Total pages in book: 241
Estimated words: 234779 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1174(@200wpm)___ 939(@250wpm)___ 783(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 234779 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 1174(@200wpm)___ 939(@250wpm)___ 783(@300wpm)
“Would I do that?” he asks, looking over at her.
“Yes,” she answers without hesitation. Her gaze flickers to us as if mildly concerned.
Before she can say anything else, Caleb assures her, “I’m just making new friends.” To us, he says, “I make it a point to familiarize myself with all the interesting people in my city, but I haven’t seen you two around.” As he says it, he gestures between us with the hand holding his champagne glass. His gaze lingers on Hunter. “Not from New York?”
Hunter shakes his head. “Boston. Just in town for the charity ball.”
“First time?” Caleb asks conversationally.
“Not for me,” Hunter answers. “It’s her first time.”
Caleb’s gaze flickers to me. “How are you enjoying your first visit to my fine city, Riley?”
I cross my arms, still not liking this guy despite his feigned friendliness. “It’s… cold.”
A smile grazes his lips. “Boston isn’t cold?”
Hunter slides a hand up my back, then casually pulls me in so he can kiss my forehead. As he does, he murmurs, “Relax.”
I’m too tense to relax, but since he wants me to, I make an attempt to be less chilly. “I like your Christmas colors,” I murmur, gesturing from Caleb in his green velvet jacket to Zoey in her tight red dress. She looks spectacular. They both do, really, though I’m reluctant to pay him a compliment—even in my head where he can’t hear it.
I thought I was being friendly, but her expression shifts with alarm. “Us? Oh, God, no. We’re not…” She shakes her head, frowning. “The Christmas colors are a total coincidence. We’re not here together. I mean, we are, but we’re not a couple. Caleb’s my boyfriend’s friend, we’re just sittin’ at his table.”
Caleb smirks. “I like how you put as much lingual distance between us as you possibly can.” Looking at us, he says, “She’s my friend, too.”
She doesn’t argue with him, but she looks at me and mouths “not really.”
I crack a real smile. I may not be a fan of his, but I do like her.
“Anyway,” Caleb says, settling a hand on Zoey’s hip and drawing her closer to him, “I was just about to tell my new friends here they should stop by my restaurant while they’re in town.”
Zoey peels his hand off her hip, but she does it so naturally, she’s not even mildly distracted as she tells us, “If you do, make sure you get the chocolate cake for dessert—it’s to die for. Don’t get a piece to share, either. It’ll be your biggest regret in life.”
“We’ll each get our own piece,” I promise her.
She gives me a thumbs up, then steps away from Caleb before he can get handsy with her again. “I’m going back to the table.” Turning to us, she says, “It was nice to meet you guys. I’m serious about that cake.”
I offer a tiny wave before she walks away, but I’m kinda sad to see her go. I’m rarely drawn to people this way, but I feel like I want to be her friend.
Drawing my attention back to him as he reaches into his pocket, Caleb asks, “Will you be in town for long?”
Hunter shakes his head. “Just the weekend. We fly home tomorrow night.”
Caleb extends a business card. “Well, if you find yourselves hungry before you leave, I own the best steakhouse in Manhattan. You won’t be able to get a reservation for tomorrow, but I have a separate list for my friends. Just tell the hostess you’re my guests and she’ll give you one of our best tables.”
Hunter glances at the card, then tucks it away in his pocket. “Maybe we’ll take you up on that. Thanks.”
Caleb smiles, but it’s carefully measured and maybe a touch wolfish. “Lovely to meet the both of you. I look forward to our paths crossing again.”
I don’t know if his parting words only sound like a threat because I know what he knows, but there’s something about him I just don’t like. I think he’d be as likely to eviscerate someone he calls a friend as someone he calls an enemy, so I’m not confident there’s any benefit to his friendship.
Well, there are probably benefits, but not the kind I would care about.
Once Caleb is gone, I turn to Hunter. “He’s not a good guy.”
Hunter shakes his head in agreement, but he doesn’t look concerned. “It’s all right,” he says, settling his hand around my waist. “That’s done and over with, so you can finally relax and enjoy the rest of the ball.”
“He heard me.”
“I know, but it doesn’t matter. He won’t tell anyone.”
“How do you know?”
Hunter glances down at me, his expression genuinely relaxed and a little fond. “He just told us.”
I frown. “He did?”
“He wants to be my friend. Powerful men keep each other’s secrets. As long as we go to his restaurant tomorrow and he doesn’t think we’re snubbing him, all will be well.”