Little Black Break (Little Black Book #2) (9 page)

AFTER OUR BATHROOM QUICKIE, WE were in the car and on our way to what I knew would be a night full of rich fucks showing off their wealth. I hated expensive charity events for that reason. It didn’t make any sense to spend thousands of dollars to host an event when that money could go to the actual charity.

“I can’t believe I let you talk me into this,” I griped, tugging on my too-tight tie.

“Let me? Sorry to break it to you, Sebastian, but you don’t
let
me do anything.” She laughed. “What do you have against charity events anyway?”

“It’s not the charity event I have a problem with. It’s the people
at
the charity event. Not to mention, the fact that I’ll spend the night surrounded by a bunch of strangers.”

“It’ll be fun ... I heard a lot of celebs will be there tonight. I’m sure you’ll see a ton of familiar faces. Probably a few of your regulars from Clive’s.”

“Great. Like I don’t already see enough of those people. That’s not my idea of fun. Fun would be fucking you all night and into the morning, Rosslyn.”

I rolled my head against the headrest and turned to grin at her. She slid across the seat, closing the small gap between us, and ran her hand up and down my thigh.

“Be a good sport about this party and that can still be a possibility, Mr. Black.”

In one easy motion, I lifted her from the seat and onto my lap, fitting her against me. She gasped and her hands gripped the seat behind my head.

“Sebastian, my dress.”

“Your dress is fine,” I told her, lifting the fabric up around her waist.

I nipped at her cleavage and her breathing came out in heavy pants.

“My hair.”

“You’re running out of excuses, baby.”

And she had.

Twenty minutes later, we pulled up to The Perth House, an old mansion now used to host special events. Martin opened the door and I got out, turning to help Rosslyn with her dress as she climbed out. Her eyes went wide as she straightened and took in the mansion behind us.

“It’s beautiful,” she said in awe.

“
You’re
beautiful.” I pulled her to me, kissing her cheek. “This is just overpriced intimidation.”

She slipped her arm through mine with a small laugh. She couldn’t take her eyes off the building as we took the steps to the imposing front door. Two young men greeted us by name before pulling open the double doors and ushering us inside.

Rosslyn’s breath caught and her fingers tightened on my arm. I covered her hand with mine and led her through the grand foyer. A red carpet rolled out from the front door to the entrance of the grand ballroom. Floor-to-ceiling columns lined the entire hallway and crystal chandeliers hung from the vaulted ceilings like frozen grandeur.

The place was beautiful and built to last. Its brick exterior housed expensive furnishings and massive rooms covered in white marble. Rosslyn’s eyes bounced from one surface to the next as she took in the magnificence of just the foyer.

When we entered the ballroom, she stopped just inside the arched entrance, bringing me to a halt. I looked over at her, taking in her pale face and panicked expression.

“What’s wrong?” I whispered, concerned.

“I don’t know what I was thinking. I don’t belong here, Sebastian. Let’s just go home.”

I turned, standing in front of her and blocking her from the rest of the guests. My palms tingled when I cupped her cheeks in my hands.

“First of all, breathe,” I told her. Slowly, she let out a shaky breath. “Second, what the hell do you mean you don’t belong here? Why wouldn’t you belong here?”

“I thought I could pretend for one night that I fit in with these people, but I can’t. Let’s just go home.”

She moved to turn, but I didn’t let her go. Pulling her off to the side, I gave her a few seconds to calm down.

“That’s bullshit, and you know it, Rosslyn.”

Taken aback, she looked up at me frowning. “What?”

“It’s bullshit that you don’t think you belong here. You’re better than anyone here, including me.”

She’d been watching the crowd circulate through the ballroom behind us. I wasn’t sure if she’d even heard a word I’d said, but I was going to make damn sure she heard me now.

“Listen to me.” I lifted her chin so her eyes focused on mine. “If you want me to take you home, I’ll take you home. It should be clear now that I’ll do just about anything for you, including dressing up in this monkey suit and talking to people I don’t give a fuck about. But if I take you home, you’ll regret it. You’ll regret letting these people run you off and make you feel like you don’t belong. And I love you too much to let that happen.”

She didn’t say anything at first. Her eyes moved back and forth, as she took in what I said. Finally, she blinked, and her rapid breathing slowed. She pushed herself up to the tip of her toes and her lips caught mine. I wanted to deepen the kiss, to devour her mouth with mine, but she was pulling away before I could.

“Thank you, Sebastian.” She fit her hand along my cheek.

“You’re welcome, my love.”

Taking her hand in mine, I kissed the top of it before pulling it through my arm once again and covering her hand with mine.

Thirty minutes into the party, I couldn’t exactly say I was having a horrible time. Rosslyn made it worth being there. She moved through the room and socialized as if she’d been doing it her whole life. She charmed her way through each and every conversation we partook in. They loved her, but it was kind of hard not to.

While I loved that Rosslyn was having a good time and enjoying herself, I still would have rather been home, naked and tangled in her long legs.  I wanted nothing more than to take her home, lock her away in our room, and lose myself in her for the rest of the night. Just thinking about it made my body go hard.

I needed a drink—a hard one—to melt away my thoughts and keep me sane for the rest of the night. I excused myself from the conversation between Rosslyn and a woman whose name I couldn’t remember. It was just as well. I’d heard about all I could about how much stock her husband owned.

Rosslyn smiled up at me before returning her attention to the woman. I made my way across the room to the open bar and ordered Rosslyn and myself a drink. She’d done so much talking already; I was sure she could use one. The bartender handed me the drinks a few minutes later, and I turned in search of Rosslyn.

She was no longer in the spot I’d left her, and I immediately went into panic mode. As I searched, the crowd thinned and a flash of red caught my attention. Her hair shined under the chandeliers as I made my way across the room toward her. I felt foolish for freaking out the way I had, but I’d been on edge lately. She wasn’t far from where I’d left her, and as I got closer, I realized she wasn’t alone either.

My eyes narrowed as I came up behind her and took in the person she was now in a conversation with. I would have much preferred the old, rich hag who spent all her time bragging. My fingers had wrapped a little too tightly around the glasses in my hands so I loosened my hold, afraid that the glass would shatter in my palms.

He was the first to take notice of my presence, but if my interruption caught him off guard, he didn’t show it. Instead, he gave me a conniving grin as if he knew my present scowl was directed at his closeness to my fiancée.

His reaction toward me caused Rosslyn to turn in my direction, and her face softened into a warm smile.

“Is that for me?” she asked, pointing at one of the drinks in my hand.

“Yes.” I didn’t take my eyes away from the man across from her.

I wasn’t usually such a jealous asshole, but something about the man rubbed me the wrong way. From his blond hair to his polished Armani shoes, I didn’t like him.

I felt her fingers brush mine as she attempted to take the drink from my hand, but it took me a second to realize what she was doing and I held on tight.

“Sebastian?” she questioned, confused as she gave another tug on the glass.

I blinked and my eyes moved to hers. She smiled up at me, but a hint of confusion remained on her face as she tried to understand my behavior.

“The Sebastian Black. It’s nice to finally meet you.”

I felt an instant irritation for the deep voice, but I gave him a tight, polite smile.

“Oh, I’m sorry. Sebastian, this is David Richards. He’s one of the people responsible for charity drive I attended last month.” She smiled up at him, and his gaze lingered on her lips. The air left my lungs as if I’d been punched in the balls. “David, Sebastian Black.”

“It’s nice to meet you,” I responded in a monotone. I meant to excuse Rosslyn and myself in the next breath, but she was talking before I could.

“Sebastian, David’s in the process of opening up his own club on the west side.”

“Congratulations.” I took a swig from my scotch and narrowed my eyes in his direction.

He was openly gawking at my girl. I wanted to put my fist through his mouth.

He laughed. “Thanks, but it’s nothing compared to Clive’s.”

“I’m sure it’s going to be a fabulous club, David,” Rosslyn added politely.

I knew she was just being nice. That was how Rosslyn was, but it bugged the hell out of me.

“So you’ve been to Clive’s?” I asked.

“Yes, quite a few times actually. It’s very impressive.”

“Well, allow me to do you the same courtesy. Please let us know when your doors are officially open, and Rosslyn and I will be happy to check it out.”

“Yes, of course,” Rosslyn said with enough enthusiasm to make my teeth ache.

His smile was more for Rosslyn than for me, and I wasn’t sure how much more of him I could stand before I threw Rosslyn over my shoulder and escaped from the room.

“That sounds perfect. You both are more than welcome to stop by before then, too.” His eyes left her face to roam across her cleavage. Fire licked up my spine. I took another swig from my drink and let it burn the back of my throat. “The place is a mess,” he continued, “but any insight from you, Mr. Black, would be greatly appreciated.”

Mr. Black.

The way he said my name was almost a taunt. He knew I’d seen him feasting his eyes on what was mine. He was enjoying my anger. I wasn’t buying his phony nice guy act for one second, but I couldn’t say the same for Rosslyn.

She looked up at me with a ravishing smile on her pouty lips, and when I realized the look in her eyes was one of pride, I felt my anger slowly melt away. She was proud of me and the club, and for some odd reason, that pushed all the other thoughts away. I no longer gave a shit about David. All that mattered was my girl only had eyes for me. Let the fucker envy me for what he could never have.

Rosslyn.

“We’d love to stop by, David.” She patted my arm, her way of telling me to be nice and go with it.

“Great. If you are both free this week, I’d love to have you. The kitchen will be open, so we could have lunch.”

“That sounds lovely-”

Before Rosslyn made any plans I had no intention of following through with, I stopped her.

“This week might not be the best. With wedding plans and construction on the restaurant under way, I’m not sure I’ll be able to get away.”

Rosslyn turned to scowl at me privately, and I returned it with a panty-melting smile.

“But I’ll be in touch, David. I’ll set up something soon.” I reached out and shook his hand with a squeeze that told him to back the fuck off.

“Of course.” He nodded, giving me another knowing grin.

“I guess I didn’t think about the restaurant and how busy you’ve been with it lately,” Rosslyn mused, “but I won’t be.”

She turned toward David before she could see my face change several shades of red.

“I’d love to come by sometime this week.”

I knew she wasn’t agreeing to meet with David to make me jealous. I knew Rosslyn, and it was obvious she was trying to prove a point. But she would soon realize it was a very dangerous game to play with me.

I wanted to tell her over my dead body. I wanted to tell her that hell would freeze over before I left her alone with a man who obviously wanted to fuck her senseless, but I knew that wasn’t the best tactic to take with her in our current surroundings. Before I could say anything, though, David managed to shock us both.