AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“He’s on tour, but from what I hear, they’re still dating. So that’s good.” Kelli tilted her head toward the bar. “She’s over there with her parents.”
Mimi, Michael, and Felicia Jones were indeed at the bar. I watched as Mimi drained her glass, then held it out for a refill. “Ugh, her drinking has been so intense ever since she found out about Michael’s affair.” Kelli peered past me at Daphne, glowing and resplendent in a patterned, multicolored dress. “I hope there isn’t a scene tonight. I heard Daphne’s looking for a huge payday.”
I watched as Mimi Jones knocked back another martini. “You might want to close the bar down.”
Kelli followed my stare. “Oh boy. Let me see if I can get them to water down the vodka.” She hustled off toward the bar.
Daphne was immediately by my side. “Mimi’s getting sloppy, huh? Michael won’t look at me, of course. He’s probably sweating bullets about telling his wife how much money he’s going to have to cough up for this baby. And Felicia’s giving you a death stare, FYI.”
“Great.” Why the hell had I come to this party?
“Ooh, by the way, I heard you and Olivia tried to talk some sense into Tate. Do you think it helped?”
We glanced over and saw Colby spoon-feeding Tate some sort of mousse canapé. She licked her lips suggestively and stared up at him with fuck-me eyes.
“Maybe not so much.” I grimaced.
“Oh boy—here comes Bryce. I better move over. You’re supposed to be next to him all night, right?” Daphne winked at me and hustled away.
“Right.” Gene Windsor had been crystal-clear that I was to stand by my husband and stay out of trouble all night.
But…how the hell did Daphne know about that?
Before I could ponder it further, Bryce was at my side. I smiled at the man I loved, vowing to do what Gene asked.
I didn’t know what would happen if I played my cards right.
But I knew exactly what would befall me if I played them wrong.
THIRTEEN
nobody
CHLOE
Not lookingat Felicia Jones all night proved a true test of will. There was something about her—her blue, blue eyes, long, dark hair, and sparkling complexion were hard to look away from. The smattering of freckles across her nose, so unexpected, mesmerized. I could understand, at least from a distance, why Bryce had been taken with her.
When she shot daggers at me with her eyes, I sighed. I could also see why he was happy he never married her!
Bryce caught the nasty expression on Felicia’s face as she glanced our way from the bar. He sighed. “Don’t let her get to you. She’s just upset that you kicked her ass.”
Bryce chuckled, then wrapped his arms around me. “Let’s just stand here and look happy, okay? That’s the good press I need to start my first week as CEO off right.”
“I’m so excited for you.” With all the drama going on, I’d almost forgotten that this was Bryce’s firstrealweek as CEO. “What’s happening? What’s your agenda like?”
“You mean, besides trying to keep our shares from tanking, our stockholders from staging a mutiny, and my father’s arrest from eclipsing everything we’ve worked to build as a company? You know, not much.” He laughed.
“Babe, I’m sorry you’re dealing with so much.” I wrapped my arms around his waist, staring up at him. “You’ve been so good to me, taking me away for the weekend and making sure that Noah was settled back at the house.”
“You mean kidnapping you and dragging you out of the country against your will.” He arched an eyebrow.
“You say ‘kidnapping,’ I say ‘taking.’ I mean, I guess I was the one who originally said kidnapping because that’s what happened. But it all worked out for the best.” I grinned up at him. “The point is, I’m back.We’reback. And I really want to support you right now.”
“I appreciate that.” He brushed the hair back from my face. “I might want you to come to Boston with me later in the week. I should make an appearance at headquarters. It would be good if you could be seen with me in the city. We can stay at my building; you’ll love it.”
“Building?”
He raised an eyebrow. “I own a townhouse in Beacon Hill. Didn’t you know that?”
