Total pages in book: 123
Estimated words: 115833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 115833 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 579(@200wpm)___ 463(@250wpm)___ 386(@300wpm)
I could feel the warmth of her hand through the fabric, her perfume luring me in. I loved a woman who smelled good, and Davina Klein smelled like a snack.
“Like I told you,” I murmured. “Wouldn’t have missed it.”
She blinked up at me, and once again her eyes were on my face, searching it. I wasn’t sure what it was she was looking for. Her lips parted, like she was going to say whatever was on her mind.
Instead, she said, “I, uh . . . I hope you enjoy the party.” Then she sauntered away to meet her friend.
I sipped my champagne, studying her ass as she walked across the ballroom. For the last couple of weeks, I kept asking myself why I wanted Davina so badly. She was just a woman, and to most men, pussy was pussy.
But . . . I don’t know. Davina felt like a different breed of woman. She didn’t beg or drop straight to her knees at the sight of me. She didn’t tell me things I wanted to hear just to be on my good side. She was honest and naturally beautiful, and her curves, thick thighs, and plump ass were a hell of a bonus.
“I see why you were staring at her IG pics, big dog.”
I looked at EJ, who sat in an empty chair close by.
“She’s fine as fuck,” he said.
“You were staring at her pictures, Deke?” Whitney asked, eyes widening.
I wasn’t about to answer that. I finished off my champagne and stepped past Whitney to get to the bar again. I needed something stronger than the bubbly.
“Deke. What did me and Camille tell you about her?” my sister hissed.
“What are you talking about?” I flagged the bartender down.
“You need to leave her alone. Do not cross that line.”
“What line?”
“You know exactly what line I’m talking about. Look, I get it. She’s really, really pretty. But didn’t you say on our last call that she lost her husband a couple months ago? That’s just . . .”
“Just what?” I demanded, dropping my eyes to hers.
Whitney’s brows puckered, and she straightened her posture. “That’s messy, Deke.”
“Well, maybe I’m okay with it being messy.” The bartender appeared, and I requested a neat whiskey. The irony of my drink of choice wasn’t lost on me.
“Okay—you know what? Whatever,” Whitney muttered. “Do whatever you want, just like you always do. But, Deke, I’m telling you, if you sleep with that woman, you’re gonna fuck her up even more. I saw her eyes. She is not okay. She’s smiling and looks happy on the outside, but she’s crying inside. After experiencing that sort of pain firsthand, you of all people should know that tampering with it doesn’t help. Don’t make matters worse for her.”
Whitney took off with those words lingering in the air, and I blew a breath, collecting my drink and leaving the ballroom to find a quieter space.
EIGHTEEN
DAVINA
To my relief, the party ran smoothly.
There wasn’t the slightest hiccup, and I was grateful Tish made sure of it. If there was something that went wrong, she didn’t bring it to my attention.
It was nearing ten o’clock, and it seemed the party should’ve been winding down, but instead it was ramping up. The drinks at the bar were unlimited, courtesy of Chester, who was roaming around somewhere, and that was probably why no one was going home.
The guests had everything they needed in this big, beautiful building, which cost a fortune—food, drinks, entertainment—and it was worth staying.
I stood near the stage and watched the slideshow on the screen above it. There was a shuffle of images, some of our employees in action or posing for the camera, others of our products staged nicely on beige-and-white backgrounds.
And of course there were the images of the main man and the reason many people had rapidly RSVP’d to the rebranding party, Deke. When an image of him slid across, I peeled my eyes from the screen to find him. He was coming in from the lobby, and as if he were looking for me, too, our eyes connected.
He tossed a hand up with a crooked smile. That was clearly his signature move. It was cute and always caused a flutter in my belly. I gave him a quick wave back, then turned my attention away, gulping some champagne down to cool the simmering in my throat.
“Vina, we’re ready for your speech,” Tish said from behind me. I turned to find her, and she looked stunning in her black-and-gold gown. Her newly appointed fiancé, Lorenzo, was at the party as well, dressed in matching gold and black and helping himself to as many barbecue meatballs as he wanted.
“Right.” I followed my best friend to the stage, ready to get my speech over with.
Tish got everyone’s attention and primed the crowd. When it was my turn to take the floor, I thanked the necessary people, then called Deke to the stage.