Total pages in book: 138
Estimated words: 129460 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 518(@250wpm)___ 432(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 129460 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 647(@200wpm)___ 518(@250wpm)___ 432(@300wpm)
The confidence fueling my boldness gets chipped when Jack assists Caleb’s date out of the car. “That’s Caleb’s date.”
“Are you sure?” Octavia asks, her voice high with shock.
“Yes. I came over to grab my spatula.” Lying is better than exposing how foolish I’ve been the past three years. “They were in the kitchen. Caleb was shirtless.” I don’t need to say anymore. Caleb’s rush to collect his gushing date from Jack proves everything I’m saying is gospel. “I told you.”
I wonder if my anger can be felt when Octavia murmurs two seconds later, “Maybe we should go.”
“Oh, hell no.” I glue her to my side by looping my arm around her elbow. “He may not be with a date, but he doesn’t get to invite you to an event then backtrack like he didn’t.”
My eyes are on Jack, but my words are for Caleb, and Octavia knows that. “You didn’t get your invitation from Elaine, did you?”
My ego gets a boost when I reply, “No, but I’ll be sure to thank Caleb… after kicking him in the nuts.”
“Good evening, ladies,” Elaine, Jack’s assistant, greets us with a grin when we enter the gala ahead of Jack and Caleb. After passing us our VIP lanyards, she asks, “Will you be participating in the bachelorette auction tonight? Most dates will likely not occur. It’s all just a bit of fun.”
“Yes—”
My reply is interrupted by a grumpy, stern tone. Regretfully, it doesn’t belong to Caleb. “No. They will not be participating. They were just leaving.”
Before I can remind Jack that he is only our boss during office hours, Octavia pops up. “Yes, we would love to sign up. Which form do we need to sign?”
“Octavia.”
I mentally high-five Octavia when she ignores Jack’s grumpy tone before silently requesting Elaine to inform us which form we need to sign.
“It’s this one,” Elaine advises, shuddering when Jack snarls out her name this time around.
Octavia has only just finished signing her name when Jack snags her elbow and pulls her to the side entrance. I can’t hear a word they speak, but it is obviously heated.
Caleb’s eyes bore into the back of my head when Elaine hands me a pen. But unlike Jack, he doesn’t verbalize his jealousy. He acts as if he isn’t affected at all by me pimping myself out.
Let’s see how long that lasts once I find an eligible man to express my woes to.
Caleb has jealousy issues a mile long, and I’m going to jab my finger into every single button imbedded on the long, winding track tonight.
With her conversation with Jack over and him left standing at the side like a loser without a date, Octavia curls her arm around my elbow and guides me into the affluent scented space.
I won’t lie. It hurts when Caleb takes up Jack’s campaign instead of his own. With pleading, I’m-just-doing-my-job eyes, he steps away from his wide-eyed date to approach Octavia.
“Don’t,” Octavia barks out before he gets within a foot of us. “I have every right to be here.”
“Unlike you,” I add, my annoyance too high to ignore.
I down a glass of champagne I snag off a waiter’s tray within a second of us entering the gala, then make a beeline for a waiter with a stacked tray. I had planned to do the cheers-and-dump game I usually play when in an unfamiliar environment, but I need a bit of liquid courage first, and what better way to get that than with an extremely expensive champagne?
CHAPTER 41
JESS
As a bead of sweat rolls down my neck, I trip over my feet. The man I’ve spent the last hour dancing with catches me before I face plant with the floor, but my ruse feels more real than fake. I downed three glasses of champagne in quick succession, but still, it’s never affected me this quickly. I feel drunk, and with that drunkenness comes a severe bout of flirting—and clumsiness.
“I’m so sorry,” I apologize when I stumble again. “It’s been a while since I’ve consumed alcohol. It’s gone straight to my head.”
Fabien slants his head to hide his grin before asking, “Would you like me to fetch you a bottle of water?” His accent is gorgeous, pairing well with his dashing face and fit body. He’s been nothing but a gentleman the past hour, and I’ve been nothing but a cow. Instead of relishing a decency not a lot of men have these days, I’ve been exploiting it to piss off Caleb.
Such as now when I ask, “Does my drunkenness bother you?”
“Not at all,” Fabien answers. “Although I may need to wait until the morning to…”
When I can’t read the innuendo in his eyes as well as Caleb’s, I ask, “To…”
He tugs me in close like the music is a slow beat before whispering in my ear, “To ravish you as your eyes expose you so desperately need.”