Marked: City of the Damned Book 1 (8 page)

Blushing, Jaden quickly turned to face her
dinner companions and felt Tasha watching her. “What?” She shrugged
innocently. “He’s cute.”

“Damn right he is. Go talk to him!” Tasha
laughed and passed Jaden another glass of wine.

“Yeah, right,” Jaden responded. A guy like
that would never give her the time of day.

“Drink up, girl! It’s your birthday, and the
night is young.” Tasha encouraged her with a smile.

Conceding defeat, Jaden sipped from the glass
and sat back in her chair, allowing her eyes to once again fall
upon the spectacular sight at the opposite end of the tent. She
couldn’t help but notice how the designer suit hugged his muscular
chest. A hundred bucks said his body was even more magnificent than
the rest of him, and Jaden found herself imagining what was hidden
beneath all those layers of fabric. She wasn’t usually forward with
men, but if ever one so fine as this approached her, there’d be no
holding back. A blush reddened her cheeks and warmth pooled in the
bottom of her belly, quickly spreading to her limbs and leaving a
trail of fire in its wake. Certain the wine was going to her head,
Jaden brushed aside her lustful thoughts and focused on the lively
conversation around her.

“Your friend tells us it’s your birthday,” a
stout lady sitting in the chair to Jaden’s right announced. A large
hat festooned with colorful feathers sat atop a mass of graying
curls, and a royal blue evening gown draped her abundant form. The
woman looked a bit like a distressed peacock.

Slightly taken aback by the woman’s
boisterous voice, Jaden stammered her response, “Yes, ma’am. I turn
twenty-six today.”

“Oh, to be young and carefree. I remember
when I was twenty-six…”

Jaden cast a sidelong glance at Tasha and
chuckled as the older woman launched into a detailed description of
her younger years. Jaden took note of the relieved look on the face
of the woman’s male companion, her husband most likely. He seemed
thankful his wife had someone else to talk to, relieving him for a
few moments from the constant chatter.

When the waiter returned, delivering plates
of Waldorf salad that resembled miniature works of art, Jaden was
once again glad for the interruption. Sensing it was going to be a
long dinner—and an even longer evening—she quietly asked him to
bring another bottle of wine. With the simple wave of his hand a
waitress appeared and refilled Jaden’s glass, leaving the bottle
for the table to share.

Tasha jabbed Jaden in the arm and pointed to
the front of the dance floor where six tables sat apart from the
rest, three on either side of the stage. “What’s with those
tables?”

“That’s the VIP section,” Jaden said. “And
the table on the far left, beside the bar, is the chef’s table.
Only the bigwigs sit there, and they must pay quite a bit for it.
The cost of a
regular
ticket to this event is
fifteen-hundred dollars.”

“Well, your Mr. Oh So Sexy must have
connections or some serious cash,” Tasha reported, “because he has
one of the best seats in the house.”

Jaden snapped to attention and trained her
eyes to the spot where Tasha was pointing. Any remote hopes of
finding a way to meet this man vanished. The people at those VIP
tables were celebrities, politicians, and others with very large
bank accounts—far above her social status.

“I wonder what he does for a living,” Tasha
mused, still intrigued by the group of people sitting at the front
of the tent. “He must be an athlete or something, because guys who
look like that don’t rely on their intelligence, if you know what I
mean.”

Ignoring her roommate’s obsession with
celebrities and stereotypes, Jaden picked up her fork and looked
for a way in to her salad. She must have lost herself for a moment,
trying to figure out what the chef had done, because the next thing
she knew Tasha had elbowed her in the arm.

“This is my roommate,” Tasha said, a little
too enthusiastically, as she introduced the sexy latecomer now
standing before them.

“Hmm,” Jaden mumbled around a mouthful of
apple. She wiped her mouth and tuned back in. Smiling politely, she
shook his outstretched hand. “I’m sorry, what was your name?”

“Michael,” he replied with a smile. “Michael
Cervone. And you are?”

“I’m Jaden Thorne. Pleased to meet you.”

“I know that name from somewhere…” After a
moment, he asked, “Aren’t you the head chef at Bianca in Miami
Beach?”

“Yes, I am,” Jaden admitted, embarrassed
again that Geoff had submitted a press release to the local papers,
which resulted in more than a little fanfare.

“I ate there last week. That place is
phenomenal. Well done.” Michael pulled out a chair and sat
down.

Jaden looked at Tasha and noticed the smile
plastered across her friend’s face, making it obvious she was in
awe of the man now sitting with them. And why shouldn’t she be?
Curly golden-blond hair, which seemed lightened by the sun, hung
loosely around his face, and brilliant aqua blue eyes accentuated
his handsome features—not to mention the fact that there seemed to
be a smoking hot body under his suit.

Jaden’s attention might have been piqued if
she hadn’t already focused on the man at the front of the tent, but
she could certainly give her shy roommate a nudge in the right
direction.

Jaden dove right in. “So Michael, what do you
do for a living?”

“I’m a mortgage specialist.”

“Really?” Jaden gushed. “What a coincidence!
Tasha is a real estate agent.”

The waiter reappeared with another carefully
constructed salad and placed it in front of Michael. With a polite
bow the server disappeared, only to return a minute later with two
more bottles of wine.

Jaden was beginning to feel the effect of the
wine she’d already consumed, but even though she was technically
here on business, it was also her birthday. Picking up one of the
new bottles, she poured three glasses, passed one to Michael, and
raised hers in the air. “Here’s to a lovely evening with friends,
old and new.”

“Cheers!” said Michael and Tasha in unison,
followed by the clinking of glass on glass.

Jaden sat back in her chair and watched as
Michael and Tasha’s friendly banter turned to flirting. She smiled,
glad Tasha was finally focused on something other than her lack of
sales. The main course—grilled tuna beautifully arranged with
couscous and fresh vegetables—arrived, and Jaden sighed as a hint
of lime and fresh mint danced across her palate with the first
bite. She made a mental note to try to mimic this dish at the
restaurant. Geoff would no doubt be pleased if she showed up for
work on Monday morning with fresh ideas for an amazing entree.

The occasional note drifted through the air
as musicians took to the stage and tuned their instruments while
the wait staff served dessert: a mango sorbet flower with white
chocolate wafers. People began to mingle as they enjoyed the
sweetness, and within minutes, the lively sounds of Frank Sinatra
filled the tent. By the time the last of the plates were cleared
away, the dance floor had filled.

Michael stood and came around to where Tasha
sat. Offering her his hand, he asked, “May I have this dance?”

Tasha looked from Michael to Jaden, and then
back to Michael with a stunned look on her face. “I’d love to, but
it’s Jaden’s birthday.”

Disappointment and embarrassment flashed
across his face. Jaden couldn’t believe that after spending the
past hour flirting with the guy, Tasha was actually turning him
down.

“Are you kidding me?” she blurted. “You’d
best be getting out on that dance floor.”

“It’s your birthday, and I’d feel bad leaving
you alone,” Tasha insisted, but the eager look on her face betrayed
the tone of her voice.

“Go have fun. I have all the company I need
right here.” Jaden picked up a full bottle of wine and dangled it
in the air, sloshing a few crimson droplets on the white
tablecloth.

Without a backward glance, the couple
disappeared into the throngs of people that now crowded the dance
floor, their bodies swaying in time to the music. Jaden knew she
would regret it in the morning, but she poured herself another
glass of wine. Turning in her seat, she faced the dancing and
noticed that the VIP tables had been moved out of the way. Where
Mr. Oh So Sexy had been just moments ago, a baby grand now sat
beside the stage.

Trying to appear casual, Jaden scanned the
room, her eyes coming to rest on a group of men just outside the
tent. Among them was the man she’d been watching all night. Maybe
it was the wine, or perhaps the softness of the moonlight, which
cast an iridescent glow around him, but impossibly, he looked even
more spectacular than he had earlier in the evening.

A plume of smoke lingered for a moment in the
air above them as the men took turns lighting their cigars, but the
smoke was soon carried off by the breeze from the ocean, only one
hundred yards away. There was something about the way he held his
cigar in one hand, his wine in the other, that made him look regal,
dashing, like a real Prince Charming.

Jaden took a deep, cleansing breath, throwing
caution to the wind and preparing to march over and introduce
herself, but as she stood, a woman in a short, black dress, who was
dripping with sex appeal, strolled up beside him. She leaned
against him as she whispered in his ear. His roaring laughter
echoed in the cool night air, and the woman now dangling from his
arm was all the deterrent Jaden needed to abandon any intention of
introducing herself.

Placing her empty wine glass on the table,
Jaden steadied herself with the chair beside her and stood.
Dizziness overtook her as the wine rushed to her head, and she
grasped the edge of the table for support. When she was certain her
lightheadedness had passed, she retrieved her purse from the back
of the chair and went in search of the ladies’ room.

The Winemaker’s
Dinner: Appetizers,
is published by
Omnific
Publishing
and is available now
on all online retail book outlets.