Cherish her: Laws of Seduction, Book 4 (7 page)

Dan holds an umbrella over our heads as we step from the limousine onto the sidewalk in front of a building on Central Park West. I catch a glimpse of the Museum of Natural History as we hustle out of the rain and into the building through a canopied bronze door. I glance around at the elegant lobby, which is all dark-wood panels and marble. There are even two fi
With
s surrounded by artfully placed furniture. We move to the elevator that stands waiting for us, and I press the button for the penthouse as the doorman had instructed. The chatting that had marked our car ride is gone, and we ride the elevator in silence. Either Jett and my mother sense my nervousness or they are feeling their own anxiety.

The party is already in full swing. I glance over the guests, searching for a familiar face. My eyes land on Alana Ward, who is wearing a stunning midnight blue gown that fits her like a glove. At first I cannot see who she is talking to, but when the crowd shifts, I recognize Jenna Reardon. This evening is not getting off to a great start. Hearing a loud burst of masculine laughter, I turn to see Gordon Ward standing in a group of men. Deciding to get the introductions over with, I muster my courage and usher my mother and Jett in his direction. It’s polite to greet your host when you arrive, right?

It takes several minutes, but Gordon finally turns his attention to us. I politely introduce him to my mother and Jett. Although Gordon’s demeanor is not what I would call warm, he is not overtly rude. Relieved to get the introductions behind us, I suggest looking for some refreshments. As we make our way through the palatial living room, I wonder what is keeping James. The bar is set up near the doors leading to the terrace. Most people have opted to stay inside due to the rain, but there are a few party goers standing out on the terrace under large umbrellas. Looking out past the guests, I see that the apartment has vast views of Central Park.

Feeling a tap on my shoulder, I turn to see Rory. Relieved to see a friendly face, I introduce Alana’s boyfriend to my mother and Jett. When Alana joins us, Jett leans over and whispers something about cradle robbers. I give him a look of admonishment, which he ignores. He continues to whisper unflattering taunts about the couple in my ear until I finally retaliate by stepping on his toes with my stiletto. He winces, which wipes the smirk off of his face. My bag vibrates and I reach in to pull out my phone. I hope it is a text from James telling me he will be here soon. When I see it is something from Mark, I almost decide to ignore it. Instead, I slide my finger across the screen to access the text.

You’ll be happy to see that I am moving on.

I look at the picture below the text and my heart skips a beat. The picture shows a glowing Mark with a smiling Becca in a selfie. I clutch Jett’s arm, and when he looks down at me questioningly, I tell him I have to make a call. I leave the group and go in search of a quiet place where I can call Mark. As I head toward a door that looks promising, I see the man. My heart stutters once again. Our gazes meet for the barest second before he turns his head and looks in the other direction. I realize that now would be the perfect opportunity to confront him. It was unlikely that anything would happen to me while surrounded by so many people. When he sees me change paths, he takes off in the opposite direction. I hurry to catch up to him, but he seems to disappear into thin air. After spending a fruitless few minutes looking for him, I give up.

I pass through several rooms in search of somewhere private where I can call Mark. Seeing some wide, shallow stairs, I walk down a level. I open the first door I come to and am surprised to find a swimming pool: a lap pool with two long lanes. Since it is empty of guests, I step in and dial Mark’s number, which goes straight to voicemail. I try calling him two more times before finally leaving a voice message asking him to call me right away. As I open the door to return to the party, I hear voices coming from down the hall. Instinctively, I close the door again and wait for the voices to pass. Pressing my ear up against the door, I listen and am dismayed when they appear to have stopped in front of the door. Although I have nothing to hide, I decide I will wait a few moments rather than be seen coming out of the pool room alone.

The voices are low, but it strikes me that one of the voices is familiar. It is Gordon. I am now glad that I had decided to stay put. It would have been just my luck to have Gordon find me wandering around his penthouse alone. I can hear them moving away, and remain a few moments longer after I can no longer hear them. When I am sure that they are gone, I cautiously open the door and step out. I am about to walk up the stairs when I see that someone else is coming down. To my horror I see that it is the man who has been following me. I quickly review my options. If I try to walk past him, he could grab me and pull me into an empty room. My only alternative is to go in the other direction.

I turn around and hurry down the corridor. Now I am afraid that I am playing right into his hands by moving further and further away from sounds of the party. I quicken my pace. At the end of the hallway, there is another set of stairs. I am almost positive that the man called my name. Not sparing the time to look behind me, I turn right at the top of the stairs and run into a solid form. I gasp in surprise at the unexpected collision. Taking in the black formal jacket of a man’’s tuxedo, my eyes travel up past the black tie, which is tied to perfection, to the amused grin on Andries Van Cleef’s face. “You seem to be in a hurry.”

Not wanting to appear ridiculous, I don’t mention the man following me. I make an effort at a calm tone. “I got lost. This place is huge.”

“It can be overwhelming if you aren’t used to it.” I am not sure if he is trying to make some kind of disparaging statement about the differences between James’’s and my wealth. Painfully aware that the man could appear at any moment, I start walking. Andries turns and starts walking with me. His hand lands on the small of my back. Ignoring his overfamiliarity, I quicken my pace. He leans in closer and asks, “Did you get lost coming back from the ladies’’?”

“No, I’m trying to avoid someone.”

“Your boyfriend?”

I flick him a dirty look. “No, not James.” Before I can think to object, Andries opens a door and whisks me into an empty room. “What are you doing?””

His smile is placating, but it just serves to rile me further. “Helping you lose whomever you were looking to avoid.”

When it seems like he is about to move in closer, I put my arm up between us. My palm lies flat against his chest, and he moves his hand over mine, keeping it in place. I speak to him in my firmest voice. “I don’t need your help. I’’m going back to the party.” I try to pull my hand away, but he wraps his fingers around my wrist.

“I thought you were lost.”

“I am sure I can find my way.” My phone buzzes in my bag, and I give another tug on the hand that Andries holds captured against his chest. Instead of releasing me, he tugs back and I find myself propelled in his direction. Alarmed, I try to draw back, which knocks me off-balance, and I feel myself falling into his arms. Behind me I hear the door opening, but my back is to the door, and although I can’t see who it is, I definitely recognize the voice growling out my name. James.

CHAPTER 7

Andries releases me, and I turn to see James standing next to the man who had been following me. “You.” The man’’s expression remains impassive under my furious gaze. “Who are you and why are you following me?”

James steps in front of the man before he can answer. “This is Paulson. I hired him to protect you.”

This had never occurred to me. “You mean like a bodyguard?”

“Yes, did you think I would just let you roam around the city with Becca doing who knows what next?”

“Who’s Becca?” Andries asks.

James and I both turn baleful eyes to our unwanted spectator. Andries shrugs. “I can tell when I’m not wanted.” He gives me a flirtatious wink. ““I’ll see you soon.”

My hackles rise at his suggestive tone, and I feel James tense beside me. In a low, gravelly tone that I haven’t heard before, James addresses Andries: “If you lay so much as one finger on her ever again, I’ll make you wish you were never born.”

Laughing, Andries walks out the door with Paulson following close behind him, presumably to give us some privacy.

“What did I tell you about him?”

“Oh no, we are not going down that road. You are the one who has some explaining to do.”

“What do you mean?”

“You had me terrified out of my mind that Paulson was following me for some nefarious reason. Why didn’t you warn me?”

James has the grace to look sheepish. “I forgot.”

“You forgot?”

“Yes, it slipped my mind in the chaos of the last few days. Now back to Van Cleef. What were you doing coming in here alone with him?”

“I was trying to escape from Paulson, because I had no idea who he was or what he wanted. I thought he was after me.”

“That doesn’t explain why Van Cleef was touching you when we came in.”

Unless I want James storming off like a raging bull, I have to be careful of what I say here. “I lost my balance, and he caught me.” I endure James’s look of skepticism stoically, and he is the first to look away. Display cases line the walls, and for the first time, I take in my surroundings. There is a single padded bench in one corner, but that is the only seating in the entire room. “Where are we anyway?”

A feint smile crosses James’s beautiful mouth, and I am reminded how much I have missed seeing him in the past few days. “Come here.” He holds out his hand. I grasp his fingers, and he tugs me over to the first display case. Looking down, I see row upon row of beautiful butterflies pinned on a cork bed. “My grandfather is a hobby entomologist.”

“They’re beautiful.” I move on to the next case and see a series of colorful beetles. They are beautiful but also sad. All of these lovely things that once buzzed and flitted around are now dead carcasses set out on display.

“He is very proud of them. I am sure he would be happy to show you sometime.”

“Trying to give me ideas to butter him up?”

“Not at all. I know he will come to love you. He just needs time to get to know you.”

“Speaking of which: I have left my mother and Jett on their own for far too long. You are not making a good impression with your disappearing acts this weekend.”

James winces. “Touché. I guess my plans to get my hands on you will just have to wait.” He holds his arm out towards the door. “Lead the way.””

I am about to pass by him when I stop short. “I almost forgot. The reason I left the party in the first place was to call Mark.” At the look of confusion on James’s face, I pull out my phone and show him the picture and text that Mark had sent me.

James hands the phone back to me. “Call him now.” His grim tone brings the urgency of the situation rushing back.

I pull up Mark’s number on the phone, and once again it goes straight to voicemail. I leave a second message before ending the call. I smooth my hand down the hard line of James’s jaw. “I’ll try again later.” James gives a tense nod. Taking my hand that is resting against his cheek, he pulls me from the room and back out to the party.

We look around for my mother and Jett, but they seem to have disappeared into thin air. “Tell me something.” James quirks his eyebrows awaiting my question. “Why does Andries Van Cleef seem so intent on antagonizing you?”

James sighs heavily. “Most likely it’s because I was the world’s biggest prick in our prep school days.”

“That is an awfully long time ago.”

“Yea, well, if there is one thing I know about guys, it’s that losing a girl to another guy is something they never forget.”

“Oh, so this is about another girl?”

“Probably.”

“So he is flirting with me to get back at you?”

“Possibly.”

“Well, that’s a blow to my ego. I thought it was my devastating charm.”

We had been making our way slowly through the crowd, but James stops suddenly, causing me to run into him. He grabs me around the waist and pulls me up hard against him. I know that the people around us have stopped to stare, but I can’t tear myself away from the intense look in James’s eyes. “It would be smarter for me to let you go on believing that, but you have to know he does want you. I see it in his eyes. Every man that sees you wants you. How can they help it?”

Is that really the way he sees me, as some kind of irresistible siren? Speechless, I stare back up at him, and don’t resist as his mouth swoops down and covers mine in a kiss that is far too intimate for a public setting. I feel my feet leave the floor, and I grab onto James’s shoulders to keep from losing my balance. I become utterly lost in the heady essence of James’s kiss. When he draws back, I am breathless. As he gently eases me to the floor, I become aware of the silence around us. I am positive you could hear a pin drop. My eyes pass over several faces before landing on Jett’s, which can only be described as irate. My gaze shifts to his right and lands on my mother’s face, which is covered with shocked awe. Having my mother as a witness is like a bucket of cold water over my head. I straighten and send James a speaking look before once again looking in my mother’s direction. He seems to get the message, because he walks over to my mother and starts talking with her. I turn my attention to Jett. “How long were you standing there?”