Jade

I shouldn’t have let Lucas off the hook so easily. I was a strong woman, one who’d proven she was able to stand on her own two feet. Yet, I crumbled anytime it came to him. Self-control was a thing of the past whenever I was near him. It had been from the first moment we’d met. Clothes flew off my body at the drop of a hat and yes seemed to be the only word I was capable of saying. He’d practically called me a gold-digger and I let him take me on a desk without a single word of apology. Then he told me I couldn’t go to his elegant business dinner as his date, even though we’d spent an amazing afternoon together after learning I was pregnant with his baby. My response should have been heck no, but instead I’d said yes, gone out the next day, bought a fancy dress, and got my hair, makeup and nails done.

I’d wanted to look my best, even if I was only attending the dinner as Lucas’s step-sister and not his date. Judging by the look on his face as I walked down the stairs, it was well worth all the effort. Before my foot hit the bottom step, he was moving towards me.

“Are you sure you want to have dinner out with my boring board members instead of a night home alone with me?” His question was said in a teasing tone, but the intense look in his eyes was anything but a joke. The way his fingers gripped my hips as he pulled me closer made me think he might toss me over his shoulder and carry me up to his bedroom. When I was flush against him, the feel of his hardened length told me exactly how we’d end up spending the night if I said I wanted to stay home.

I could always wear the dress another night. “Let’s—“

My answer was drowned out by the sound of my growling stomach. The anti-nausea medication was working its magic, and I was starving.

“That sounds like a resounding yes for dinner,” Lucas said with a chuckle.

I grumbled a little as he led me to the car. I hadn’t really gotten a vote, but apparently the sex marathon idea was out and a steak dinner was in. Or maybe I’d get lucky and I could have both. The night was still young after all.

A mere two hours later, I wasn’t as hopeful. Was this night ever going to end? When we arrived at L’étang, Lucas escorted me around the private room and introduced me to everyone as his step-sister. This meant I couldn’t visibly react when several of the women present practically devoured him with their eyes even as they held onto the arms of their own dates. I didn’t object when he got me settled in my seat and then left me there to go talk business with a small group of men huddled in the corner before dinner was served.

The meal was spent with the men discussing business while the women pushed their food around their plates and looked pretty. Except for me. I enjoyed the heck out of my ridiculously expensive steak. After dessert had been served, the men excused themselves for an after-dinner drink at the bar. Lucas gave my hand the briefest of squeezes before joining them. I tried to take comfort in the small gesture and to remind myself that the situation was only temporary, but what I’d really wanted to do was hold tight and make him stay with me. I couldn’t do that and it killed me. What sister would mind if her brother left her side after all?

Oh, just the kind whose step-brother knocked her up, that’s who. I snort giggled into my hand at my own joke, glancing around and hoping I didn’t catch anyone’s attention. It was too much to wish for, though, because a guy was staring at me from across the room. I quickly looked away, my gaze dropping to what was left of my dessert. Not just mine, Lucas’s too since he’d been incredibly sweet and told me to order the chocolate soufflé and he’d gotten the crème brûlée so I didn’t have to choose. He’d barely taken a bite of his dessert before nudging it my way. Although any goodwill he’d earned from the gesture had been used up within the last thirty minutes or so.

Another glance up confirmed that his business colleague was nearing me. Maybe I’d drawn this guy’s attention because I was the only woman eating anything at this shindig. A glance out of the side of my eye told me that wasn’t the right guess. He was striding towards me, the speculative gleam in his eye making me uncomfortable. Did he know about Lucas and me? Was he going to cause trouble for the company? Crap, when was Lucas coming back anyway? I glanced frantically around the room hoping he’d returned from smoking a cigar on the terrace.

“It’s a shame to see a gorgeous woman like you sitting alone.”

Double crap. Still no sign of Lucas. On the plus side, it didn’t look like this guy had come over here for nefarious purposes. He’d come to flirt with Lucas’s step-sister, who was single and most definitely not pregnant with her step-brother’s baby. I took a deep breath to calm my nerves and smoothed the skirt of my dress so it covered my thigh since his eyes were locked on the bare skin showing there. On second thought, fixing my dress might not have been my best decision tonight because his gaze moved from my legs to my boobs. They’d always caught guys’ attention since they’d practically appeared overnight in high school. With them being slightly bigger from the pregnancy already, they were even more of a guy magnet. I was also regretting my choice in dress as he claimed Lucas’s chair and stared at my chest.

“You’re Jade, right?”

I cleared my throat, drawing his gaze up to my face. The grin he gave me was unapologetic, and kind of bordering on sleazy. “Yup, that’s me.”

“I’m Charles Montgomery the third.”

He sounded like a pompous ass! One who’d taken hold of my hand and was tracing circles in the palm with one of his fingers.

“I’d like my hand back, please.”

His hold tightened when I tried to tug it away. Better make that an aggressive, arrogant ass.

“And I’d like to keep it,” he murmured. “How about we come to a deal of some kind. I’m sure I can persuade you to my way of thinking.”

“I’m not interested,” I hissed, tugging harder. His hold became painful, making me cringe. “Please,” I whimpered.

“Now that’s a word I’d like to hear you say, but in a more private setting.” My stomach churned as he leaned in closer. The smell of scotch on his breath was overwhelming. "We both know I’ve got exactly what a girl like you wants in a man. A fat wallet and an even fatter—“

He didn’t get the chance to finish his offensive comment. Lucas had returned and jerked him out of his chair by the collar of his shirt. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing, Montgomery?”

“Nothing that concerns you, St. James. The girl and I were just coming to an understanding.”

Lucas’s gaze swept me up and down, checking to make sure I was okay. Fury flared in his eyes when he caught sight of me holding my wrist gingerly. I jumped up from my chair when he pulled Charles even closer.

“It looks like Jade wants nothing to do with you or your understanding. So how about you keep your hands off her.”

“Please,” Charles sputtered. “A woman like her wouldn’t be offended by my offer. I was going to be very generous with her.”

“Shut the fuck up before I make you,” Lucas growled.

“Why are you so pissed off?” As crazy as it seemed, Charles looked like he truly didn’t understand Lucas’s anger. “You should be happy to get her off your hands after the way her mother trapped your father into marriage.”

I gasped in outrage at the slight to my mom, the sound reminding both men of my presence.

“You know what? I don’t have time for this shit.” Lucas punctuated his statement with a sharp jab to Charles’s chin, releasing his collar and letting him fall to the ground. Then he reached for me and ushered me out of the room.

Lucas had fully explained his situations and concerns before I completely agreed to attend the dinner. I was pretty sure his plan to lure clients on his own without the help of his current board had been thrown out the window. Practically dragging me from the most expensive restaurant in town while threatening a colleague and punching him in the face probably wasn’t the best way to earn anyone’s business