jack make an effort to stop dancing. The music went through a few ballads before switching to a couple of faster tunes. Mitch had indeed been pulled away by one wealthy patron after another. Chase, on the other hand, had approached them more than once, clearly intending to cut in before Paige or Eve stepped in and steered him away to dance.
“The waitstaff is serving dinner.”
Jack glanced across the room to where their table was. “We should probably go sit.”
“Would it be out of place for me to say, I don’t want to let you go?”
His head dipped and he very gently kissed her temple. “Ditto.”
“So what do we do?”
