Nolan’s hand tightened at the small of my back, the statement riding the charged current simmering around us. His eyes seared into mine as he continued moving us around the dance floor to keep up appearances, but both of us had long since stopped hearing the music.
A throat-clearing behind me shattered the moment.
I turned to see Thor standing there, his hand outstretched. “Mind if I cut in?”
If looks could kill, Anton Alistair would be vaporized right about now. Nolan’s molars had to be pulverized from how hard he was grinding his teeth. But he had no choice but to say yes—too many eyes were watching.
Painting on a blank smile, Nolan said, “Of course. I should be getting back to Cressida.” Then he turned on his heel, looking completely at ease.
Me, on the other hand? I hoped I didn’t look as manic as I felt.
As Anton whisked me away, I felt like freaking Tinkerbell next to his massive size. “You missed your calling as a Viking. Or a linebacker,” I told him, the words popping out of me without my permission.Damn nerves.
But Anton took it in stride, tossing his head back in a throaty laugh.Wow, okay. Attractive much. Must be something in the water in San Francisco.“I’ll take it,” he said with a smile that I found more charming than I had any right to. But Nolan had said he was, ah, a bit promiscuous, so maybe this was all part of his act. “I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m Anton Alistair.”
“I know.”
He lifted a brow.
“Ah, I mean, I’m Val. I work for Nolan. And I’m friends with Daphne. She’s mentioned you.”
At that, he leaned forward. “Has she?”
Mierda.“Yeah. Said you were the most irritating man she’d ever met.”Nice save, I think?
He let loose another laugh, somehow more delighted than bummed. “I do make a habit of mucking up her calendar. Hazards of the job. And yeah, maybe part of me likes tugging on her pigtails.”
“You should just ask her out,” I said, then froze.God, could I have crammed my foot any farther into my mouth? What is with all this word vomit?The whole evening had me feeling out of sorts.
“Oh, believe me, I have. But she’s not interested, and I only ask a woman out once. No means no, not ‘try harder’ or ‘keep asking me repeatedly until I’m too uncomfortable to refuse.’”
That earned him some points. “Consent is sexy,” I agreed. “Did something happen between you two that made her uninterested?”
With a snort he said, “Yeah, working for Nolan and being around asshole billionaires like us all the time. She knows all of our games, and she wants none of it.” But something behind his eyes told me there was more to the story.
“Can’t say I blame her.” As if I wasn’t currently dating—fooling around with?—one of those billionaires myself. But Nolan was proving every day how different he was from what I’d expected.
“And what about you, Val?”
“What about me?”
“Are you going home with anyone tonight?”
“Am I—?” I cut off, spluttering. “Are you asking me to go home withyou?”
“From the look on your face, I can tell that idea is about as appealing as chugging vinegar,” he said, laughing good-naturedly.
“No, it’s—I mean, I’m flattered of course, but I’m, um, going home with someone else.”Mierda. Then he might actually think I mean Nolan since the media knows I live with him.“Er, I mean, I’m seeing someone. He’s not a billionaire. Not that it matters.”Stop talking!
But Anton only chuckled at my babbling, spinning me across the dance floor. “Not to worry, Val. I had to try. You’re too gorgeous to ignore.” Then he pulled me back into him, holding me a polite distance away as he cast his gaze about the room. “This is a nice send-off party for Hale’s Peak, since the Kellers are—”
“Anton!” Daphne said, charging over and poking a tiny finger in his bulwark of a chest, brandishing her phone like a pitchfork. “What the fuck did you do to my inbox? Why do I havefifty-twomeeting requestsfrom you?”
With a wide grin, he said, “Couldn’t make up my mind on a time.”
Huffing, Daphne said, “Val? I’m cutting in. I need to have words with this bag of dicks, please.”
I bit back my laughter and broke away from them, making a beeline for the bar in the hopes that Nolan would notice and meet me there. A minute later, he did. When he leaned forward as if to grab something from behind the bar, his lips brushed my ear. “Did you like his hands on you?”
