Chapter Seventeen
Kayla
I'd envisioned that walking into the ballroom at the hotel would be like a scene in a fairytale movie. The room would fall silent as the princess entered and all the guests stopped to stare at her in awestruck wonder. Then, the crowd would part as the prince stepped forward, took her hand, and bowed. She would accept his invitation with a smile and they would spend the evening dancing as they gazed into each other's eyes.
That had been the fantasy, but the reality was quite different. When I walked into the party, not only did no one notice, but I was shocked to find Ethan dancing in the arms of another woman.
"Who is she?" I asked a nearby guest as I tried to hide my annoyance.
"That's Gwyneth Manzranni," the thin woman with snow white hair leaned in close and put her hand up to her mouth for a conspiratorial whisper. "Rumors are she and Ethan Colson used to be a couple, but it's been over between them for years. Looks like that's changed. Good for him. I always thought it was sad that he was such a dedicated bachelor. It's always so much nicer to see a man like that fall in love with the right woman and finally settle down."
"When did they date?"
"I think they met in college. I hear they dated for years, and then she broke it off just a year or two after her started the company. I bet she was kicking herself for not marrying him when he was young and broke so half this empire would be hers, too. But who knows? Maybe she wanted to get married and he just wouldn't commit. That happens a lot in this town with many wealthy, handsome, young men. Then they mature a little bit and figure out how lonely life is. They go back to the one who got away and finally get married."
"You think she's the one who got away?" My stomach was flipping upside down, and I was grateful for the tight fit of my dress to hold it in place.
"I don't know. The rumors were it devastated him when they broke up. He never speaks about it in interviews."
"He doesn't talk about his past much in interviews, at all. I think he's just shy about personal matters," I said, still trying to defend him for some reason.
"Not just personal matters. He's secretive about a lot of things. He won't even talk about how Speed Motorcycles was founded or how he even came up with the name. Interviewers always ask, and he always refuses to answer. In fact, I saw him do it earlier today when he first came in."
"Why won't he talk about the company?"
She shrugged her shoulders. "No one knows, but it has to be something bad to keep it so secret."
I found myself beginning to feel swayed by her suspicious musings, but quickly shook it off. L.A. was full of gossips like her with nothing better than to do than speculate on every aspect of a person's life. I had more important things to worry about than his past, like his present where he was dancing with an ex-lover.
The paranoid old gossip wandered off as I stood there by the entrance and continued to watch my date dancing with Gwyneth.
The song came to an end, and I watched as the two of them made their way across the room to the bar where they joined a man with sandy brown hair, a muscular build, and a playful grin. He was wearing a well-cut suit by Giorgio Armani with a bowtie that gave him a sexy flair for fun.
He handed Ethan and the woman each a glass of champagne, and they drank a toast. Was it to celebrate their getting back together as a couple? Rage coursed through my veins, but I refused to cry or make a scene in the middle of such a public event. Then, Ethan suddenly caught sight of me and froze. It took several heartbeats before he blinked and waved me over, shouting out, “Kayla, there you are. Come here, I want to introduce you to everybody."
At least he hadn't said, “Come meet my fiancé.” I walked over as slowly as I could, dreading the moment I got there and found out tonight wasn't a date, but a cruel practical joke.
Instead, he introduced Vick and Gwyneth as his friends from college. A sense of immense relief flooded through me, but it only lasted a moment before psychotic jealousy overwhelmed me and made me do things I never would have dreamed of doing.
Before I could stop myself, or even knew what I was doing, I found myself introducing myself as Ethan's girlfriend. I saw Gwyneth's green eyes grow large with surprise. Unfortunately, so did Ethan's.
I wasn't his girlfriend. This was only our third date at the most. Would he call me on my outrageous behavior and humiliate me in front of everyone? I couldn't blame him if he did. My actions were way over the top. He didn't, though. Ever the gentleman, Ethan put his arm around my waist, smiled at me, and said, "Yes, she is."
I couldn't believe it. My heart was soaring, and then suddenly, we were kissing and I missed whatever Gwyneth said next. His mouth was insistent as he forced my lips apart and the passion of his embrace stole my breath away.
"I think maybe we should leave these two alone, shall we, sweetheart?" Vick said to Gwyneth. She took his hand with a smile.
"Yes, darling. It was nice to meet you both. I hope you're as happy as Vick and I are." Gwyneth sounded sincere. So, she wasn't after Ethan. She was already dating Vick. My jealousy seemed even more outrageous now, and I was embarrassed by own bad behavior.
"I'm sorry for that," I said in a soft voice as our lips finally parted.
"For what?" Ethan asked, tipping my chin up with his strong hand to keep me from staring down at my feet in humiliation.
"For being jealous of you and your former college girlfriend and for telling her that we were a couple."
"It's okay. I did invite you here as my date, so let's just concentrate on making tonight one to remember."
"I like the sound of that."
"Good, now, what do you say we hit the dance floor?" He didn't even wait for my answer. He simply swept me out onto the dance floor with a graceful spin, and suddenly, we were dancing the night away. He was surprisingly good, and I wondered if he had taken private lessons or if it was just another of his many natural talents.
"Are you having fun?" Ethan asked me as he dipped me low and leaned in close as if to kiss me.
"I am, but it's getting hot in here," I said, feeling my cheeks flush. I couldn't tell if it the crowd making the room stuffy or if it being held like this in Ethan's arms, but I was suddenly feeling faint.
"Want to go out for a ride?" His eyes sparkled mischievously. "The fresh air will cool you off and do us both some good. I hate these crowded events and all this P.R. crap. I'd rather just be out riding with you."
"Did you bring a bike?" I asked, thinking the idea sounded wonderful.
"No, but we can use that one." I followed Ethan's gaze to the All American on display on the low stage at the front of the room.
"We can't use the display model," I gasped.
"Of course, we can. I know the owner. Come with me. I have an idea." He grabbed my hand and started dragging me towards the stage.
The band fell silent and the lead singer handed over his microphone to the infamous CEO and owner of the company. I felt suddenly nervous as a spotlight was turned on to shine right on the two of us.
"Ladies and gentlemen, I want to thank you all for coming here tonight for the launch of my newest motorcycle design, the All American," Ethan said and the crowd listened with rapt attention.
Ethan gave an eloquent speech, thanking all the men and woman who had worked their asses off for him and expressing his appreciation to the public for their support in buying his bikes. It was filled with the right blend of humor and sincere gratitude.
Then, suddenly, he turned to me and said, "Finally, I would like to introduce you all to this month's cover-girl for Speed Magazine, Miss Kayla Brandt. This hard-working beauty went through a lot to make the photo spread for the All-American look as effortless as it appears in the pages of this month's issue. She is patient, always ready for another take, and as beautiful inside as she is to look at. Thank you, Kayla. I know that I can attribute most of the sales orders that came in today to you and the fantastic job you did showing off our bike."
"The pleasure was mine," I blushed, hoping I didn't look or sound as nervous as I felt to put on the spot like that.
"You made it look like pleasure. Was the All American as fun to ride as you made it look in the photoshoot?" It was typical P.R. banter and Ethan did it well.
"It really was. I just wish I could do it again," I bantered back. I knew how to play this game from endless advertising gigs I'd done.
"Well, then, let's do it. Come on, hop on." He suddenly climbed onto the seat of the motorcycle standing on display on the stage. The crowd gasped with thrilled excitement, and I had no choice but to play along. My mermaid-style dress was too tight to allow me to join him. Wincing all the while, I grabbed the bottom seem and yanked with all my might, ripping a giant slit up the custom-made garment and destroying it. The crowd hooped and hollered, cheering even more loudly. They were loving it.
I hopped on the back of the bike behind Ethan, wrapped my arms around his chest, and he rode down the ramp, through the ballroom, out into the hotel lobby, and onto the street. People all around us were gasping with surprise, and then cheering. It was an incredible feeling.
"Now, let's get away from this bullshit and have some real fun," Ethan said once we were on the streets.
He pressed on the throttle and the bike jumped up to speed, racing through the city. The wind pulled my hair free of its careful styling to flow behind me like a thick ribbon, and I luxuriated in the feel of it. I closed my eyes and squeezed my arms around his well-muscled chest as he raced through deep curves, onto quiet country-side highways, and up into the hills. The view of the city stretched out below was beautiful with all the lights sparkling, and the California air was quiet and warm, with just a slight breeze blowing.
It was a strange disappointment when the ride was over and Ethan pulled the bike to a stop back in front of the hotel.
"Thanks for the ride." I smiled at Ethan as the valet took the bike and handed him his ticket. "It was a lot of fun, and just what I needed."
"So why do you look so miserable?" Ethan's gaze was perceptive and saw right through the facade of my model's smile.
"I guess I'm not looking forward to going back to the crowded ballroom after this. It was really nice when it was just the two of us."
"Well, just because we're here doesn't mean we have return to the party. I have a suite reserved in the penthouse. What do you say we continue this date there, instead?"
There was no mistaking what he meant. Suddenly, our one-night stand was going to turn into a second night of lovemaking. Was I ready for this? Just thinking about the way his hard abs had felt when I was gripping them on the back of his bike, or the way it had felt to have him holding me when we were one the dance floor, I knew that I was. When he had kissed me earlier, the passion of it had awakened a hunger to feel him inside again, and when I had introduced myself as his girlfriend and he had affirmed it, it had made my body quiver with excitement. Yes, I was ready for this; I just didn't know what I was getting myself into or how deep it would go.