Total pages in book: 95
Estimated words: 88350 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 88350 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 442(@200wpm)___ 353(@250wpm)___ 295(@300wpm)
As they made their way into the main ballroom for the reception, Lia couldn’t help but gasp in awe at the lavish display. All the walls had been covered in fresh roses from floor to ceiling, the air scented with their perfume. The five-course sit-down meal for four hundred was prepared by a famous chef flown in from Paris especially for the event and the champagne and top-shelf liquor flowed freely.
Not surprisingly, Travis spent most of the evening flirting with various women. At dinner, he focused on Nicole, the woman seated on his other side. Nicole alternated her attention between Travis on her right and the man on her left, simpering at each in turn. When the full-piece orchestra started to play, the other guy got a jump on Travis, immediately asking Nicole to dance.
Travis was scowling after them when someone appeared beside the table and said in a smooth baritone, “Hey there, cousin. I thought that was you.”
Lia’s heart skipped a couple of beats when she took in the guy, who stood with an easy, elegant confidence in his perfectly tailored suit. Tall and drop-dead gorgeous, she pegged him as being in his mid-thirties. He had dark, wavy hair, a single lock of which fell appealingly over his forehead. His eyes were an arresting green, fringed with dark lashes. Their almost feminine beauty was balanced by the masculine angles of his jaw.
Travis pushed back from his chair and jumped up. The two men slapped each other heartily on the back as Travis exclaimed, “Hey, Beau. It’s great to see you. You’re coming to the barbeque next Saturday, right?”
“I wouldn’t miss it,” Beau replied. When he turned his attention to Lia, his mouth lifted in an amused half smile. “Love the pink hair.”
Lia couldn’t quite tell if he was being sarcastic or sincere. She decided to go with sincere. “Thanks.”
Turning back to Travis, he added, “Aren’t you going to introduce me to your date?”
Travis glanced at Lia as if just remembering she existed. “This is my friend, Lia Duvall. Lia, meet my cousin, Beau Jackson.”
Beau extended his hand. “A pleasure to meet you, Lia.”
He held her hand for several, heart-stopping beats as he stared directly into her eyes. She stared back, entranced. There was something Rhett Butler-ish about this guy, with his air of amused assurance and a natural dominance she immediately found compelling. Mentally, she exchanged his bespoke suit for black leather, and replaced the drink in his hand with a long, sexy whip.
A tall, attractive blonde in a glittery gold gown appeared beside Beau, placing a hand on his arm and destroying the moment. Beau let Lia go and turned to the woman with a smile.
“There you are, you naughty boy,” the annoying woman said in an exaggerated Southern drawl as she batted her eyelash extensions. “If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were hiding from me.” Her gaze flickered past Lia to Travis. “Who are your little friends?”
“Lia Duvall, Travis Randolph, meet Mandy Carter,” Beau said.
Lia couldn’t help but notice the woman’s long, perfectly manicured nails, painted Barbie-doll pink. She put her own hands behind her back to hide her stubby, chewed nails.
Ignoring Lia entirely, Mandy focused solely on Travis. “A pleasure,” she purred. Then she turned back to the sexy cousin. “Where’s that dance you promised me?”
Was it only wishful thinking, or did Beau look mildly annoyed? Whatever the story, he said politely, “Of course.”
As they drifted away, Travis said, “We might as well hit the dance floor, too.”
Lia shrugged. “Okay.”
She would have preferred to pump Travis for information about his gorgeous cousin. But she dismissed the idea. Not only was he too old for her and already taken, but he was also probably one-hundred percent vanilla and therefore of no interest to her.
The four of them made their way to the dance floor. Beau and Mandy were soon swallowed up in the crowd of swaying couples. Travis moved Lia expertly around the floor, all those ballroom dance classes from high school apparently paying off.
Lia eventually caught a glimpse of Beau with his girlfriend in his arms, her head resting against his shoulder, eyes closed in apparent rapture. In spite of herself, Lia imagined herself in those strong arms.
As Travis moved her around the dance floor, Lia couldn’t quite get Beau’s sexy, self-assured expression out of her mind. She’d felt…undressed by him—not physically, but emotionally. As if he’d known her secrets. As if he already understood exactly what she needed, and might, if she got down on her knees and begged, be willing to give it to her.
When the dance number ended, Travis and Lia made their way back to the table. She was pleased to see that Nicole had returned to their table as well, sans her dance partner. Travis’s unattainable cousin had gotten her juices flowing for the first time since leaving The Enclave two weeks ago. It was time to blow this popsicle stand and head to her favorite BDSM club for some hardcore play.