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CHAPTER THREE
BEAU
Aman’s unflatteringpicture and a room number sat on the screen of my phone as I meandered past the buffet and waited for Sylvie to emerge from the ladies’ room. She outshone every guest present, ridiculously so, and keeping my hands and mouth off her wasn’t a problem.
Pretending like she meant nothing, on the other hand...that posed a different sort of threat.
I never struggled to maintain the facade that I didn’t care about the world. That avenue came all too easily when my father fixed a mask of mortar, blood and cynicism over my childhood at a single digit age.
But the wily fucker knew me too well, and tricking him into believing what I wanted him to see wasn’t as simple as creating the facade the rest of the world bought.
“This place is beyond lavish, and I was brought up with a silver spoon under my tongue, prying the screams out of me.” Sylvie appeared at my side, straightening her dress and giving a little shimmy that displayed her stunning body to its absolute best. “Better?”
“Perfect.” I let the corner of my mouth turn upward. “Enjoying the party?”
“Considering I know no one here, turned up in a haze of being screwed with in the back of your limo and want to avoid grabbing hands...uh, sure?” She peeked up at me, the edges of her confidence tainted with a shyness I didn’t usually associate with the fiery girl I obsessed over daily.
A discomfort I put there.
I hooked her hand though my elbow, drawing her closer to my side. “I have an...errand to complete, then I’m yours for the rest of the night.” Not that we would be here longer than thirty minutes before the place went to hell, but she didn't need to know that just yet. I’d done enough damage hauling her in as arm candy. The thought of other men touching her, however... “And afterward, you can point out the owners of the grabby hands,” I murmured into her ear under the facade of nuzzling her throat.
Or not so pretending. Her sweet, fresh sweat beneath her hair coated my tongue like a drug I instantly craved. A primal growl emanated from my throat before I could shut it down, but Sylvie’s breathless sigh which she covered with a fake-ass giggle nearly did me in.
The soft sound, not the fucking giggle.
“You know what? I’ll introduce you to my brother.” I managed to push the word out between my teeth. “You’ll be safe with him for the next while. Then I’ll be back to claim you.” I squeezed her waist hard enough to leave absolutely zero doubt in her mind what I meant.
“Okay.” Sylvie stared up at me with wide eyes. “Is your brother like you?”
I blinked at her. “What?”
“I mean, is he cruel and hot and cold?” Her face was open but her eyes remained cautious.
I huffed a laugh. “No. He’s an utter asshole. Probably one with wandering hands. But if he touches you, he’ll lose them.”
“Oh.” Sylvie studied the floor. “You don’t have family, do you?”
I drew her across the floor, weaving between dancers and increasingly tipsy party guests. “They’re all alive, if that’s what you mean,” I muttered.
“But you don’t have a lot of love for them, do you?” she said sadly.
