Emil
Even as we walk out of that darkened room, my heartbeat still thunders. I feel it in my throat, my ears,
my hands, between my legs. Every part of my body is attuned to the feel of Dani next to me. To have a
beautiful woman walk beside me after having done what we just did... it feels like the ultimate secret. A
tease of what we could do together. A rebellious act that no one in the other room will be able to guess.
When I duck into the washroom to clean myself up, it doesn’t extinguish the embers in my veins. As
soon as I walk back out and slide my hand down Dani’s bare back, fire ignites in my gut once again.
And I want more. So much more. I want to strip her down and devour her. I want to worship every
inch of creamy skin and make her mine. I want to lock myself in a room with her and show her just how
badly she makes me want.
Closing my eyes for a moment, I leash the primal lust flaring inside me. It takes longer than it should
to get under control. It’s been too long.
Callie died two years ago, when Francis was just six months old. The two of us hadn’t had sex since
our second child was conceived, which means—
Over three years. It’s been three years since I’ve touched a woman. Three years since I’ve wanted to. I
forgot how good it feels to give in to the physical beast inside me. What a woman’s body does to
me—what Dani’s body does to me. How badly I need that kind of release.
She didn’t even touch me, but my orgasm was more intense than any I can remember. What would it
feel like to be inside her? To feel her hand wrapped around me? Or that hot little mouth?
I close my eyes for two st eps, banishing the images of Dani on her knees in front of me. Now is not
the time. Next week, maybe. When I have her phone number and an entire evening to dedicate to learning
every inch of her body. When the new nanny is settled and I can take a night off from being a father.
Hope springs in my chest at the thought. Marcus and Leif are right—I need to let go of control. I need
to acc ept help from a qualified childcare provider so I can live my own life.
After everything that happened with Callie, though—the chaos of the day she died—giving up control
isn’t easy. That nightmare hasn’t faded, even after two years. It’s a betrayal that runs too de ep.
Dani’s hand squeezes my forearm as she glances at me. “You just tensed up. Are you okay?”
I clear my throat. “I’m fine. You?” She gives me a soft, shy smile in response, her cheeks flushing a
pretty shade of pink.
My heart beats unsteadily, and I force myself to look toward the main room. “I’m hoping to meet a
potential business partner here tonight. I’d like to introduce you to him.”
“Oh?” “We’re courting his company for a deal that would be very profitable, but I’m not sure he’s
interested. We might
be too small to entice him.” Why am I telling her this? I shouldn’t be saying these things, but
somehow it feels right. It feels good to share some of the burden with her.
“I’ll try not to embarrass you.” I grin. Looking like she does right now, flushed and sated in that dress,
she could say or do anything and no man in the room would be able to think about anything other than
taking her to bed. I’ll kill anyone who tries. She won’t embarrass me.
We st ep into the main room, the lights and noise and people crushing in on us. It’s almost too much
after being alone with Dani. But I give her a nod and lead her de eper into the room. Glancing at my watch,
I know I’ll only have a few minutes to find Richard Gleeson before the bell for dinner is rung and people
will start making their way to the dining room. I need to find him before then.
Scanning the room, I look for the dark-haired entr epreneur. He said he’d be here... Ah! There.
Leaning toward Dani, I speak into her ear. “He’s there, next to the pillar. The guy standing next to the
woman in the red dress.”
Her eyes flick to where I gesture, and Dani’s whole body goes stiff. Her eyes widen, horror splashed
across her features. She pulls away from me, shaking her head as she stares at the ground.
“Dani?” “I...” She turns her back to the room, hunching her shoulders. “I...”
“What’s wrong?” My heart thumps, and a wave of protectiveness washes over me. I brush it away. I
don’t want to think about what it means to have these feelings when I just met this woman an hour ago.
But she looks... scared. The flush has drained from her cheeks. She’s white as a ghost, her bottom lip
trembling. “I need to go.”
“We just got here. Dinner hasn’t even been served yet.” I brush my hand over her upper arm, and
Dani flinches. She flinches. As if she’s afraid of me. It... stings. A lot.
“I don’t care.” She flicks her gaze to meet mine, and a flash of something—regret, maybe?—crosses
her eyes. “I’m sorry. Goodbye.”
I try to protest, but she’s gone in an instant, ducking through the crowd and rushing through the door.
Jogging to follow, I call out, not stopping when I get strange looks from other guests. By the time I make
it outside, I catch a glimpse of Dani’s dress as she closes a taxi door. They speed away as I stand on top of
the st eps. Scanning the street, I look for another taxi, hoping to follow her. But Dani’s car turns a corner
and there’s no other car in sight. I’ve lost her.
Two or three intr epid photographers click their cameras at me.
Wonderful. Not only did I lose the first woman who’s interested me in years, now I’ll be a headline in
a gossip magazine. Sighing, I turn on my heels and head back inside.
My thoughts are a torrent. What the hell just happened? After what we did in that room, I thought
she’d want more. I know I sure as hell do. But from one moment to the next, her whole demeanor
changed. She saw something that terrified her so badly she bolted.
Pausing at the entrance, I glance back toward the street. I could get her address from Viviane and
storm over there tonight, demand answers. I know she felt the connection between us. My phone is in my
hand without me consciously reaching for it, Viviane’s name just below my thumb.
But I pause, staring at the bright glow of the screen, knowing I can’t leave without talking to Gleeson.
No matter who Dani is, why she left, and what my body’s violent
reaction to her means, I have work to do. My company’s future d epends on it.
I find Richard Gleeson right where I left him, his eyes scanning the crowd as he whispers in his date’s
ear. There’s something that grates along the inside of my skin at the sight of him. Some primal
discomfort. I brush it away —just jitters on the eve of such a big business deal and the remnants of
whatever happened between me and Dani.
When he sees me, he straightens. “Mr. Van der Berg.” He extends a hand for me to shake.
“Call me Emil,” I r eply. “Good to finally meet you.” My movements are wooden, voice tense. I’m
still thinking of Dani, of her exit. She panicked when I pointed Gleeson out. Does she know him? Was it
something else? Was it me? Is she like Callie—setting me up somehow? Why the hell would I trust her so
easily? She could be playing me from the start.
Banishing the thought, I ask Gleeson all the appropriate questions about his flight and his stay in
Manhattan so far. I smile at his date and pray the dinner bell will sound soon.
“Did you come here alone?” Richard asks, arching a brow. “A bachelor like you at an event like
this—I’d expect some beauty on your arm.”
Giving him a tight smile, I shrug noncommittally. He pats his date’s bottom and asks her to get him a
drink. She trots away, and Richard turns to me, a harsh, predatory gleam in his eyes. “So. You finally got
me to come up to this godawful city. I’m hoping that means we can talk business.”
The tightness in my chest doesn’t ease, even though it should. This deal is important—it’s the whole
reason I agreed to come to the Summer Ball this year. But I find my eyes drifting to the exit, to the doors
where Danika disappeared.
“We’ll talk business,” I tell him. “I’m hoping your stay will be productive for both of us.”
A deal with Richard Gleeson would secure my legacy. It would ensure that the board trusts me, that
my position at the top of the company is secure. Productive isn’t even the half of it.
So why do I ke ep wishing Danika would show up again?