She was a vision in silver, and she was smiling. I hadn’t seen her smile since I’d met her. It was the sexiest thing she’d worn since we’d met. When we were out to dinner, she was a different person. It was like taking her out had somehow gotten through her cold façade to something warm and friendly underneath.

When we stopped in front of the Cruz building, Carl opened the door for us, and I got out first. I held my hand, and Lacey took it, appearing from the car. She looked like she belonged in this world of black ties and parties. I had a lot of money, and I was less comfortable and confident in this surrounding than she was.

How many people did she deal with? How often did she come to places like this? She looped her hand through the arm I offered her, and we turned to the tall, upright building that had been a part of the face of luxury events for years. 

We walked through the double doors that led into the building. The place was magnificent, with a giant stair case leading to the second level right in front of us. Pillars and checkered floors to the left led to a bar that stretched along the length of the room. Everywhere, men and women were dressed to the nines. Men walked around in their tuxes and tails, and women sashayed on their arms, making them look better.

Classical music, not my taste but not terrible, floated from hidden speakers, and the murmur of conversation and clinking of glasses provided the soundtrack for the evening. 

“I’m going upstairs to talk to a few people,” Lacey said as soon as we were inside. “Why don’t you walk around and make some introductions? Network a bit. And if a reporter approaches you, feel free to explain why you’re here. And try not to drink too much.”

She let go of my arm, and I realized she was leaving me.

“I have to do it all alone?”

She smiled. “You’re a big boy. I’m sure you know all about charming people.”

Her smile was playful, and her eyes were sharp. She turned with a swish and walked up the stairs, ascending like a goddess.

I looked around me. I was out of my depth here. Put me in a nightclub like the White Room or E11even, and I knew exactly what to do. This place, however, not so much.

I walked to the bar. If I was going to manage this at all, I was going to need a stiff drink. I didn’t care if Lacey thought I shouldn’t drink too much. I needed to get through this without looking as unsure of myself as I felt. I didn’t like this. I didn’t like being in place where I wasn’t comfortable.

This was all part of the plan, but that didn’t mean I had to like it.

At the bar, I ordered a Remy Martin, and the bartender poured me two fingers on ice. I would have loved to have three, but it felt tacky to ask. I sipped the amber liquid, feeling the smooth whiskey run down my throat. Something I knew. What a treat.

“You are the last person I expected to see here,” someone said next to me.

I turned. Brian was dressed in a black suit with a black shirt and tie, and he looked very modern in it. His hair was slicked back, his chin clean-shaven, and he held a whiskey tumbler in his hand like it was precious.

“Don’t even ask,” I said, sipping more of my own whiskey.

When I had asked him during the week if he wanted to come out with me this Saturday, tonight, he had told me he was busy. I hadn’t bothered to ask with what. Now I knew.

“Don’t drink too much,” he said. “This place is crawling with reporters. It’s the one place you don’t want to be caught screwing up.”

“So I was told,” I said and drank more still, not listening to what Brian or Lacey was telling me.

“So, what are you doing here?” Brian asked. “It’s not your scene.”

I shrugged. “Working on my image.”

“Oh, with your PR Manager.” He grinned. “Where is she? I’d like to see this woman you’ve been talking about.”

I waved my hand. “Somewhere upstairs. I have to network by myself.”

“Tsk, tsk,” Brian said, and I shook my head at him.

“Don’t you start,” I said.

“So, have you made any progress with her? Or is the fact that you’re in a suit proof that the only person making progress here is her?”

He chuckled.

I shook my head. “She’s good at what she does. I’ll give her that. And no, I haven’t really made any progress. I just can’t figure her out. I just thought I had a hang of her, and now, tonight, she’s different.”

“Different, how?”

I shrugged. I didn’t know how to explain it. She was just less of a hard-ass and more expressive. And more beautiful, as a result. Which caught me off guard because I didn’t usually see women as beautiful. They were hot or sexy, judged on a scale of how likely it was that I would fuck them.

This was something else entirely.

“I should walk around and network,” I said, finishing my whiskey.

“Talk to her,” Brian said, pointing out a woman in a black dress that pushed up her breasts in a way that looked uncomfortable. “She’s a reporter for Miami Today, and she writes in favor of her interviewees.”

“Thanks,” I said.

This was clearly not Brian’s first rodeo. I walked to her and cleared my throat. She smiled and introduced herself, knowing exactly who I was. She leaned toward me when she spoke and responded to my charm. This, I could do.

After a while, we were called to the Villa Cruz Ballroom on the third floor for donation speeches. The guests made their way up the stairs slowly until everyone was packed into the ballroom. The doors onto the terrace were open, and a warm breeze blew in through the doors, circulating fresh air.

Someone touched my elbow, and Lacey appeared beside me.

“You seem to be doing well,” she said.

I shrugged. “Well enough, I think.”

“I’ve spoken to a couple of people, found out who’s donating what. This is what you need to do. You have to get up there and make a speech about your donation.”

“What?” I looked at her, alarmed. “I don’t do public speaking.”

She shook her head. “You’re going to have to put yourself out there and counter the bad publicity you’ve been getting with some good publicity. Just a donation won’t be enough.”

I shook my head. I had considered writing a check and letting that be it.

“What am I supposed to say?” I asked.

“Tell them it’s to repay the city for your behavior. But say it in a better way. And don’t make a small donation. Anything less than fifty won’t be enough.”

I blinked at her. “That’s like a fine, then,” I said. “Paying them to get my image clean.”

Lacey shook her head and put her hand on my arm. Her skin was warm, even through my blazer.

“It’s a good first step, Hanson,” she said. “Trust me.”

Her eyes were gray in the dress she was wearing, almost mercurial. She implored me with them. Dammit, I wasn’t going to be able to say no to her.

I took a deep breath and nodded.

“Okay,” I said. “It would have been great if you’d let me know before we came that I would have to speak. I would have prepared something.”

“I trust you can think of something,” she said.

I wasn’t sure if she was being condescending or encouraging. I hoped for the latter.

“You’re doing really well, Hanson,” she said.

I nodded at her and moved toward the front of the room where a podium had been set up. A few people went before me, and I paid attention to their speeches. When it was finally my turn, I had a few things in mind that I could say.

“Evening, ladies and gentlemen,” I said. All eyes were on me, and I swallowed hard. I had thousands of fans watch me when I played every weekend, but when it was that many, they were a sea of faces. This felt so much more personal. “I’m pretty sure everyone knows me. For those of you who don’t recognize me, I’m the guy who makes stupid decisions.”

They laughed. Good.

“I’m here tonight because this is a cause that touched my heart.”

A bit of a lie? Yes.

“And I’m here tonight to make things right. Or at least, to make a start. So, as my apology to the city and as the start of a new chapter in my life, I am donating one hundred thousand dollars to the Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Children’s wing.”

The crowd gasped. The looked at each other, shocked. They clapped. I didn’t know what else to say. Cameras flashed in my face, and for the first time, I wasn’t worried about what would appear in the paper. This was good.

I stepped away from the podium without saying anything else and made my way back to Lacey through a crowd that parted for me now.

Lacey squeezed my arm when I joined her again, a smile playing on her lips. She listened to the next speech, but whenever I glanced at her, that smile hadn’t faded. I nodded, proud of myself.

We left not too long after that. I escorted Lacey down the stairs and to the front door where our limo was waiting. Carl opened the door for us again, and I helped Lacey into the car before following. When the door was closed and the car started moving, Lacey turned to me.

“God, you were fantastic,” she said. Her eyes sparkled, her smile was contagious, and I grinned. “I can’t believe it. One hundred thousand! That was something else. You really know how to make a point. If you keep at it like this, well, there’s hope for you, after all.”

“It’s thanks to you, though,” I said. “I wouldn’t have done it if it weren’t for you. And you looked great on my arm. Sexy.”

She blushed. She smiled, like she was suddenly shy, and her flushed cheeks became apparent when the interior of the car lit up as we passed streetlights.

“You have to stop complimenting me,” Lacey said. Her voice was a little breathy.

“Why?”

“Because we work together,” she said. “It’s not right.”

“But it’s true,” I said.

I lifted my hand and brushed my knuckles against her cheek. Her skin was soft and delicate. Her pupils were dilated, and she swallowed when she stared into my eyes. My gaze slid down to her lips. They were dark red and enticing. I had to have her. I had to have a taste.

I leaned forward and kissed her before I could stop myself, before she could break the spell that had wrapped itself around us. She hesitated for just a second before she kissed me back. My tongue slid into her mouth, and I put my hand on her neck.

She was breathing hard. I wasn’t far behind. The bit of alcohol, the thrill of speaking in public, and of impressing a woman like Lacey, all of it made me want her. And if the way she kissed me was any indication, she wanted me, too.

She broke the kiss as if she’d suddenly come to her senses. She swallowed hard, her breathing still erratic. She looked confused, but her eyes slid to my lips once more before she turned her head away.

I wanted her. And it was clear she wanted me, too.

Now there was only one thing left for me to do. I had to go in, play hard, and make it happen. I couldn’t do it tonight, but I was determined to do it really fucking soon.