* * *

The Bet

Emma

The four of us tripped onto the train in turkey-induced stupors. We managed to snag the seats at the end of the aisle that faced each other, letting us keep our little huddle intact.

I dropped into one of the vinyl-covered seats with a sigh. That last slice of chocolate cream pie pretty much sucked my will to move. Heading out into the chilly November evening to catch a train home stretched me to my limits.

“Oh my God, I’ve never been so happy to be on New Jersey transit in my life.” Paige sank into the seat next to mine.

“Holy crap,” said Jade as she fell into the spot across from me, “me, too. My parents had Thanksgiving catered for forty and we only had twenty-five people. I’ve never seen that much food in my life.”

Katelyn slid into the seat next to Jade. “I just wish all the food kept my family from talking so much. Apparently interrogating me is right up there with the parade and football when it comes to favorite Thanksgiving Day activities.”

“You, too?” Paige asked. “I swear my parents and aunts and uncles planned an ambush before Emma and I got there.”

I nodded. I’d spent most holidays with Paige and her family since my parents were killed in a car crash when I was in tenth grade. I guess they considered me part of the family now because nobody hesitated to ask me about jobs and possible matrimonial prospects. Since I had zero romantic interests at the moment, and I’d rather eat Paige’s mom’s green bean and okra casserole than explain what I did for a living to Paige’s geriatric aunts, keeping my mouth stuffed seemed like the best defense.

“I don’t get it,” Jade said. “I feel like we lived our whole lives for this moment. We graduated from college. We’re out there in the real world. Isn’t this supposed to be the most exciting time in our lives? Why would we be in any hurry to find husbands and settle down?”

I didn’t know if we were totally out in the real world yet, considering we still lived rent free in the apartment Jade’s parents bought when the four of us decided to go to colleges in Manhattan. But I got her point.

“Let’s see, I spent last Saturday night pulling an all-nighter to catch up on studying and the Saturday before that cleaning up puke at the hospital. What could be more glamorous and exciting than that?” Paige shifted and put her long legs up, tucking her feet into the seat next to Katelyn.

“At least you have the chance to mingle with lots of hot doctors,” Jade said.

Paige rolled her eyes. “First of all, if my class is anything to go by, hot is definitely not a prerequisite to get into medical school. And even if there are a few hot, single doctors, most of them aren’t interested in lowly volunteer med students covered in vomit.”

“Ugh, please stop talking about vomit.” Katelyn rubbed her stomach. “I think medical school sounds exciting compared to how I spend my days. I thought being a social worker meant I’d spend all day helping kids. Instead I spend most of the time doing paperwork, trying to deal with a bunch of bureaucratic bullshit, and making latte runs for my boss.”

Jade sighed and slumped further into her seat. “At least you guys have jobs in your fields. My art degree isn’t exactly opening doors for me all over the city. Juggling temp work and job hunting sucks.”

I twisted one of my curls around a finger. I didn’t know that I would call my current employment my dream job, but I got to write every day and get paid for it. And to be honest, I kind of liked working from home and being able to stay connected to my friends despite all the odd hours they kept.

Jade popped up straight in her seat, her silky, black hair swinging with her movement. “We need to do something to shake things up. If our lives aren’t as exciting as we’d like, we need to do something about it.”

My stomach churned and it had nothing to do with the turkey, stuffing, or two slices of pie. Jade’s tone told me she already had an idea to shake things up. And for some reason her schemes always felt like getting on a roller coaster without a seatbelt. I wrapped my arms around my middle and braced myself.

“What do you have in mind?” Paige asked.

Jade’s gaze hit each of us and then she grinned. “I’m thinking we should make a bet.”

“A bet?” Katelyn glanced my way and her single look said it all. Jade’s wild hairs tended to scare the crap out of her, too.

“Yup,” Jade said. “I say we make a bet to see who can have the wildest adventure.”

Paige leaned forward. Shit, I recognized that look on her face. She was already on board.

“What kind of adventure?” Paige asked.

“It can be anything we want. But it has to push each of us out of our comfort zone.” Jade’s eyes rested on me briefly when she made that last comment. “And we have to do it sometime in the next six weeks. Whoever has the adventure of a lifetime by New Year’s Day wins.”

“But who’s going to decide which adventure is the wildest?” Paige asked.

Nobody spoke for a moment and I closed my eyes. Maybe we’d all lapse into Thanksgiving comas and forget this idea.

“We vote.”

My eyes popped open. Since when did Katelyn encourage Jade’s crazy schemes? One look showed me she was serious. A determined glint lit her brown eyes.

Huh. What the heck was that all about?

I peered over at Paige to find a similar look on her face. That wasn’t so surprising. She’d been known to come up with a few crazy ideas herself over the years.

“Good idea. On New Year’s Day we all vote anonymously on who had the best adventure. The only rule is we can’t vote for ourselves,” Paige said.

Jade nodded, a mischievous grin lighting her delicate features. “Perfect.”

“What does the winner get?” Katelyn asked.

“You mean besides bragging rights?” Paige ran a finger over her lower lip. “How about cash? If we all throw two hundred and fifty dollars in the pot, that’ll be a thousand for the winner.”

Katelyn bit her lip. I knew money was tight for her. Even with Jade’s parents covering our housing expenses, living in the city didn’t come cheap. And social workers weren’t exactly paid the big bucks.

“How about a favor from each of us?” I blurted out before I thought better of it.

Well, shit. What was wrong with me? I had no desire to be part of this bet.

Jade rubbed her hands together. “This is getting interesting. What kind of favors?”

I looked around at my friends, all three of them eyeballing me eagerly. Great. I held back a groan and pulled in a deep breath. Looked like I was in this. I might as well just keep going. “How about if we leave it open-ended? We’ll each owe the person who wins a favor of their choosing. It’ll be up to the winner to decide what they want.”

“I love it,” Paige said.

“Me, too.” Jade nodded.

“Count me in,” Katelyn said.

All eyes swung back to me.

I sighed. “Fine. I guess I could use a little more adventure in my life. I’m in.”

“Fabulous! It’s a bet.” Jade sank back in her seat. “Finally things are going to get good around here.”

I leaned my head against the cold windowpane, concentrating on the vibration of the glass against my cheek. I could pretend to go along with the bet, and let my friends have a little excitement if they needed it.

But then the thought of the favors they might extract if I didn’t at least try to win floated through my head.

What had I gotten myself into?

Chapter One

“Come with us, Emma.”

I shook my head as two of my three roommates headed for the apartment door. I couldn’t help my grin. If they wanted adventure, they’d get it in those outfits—hair out to there, short skirts, high heels. They were taking no prisoners.

“Thanks, but no thanks. I’m good here.” I gestured to the table laden with Chinese takeout cartons and then to my comfy pink flannel pajamas. I had zero desire to go out clubbing. Standing next to my gorgeous friends, I’d be all but invisible. “Besides, I promised Paige I’d keep her company.”

Paige strode into the room in yoga pants and an oversized Columbia University sweatshirt. She threw herself onto the sofa across from my chair, snatching up a carton of Kung Pao chicken and a pair of chopsticks as she went. “Don’t use me as an excuse. I’ve gotten about four hours sleep in the last two days. I’m scarfing down some food and then I plan on being unconscious for the next eight hours at least.”

Dang. Foiled. I stuck my tongue out at her and she blinked slowly and then stared back at me, all wide-eyed innocence. I narrowed my eyes. Innocent, my ass.

“We’ll wait if you want to get changed,” Katelyn said, sweet as always.

“Seriously guys, I’m very happy to stay in tonight. Don’t worry about me. I’ll catch you next time.”

Paige scrunched her face, lips pursed, as she dove into her Chinese food while our roommates tromped out the door.

“I saw that look. What was that for?” I asked.

She finished chewing before answering. “If I had a dollar for every time you said you’d go out with us next time, I’d be a billionaire by now.”

“That’s not true. I go out.”

“Sure. You go out to dinner, to the movies, shopping. But a night out where you might actually meet someone or have a little fun? You always find some excuse not to go.”

I shrugged, but cringed inside. I hated these conversations. I’d been best friends with Paige, Katelyn and Jade since forever. They loved me and wanted me to hang out when they went dancing or to a party. But they couldn’t see that I didn’t enjoy it the way they did. While they drank and flirted and danced with hot men, I spent most of the time on the fringes of things, holding up a wall or saving seats at a bar table.

“Bars and clubs aren’t my scene.”

Ugh. How many times had those words left my mouth? I was tired of hearing myself. But, seriously, how could I ever compete with my stunning roommates?

Even though I left the words unsaid, Paige knew me too well. She pointed a chopstick at me. “I don’t get you. Any guy would be thrilled to have you beside him. I don’t understand why you think someone would choose any of us over you.”

She pointed her chopstick at the door where our friends had disappeared a few minutes ago. “The only difference between you and them is they believe what they see in the mirror. You look and see something different from what’s there.”

Of course she believed that. She was biased. But this wasn’t an argument I could win, so I shrugged and distracted myself by peeking in the cartons of food, finally settling on some shrimp and broccoli. That couldn’t be too unhealthy, could it? After the caramel latte with whipped cream I drank after lunch, I couldn’t afford the extra calories. And neither could my ass.

I grabbed a fork and dug in. I waited, but Paige didn’t start her usual ragging on me for not using chopsticks. I kept meaning to learn to use them. But I preferred my meals in my mouth, not on my shirt.

Then a thought occurred to me. I wasn’t daring enough to use chopsticks. How on earth would I work up the nerve to try to win our bet?

“So, any ideas for our bet?” Apparently Paige could add mind reader to her extensive resume. Her eyes danced with amusement. “I figure Brandi Silver, the author of some of the hottest sexploits ever to grace the pages of a magazine or the Internet, should offer some stiff competition when it comes to outrageous ideas.”

“Brandi Silver I’m not,” I said with a snort.

“Well, there’s got to be a little Brandi inside you. You do manage to come up with all those sexy stories.”

I sighed. “I wish. Complete and total fiction. You know I only invented Brandi when my need to buy textbooks overtook my common sense.”

I’d been struggling to make ends meet with my writing while I put myself through college when a thought came to me—sex sells.

What? I didn’t say it was an original thought.

Anyway, I dipped into my deepest, darkest fantasies—not to mention the sex lives of all my friends and my friends’ friends—to start a blog detailing the sexual adventures and opinions of my alter ego, Brandi Silver. No one was more surprised than me when it got picked up and syndicated by several magazines and newspapers. It had allowed me to put my Creative Writing degree to work in ways I never expected. Plus, I started making a decent living long before I held my diploma in my hands. I’d done some freelance writing under my real name since graduation, but Brandi still provided the bulk of my income.

“Come on. You’ve admitted some of Brandi’s deeds came straight from your own fantasies.”

Okay, I might have admitted that to my friends while under the influence of one too many margaritas. Tequila worked like truth serum on me.

“Not like I’d ever live any of them out.” The thought of getting naked in a room with lighting above pitch black set my teeth on edge. My alter ego had no such qualms.

“Oh my God!”

I jumped about a foot out of my chair as Paige slammed her takeout carton on the table. She flew off the couch and into the bedroom she and I shared. Doors opened and papers rustled before she ran back into the living room.

“What the heck, Paige?”

She dropped a bulging manila file folder in my lap before sitting cross-legged on the couch again. I looked down and started flipping through. It took about a second and a half to figure out what it was.

I glanced at her, wrinkling my nose. “My articles?”

“Somewhere in there is your idea.” Paige waved a hand toward the file holding clippings of a bunch of my Brandi Silver articles, blog posts and columns.

I flipped through a few pages, noting some titles as I went—“Nice Girls Do Go Down,” “10 Tips to Make Safe Sex Sexy,” “All Tied Up.”

I read a few lines of that last article. One of my favorites. One of Brandi’s many bold exploits. One not taken from stories my friends told or stories my friends’ friends told. That one came from somewhere deep inside me.

It was actually one of Brandi’s tamer tales. In it, a boyfriend of hers used several scarves to tie her wrists and ankles to the bedposts. The sex that took place once he tied her down was fairly vanilla compared to some of her other experiences.

The story ended with Brandi talking about the vulnerability and trust involved in giving herself over to someone else’s total control. Reading bits of the story again, my cheeks got hot. Along with several other parts of my anatomy.

I almost hadn’t submitted this one. Even now, I got itchy under my skin thinking about other people reading it.

In the end I sent it to my editor. Having someone else read my words might leave me squirming with embarrassment. But I’d be a liar if I didn’t admit the idea of strangers reading those words didn’t also give me a little thrill.

And writing about it was as close as I’d get to actually experiencing anything like that. Letting someone strip me naked and leaving every inch of me bare for their inspection while I had no control…not going to happen.

Never going to happen.

Paige’s jaw-cracking yawn drew my eyes from the page.

“Okay, hand that over.” Paige held out a hand and wriggled her fingers at me. “I’m not going to last much longer and I know you. Left to your own devices, you won’t even attempt to win our bet. So I’m going to help you.”

I passed the file over reluctantly, scrunching my face at her. “Why would you want to help me? Doesn’t that ruin your chances at winning? And what do my articles have to do with it?”

She slanted a wicked grin my way. “Don’t worry about me. I have a few adventurous ideas up my sleeve.” She yawned again, covering her mouth with her hand. “If I can ever get enough time and energy to put them into action.”

“I don’t know how you keep that schedule,” I said. Paige had been on the go almost twenty-four seven since she started med school this fall. “But I still don’t see what my writing has to do with our bet.”

“Patience, my friend.” Paige jumped up and ran into the kitchen, then into our bedroom and back to where I sat. When she returned she had a pad and a pen and a baseball cap. She spent a few minutes alternating between flipping through my pages and writing furiously on the pad. Then she ripped strips of paper off the pad, folded each one and threw them one by one into the hat.

“Okay,” she said as she stood and came over to me. “I put some of your most fun Brandi adventures in the hat. You’re going to close your eyes, reach in the hat, and choose one.”

I shook my head and looked back and forth between her and the hat. “Okay. And what’s the point of this exercise?”

“Put your hand up.” She modeled for me, holding up the hand not holding the hat, palm out.

Um, what? I raised an eyebrow at her, pressing my lips together.

“Come on, Emma. Raise your hand and repeat after me.”

An uncomfortable twisting started in my stomach. Whatever she had planned, I wasn’t going to like it.

But I also knew Paige was like a dog with a bone. She’d sit here all night until I gave in. And my friend needed sleep. I weighed my fear against my need to help her take care of herself.

With an ungracious huff, I put up my hand. I might want her to get some rest, but I also wanted her to know I caved under duress.

She grinned. “Awesome. Repeat after me. I, Emma, do solemnly swear to do everything in my power to win our bet.”

Not totally unreasonable. I repeated her words.

“And,” she went on, “I promise to start by following through on whatever adventure I pull out of the hat to the best of my ability.”

She shook the hat full of papers in front of me and my heart sank. All of Brandi Silver’s sextivities raced through my head.

Brandi was no wallflower.

“Please, Emma.” The note of pleading in Paige’s voice caught my attention. “Live a little before life passes you by while you sit on this couch. The closest you come to anything exciting is writing about a fictional character’s sex life. You’re twenty-two. This is when you’re supposed to be getting wild.”

The air left my lungs as she held my gaze. Her voice, the look in her eyes, everything about her told me she was worried about me. She was really concerned. And it didn’t take much soul searching to know she was right. This was my fifth Friday night in a row sitting on this couch in these same flannel PJs.

I didn’t look away when I answered her. “I promise to follow through on whatever adventure I pull out of the hat.”

She jumped up and down with a little squeal. “Yay! Your life is about to get interesting, Em. I can feel it.”

She shook the hat in front of me again, every bit of her body radiating with anticipation.

I took a deep breath and held it, and then plunged my hand into the hat.

I grasped a slip of paper and pulled it out, staring at it while a knot of dread formed in my chest.

“Open it.”

I unfolded the paper.

Sex with a stranger.

Well. Shit.

Chapter Two

Standing in front of the mirror, I almost didn’t recognize myself.

Good. That’s exactly what I was going for. I may have promised Paige I’d follow through on whatever I picked out of the hat. But I found a loophole.

I wasn’t going out to meet and hook up with a stranger. Nope. Instead, I was sending in reinforcements. Since there was no way I’d be able to slip an actual other person out to fulfill my obligation, I decided to send out my alter ego.

So right now, as I stared in the mirror, it wasn’t Emma Glover, writer, homebody, and lover of flannel PJs looking back. It was Brandi Silver, sex columnist and self-proclaimed wild child.

I twisted one of my crazy curls around a finger. Even my hair said uninhibited.

“You look gorgeous.” Paige appeared in the mirror behind me, eyeing me from head to toe.

“Thanks.” I managed a tiny smile and looked down, smoothing a hand over my too-short dress. I held in the sigh that wanted to escape. I felt like I was playing dress up.

Not too far from the truth since everything I had on, with the exclusion of the underwear which Paige and I had made a special shopping trip for on Sunday, came from my roommates’ closets. Katelyn and I wore the same size, so it was her sparkly black dress that hit a little higher than mid-thigh the girls voted on me wearing tonight. And the shoes—higher-than-high heels, black and strappy—came from Jade’s extensive collection.

And now, in addition to the cute, yet perfectly functional, cotton bras and panties that took up most of my underwear drawer, I owned a black, lace demi-bra that barely covered anything but did manage to lift my cleavage to new heights; a teeny, tiny matching black lace not-quite-a-thong that left the bottom of each cheek of my ass bare; and silky black, thigh-high stockings and a garter belt.

Seriously. A garter belt. I closed my eyes for a second and focused on the lacy belt around my waist and the straps running the length of the tops of my thighs. I worried my bottom lip between my teeth. I’d never worn anything like this before, and I had to admit there was something sensual about the feeling of this made-for-sex lingerie against my skin.

I opened my eyes and fought the urge to sigh again. I might have put on clothes and makeup and underwear and shoes to transform into Brandi. But when I looked closely in the mirror, I saw the truth. Underneath all that, it was still me, Emma, peering back.

“I can’t do this.”

“You can.” Paige gripped my shoulders. “You can totally do this, Emma. You look beautiful. And you said it yourself on the train, you’re ready for a little excitement in your life.”

Why on earth had I voiced that thought out loud to my friends? After all these years, you’d think I’d know better.

I turned to face Paige. “I know what I said. But can’t we start smaller? A drink with a stranger? A conversation with a stranger? Why do we have to go straight to the sex?”

“The idea is to think big.” She laughed and pulled me in for a quick hug. “You don’t actually have to have sex with a complete stranger, silly. If you decide to just have a drink or a chat, that’s fine. But thinking bigger puts you in the spirit of things. Doesn’t it feel more exciting imagining the night could end with you horizontal between the sheets with some hottie whose name you just learned?”

Butterflies took up flight low in my belly, their wings tickling my insides. Was that excitement? “I’m not sure if it sounds exciting or nauseating.”

She laughed again. “That’s excitement. From here on out you should get used to it.” She threw an arm around my shoulder and turned us both to face the mirror. “Besides, don’t forget, you won’t be alone. I’ll hang at the bar to make sure you’re okay.”

I stared at the two of us pressed so close together. And I couldn’t help the comparisons that formed as I examined us. Where Paige was tall and willowy, I was short and curvy. Her dark red hair fell in a sleek wave over her shoulder. My dark blonde curls hit the middle of my back, but stood poised waiting for the first sign of humidity to shrink into a poufy frizz. The little black dress she wore looked like a designer made it just for her. Mine…well, I had to admit, the dress wasn’t terrible. It clung to the parts that were supposed to be ample and skimmed over the ample parts I most wanted to hide.

“Tell me you’re not totally smokin’ hot.”

I rolled my eyes, but I had to smile. I didn’t look half bad. I still might not catch anyone’s attention with Paige by my side, but, hey, who said I couldn’t have a drink, or a chat, or…other stuff, with one of the guys Paige shot down?

“Let’s just go before I totally lose my nerve.”

Before I could change my mind, Paige grabbed my hand and yanked me out of the bathroom.

***

When we stepped through the revolving door into the lobby of the Hotel Wynter, the butterflies took up residence in my belly again. But this time I recognized the excitement. The feeling came over me every time I stepped into this place during the holidays. My parents met here during the Christmas season. They brought me here for the first time when I was a toddler and every year after. For a few years after their deaths, I didn’t come. But as soon as I was old enough to hop on a train from New Jersey into the city, I came back every year during Christmas.

The magic seeped into me the moment I stepped into the hotel, leaving me breathless.

The Hotel Wynter took its name very seriously. Every year they turned the lobby, ballrooms and restaurants into a winter wonderland. There were tall evergreens with snow-covered boughs, white twinkle lights, snowflakes and ice sculptures. Different rooms had different themes.

I especially loved coming here when it snowed. A wall of windows and a skylight took over an entire wall and part of the ceiling in the lobby. When snow fell outside, as it did now in fat, lazy flakes, the winter landscape of New York City became part of the indoor scenery.

“Wow.” Paige’s voice came out on a whisper, letting me know she shared my wonder. “This is beautiful.”

I nodded and then turned my head, trying to take in every whimsical detail. “One of my favorite places in the whole wide world.”

Paige pulled me around to face her, her eyes wide and worried. “Maybe this was a bad idea.”

I blinked. “Seriously? After all this,” I waved my hand down my body, “and all your lectures about getting off the couch? Now that we’re finally here, you’re having second thoughts?”

“No, not exactly.” She bit her lip and her gaze wandered around the spacious lobby. “It’s just…I know this place is special. I don’t want anything to take that away from you.”

I pressed my lips together. Did she mean she thought I’d crash and burn? “Why would you dress me up and drag me out if you didn’t think I could pull this off, Paige?” I couldn’t help the hurt that crept into my voice.

“No,” Paige rushed in to assure me, “I don’t believe for a minute that you can’t pull this off. Honestly, I think if you gave yourself even a tiny bit of credit, you could pull this off in your sleep. You’d have guys lining up with a twitch of your little finger.”

I snorted. “Okay, let’s not get crazy. I get it. You’re still thinking we should stick with Plan A.”

She nodded and smiled. “Well, Plan A with a modification. Just maybe move it to a new location. Somewhere not so special to you.”

I closed my eyes tight and felt a warm glow grow in my chest. My friend loved me. I was standing in one of my favorite places in the world with one of my favorite people. It didn’t get much better. I opened my eyes and leaned over to give Paige a squeeze. “I think this is the perfect place. I’d feel uncomfortable anywhere else. At least here I’m not intimidated by the surroundings.”

She looked at me hard for a long moment before nodding decisively. “Good point.” She swung around only to sling an arm across my shoulders. “Where can we get a drink in this place?”

I laughed and slid away, grabbing her hand to tug her behind me, stopping just long enough to check our coats. As we stripped off our jackets and piled them on the counter, I remembered what we were doing here. I zoned out for a second, staring into space.

“Um, something wrong, Emma?”

Yes, of course there was something wrong. I’d gotten so caught up in being in the staged winter wonderland that I totally forgot to be scared out of my mind about our purpose here. Hell, I’d even convinced Paige we should stay when she tried to give me an out.

I raised a hand and rubbed the bridge of my nose with two fingers. What was wrong with me?

“Emma?” Paige asked again.

“I’m fine,” I muttered, turning to face the lobby so she wouldn’t be able to see I felt anything but fine.

As I attempted to keep my mind off the reason for our trip to the hotel, my gaze caught on a figure stepping off the elevator in the corner opposite us.

Everything in the room went still, as if I actually stood in the middle of the silent winter forest the hotel tried so hard to create. The only two creatures who existed in my forest were me and the man striding in my direction.

I couldn’t pull my gaze from him--his chiseled jaw, the dark brown hair that just touched his forehead, the mouth turned down in a grim line. His dark suit jacket and gray shirt looked like they were made for him, fitted perfectly to his broad shoulders and trim waist. Though it wouldn’t have seemed out of place for him to wear a suit of armor or some sort of medieval ensemble considering the secluded, wintry landscape my imagination built for the two of us.

I couldn’t get enough air to fill my lungs, and my skin tingled as an odd tension coiled in my belly. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from him as he continued on his path headed straight to me.

But as my gaze tracked him, he suddenly veered off, moving toward the doors that led to the street. My heart plummeted and the reality of the Hotel Wynter lobby snapped back into place. The sights and sounds left me breathless as they rushed back to me.

As I waited for him to push through the revolving doors and out onto the busy city street, a fist gripped my chest, squeezing tightly. The thought of him walking out the door and disappearing forever left me bizarrely bereft.

But he didn’t leave. Instead he raced forward and snatched the tiny hand of a toddler who was about to step into one of the sections of the revolving door.

The little girl looked up at him, obviously startled, her lower lip quivering. But before she could scream or cry, the man crouched to her level and pulled a phone out of his pocket. He slid a finger over it a few times and then turned it toward the child. A smile bloomed on the tiny toddler’s face.

I think I felt my ovaries throb. Something was definitely tingling in that vicinity. Seeing his classically handsome face with his lips tipped into an almost smile, next to her smaller face with her big eyes and pursed lips, did something strange to my insides.

My eyes stayed riveted to the scene while Paige dealt with the coat check guy. As I watched, the girl’s mother bustled up to the pair, thanking the man profusely. His mouth flattened to a hard line as he stood and waved to the little girl before turning and walking toward us again.

I held my breath, hoping the same indefinable something that held me spellbound pushed him in my direction. But disappointment curled through me as he moved right past us and through the entryway of the hotel bar, never catching my eye.

Without a conscious decision to do it, I turned and followed him. In a daze, I stepped through the doorway, moving my gaze over the room, waiting for another glimpse of him.