Bidding on Her Boss(22)

"Adam, I'm warning you, get out of this room." Dylan planted his feet shoulder width apart and glared at his brother. "Now."

Adam's eyebrows shot up. "Okay, sure," he said and headed for the door. "Look, I'm sorry-"

"Not the time," Dylan said, his voice tight and fists clenching at his sides.

"Right then." Adam disappeared completely from view.

Dylan kicked the door shut behind him and then turned to Faith and blew  out a breath. "I can't believe he did that. Sorry doesn't seem enough."

He seemed so tense that she laid a hand on his arm, wanting to reassure him. "No harm done. I was handling it."

One corner of his mouth quirked up. "Actually, when I opened the door, the expression on his face did seem a bit lost."

"Good," she said, satisfied she'd been able to hold her own. "You know,  I think he was more worried about us as your brother than he was as the  CEO."                       
       
           



       

A frown line appeared across his forehead. "What do you mean?"

"He's protective of you." Heat radiated through Dylan's suit coat to  her hand, and she rubbed his upper arm, always wanting a little more  when she was near him.

He let out an exasperated breath. "He should be more worried about himself."

"Why?" The dynamics between Dylan and his brothers were endlessly  fascinating to her, but then again, anything about Dylan fascinated her.

"I can't remember the last time I saw him in a relationship. Or with a  woman who made him happy. I don't know why he thinks he's in any  position to sort out anyone else's love life."

Her throat was suddenly tight, and she had to swallow before she could  get her voice to work. "We don't have a love life. We've put a lot of  effort into ensuring that."

"That's true," he said, his eyes pained. "I still love this dress on you, by the way."

She looked down at the shimmering green dress. "Thank you again. It's a  lovely present." Then, unable to help herself, she looked back at him,  taking in the lavender shirt and silver tie. "And I like you in that  suit."

His eyes darkened. "Someone with great flair picked it out for me."

She ran a hand down the front of the shirt, remembering what it felt  like to touch him without fabric between them. Without reserve.

He sucked in a sharp breath. "If we're going to leave this room, we'd better go now."

She dropped her hand and took a step back. "I think you're right."

He opened the door and gestured for her to go past, and they walked into the ballroom as if nothing had happened.

* * *

Dylan looked out over the crowd of the fashionable and famous mingling  and drinking champagne in honor of Hawke's Blooms. He was still annoyed  at his brother but was trying not to let it affect him. He just wanted  Faith to have one perfect night to remember, and he wouldn't let Adam  ruin it.

She'd bought three dates at the auction-she'd spent the first making  flower arrangements at the Santa Monica store and the second making  flower arrangements at Liam's research facility. Was it too much to ask  that he be able to give her one night when she wasn't working, without  his stupid brother ruining it?

He glanced down at Faith and pulled her a little closer against his  side as they made their way through the ballroom. They were stopped by  several people he knew in the industry, and he introduced Faith each  time as the florist who had created the designs that adorned the room.  The guests were full of praise, and although Faith didn't say it, he  could feel her pride in her work. He smiled inside, knowing he'd become  attuned to her feelings.

"Thank you," she whispered just below his ear once they'd moved on from another person who'd been impressed by her work.

He took a moment to appreciate the warmth of her breath on his neck before asking, "For what?"

"I told you once that my dream was to create arrangements that reached  lots of people. To spread joy on that larger scale." She moistened her  lips. "You've made it happen."

His chest expanded at the expression in her eyes, but he couldn't take  the credit. "No, you've made it happen. I might have arranged the  opportunity for Jenna, Liam and Adam to see your ideas for the Ruby  Iris, but you're the one who impressed them."

"As you said, you arranged the opportunity," she said, clearly unwilling to let it drop.

"Ah, but you were creative enough in your approach to attend the  auction and get my attention in the first place." He smiled down into  her eyes. "You're one of a kind, Faith."

His mother appeared at his elbow, wineglass in hand. "Here you are, Dylan. I've been looking everywhere for you."

He leaned down and kissed her cheek. "Did you need something?"

"Just to check on you. Adam said something cryptic about wanting me to make sure you're all right. What happened?"

Dylan smiled tightly, not wanting to get into it with his mother. "Just big brother pushing too far."

"Don't be hard on him," his mother said indulgently. "His heart is always in the right place."

Dylan didn't say anything, letting his silence speak for him.

"Okay," his mother said, chuckling. "Sometimes he does take things too  far. Now, introduce me to Faith. I've heard such good things about your  work from Jenna."                       
       
           



       

Obediently, he glanced back down at his date. "Faith, this is my mother. Mom, this is Faith Crawford."

Faith smiled and held out her hand. "Lovely to meet you, Mrs. Hawke."

"You, too, Faith. But call me Andrea." She shook her hand. "The floral  arrangements are gorgeous. You've worked miracles with them."

The two women looked over at the closest arrangement, and Faith smiled.  "Thank you. I made these final versions this morning out at Liam's  facility, so this is the first time I've seen them under the ballroom  lights."

The crystals interspersed among the blooms caught the sparkling light  and refracted it into little sunbeams across the ceiling. All the guests  were commenting on the effect.

"Oh, I meant to say-" Dylan's mother turned to him "-Jenna was looking  for you. She wanted you to meet a journalist before you go up on stage.  You go and find her and I'll keep Faith company."

Dylan looked from one woman to the other, uncomfortable about leaving  them together but not completely sure why. He looked down at Faith and  she patted his arm. "Go. I'll be fine."

He released her elbow and threaded his way through the crowd, restricting himself to only one last look back over his shoulder.

* * *

Faith watched Dylan walk away with the same wrench in her chest that she always felt when he left.

Women stopped him constantly, sometimes with a hand on his forearm,  sometimes by putting themselves in his path. Even from a distance, she  could tell he was charming them and then moving on.

"He's good with people," his mother said from beside her. "They like him."

"Yes," Faith said, turning back to face Andrea with a polite smile. "They do."

"Interesting thing is, his brothers are easier to read than he is. It  might look as if Dylan is more open than them, but he manages to keep  more of himself hidden. He wears a mask of openness, which tricks  people, if that makes sense."

Faith thought about conversations they'd had and the hidden depths he'd revealed. "It does make sense."

"Although he seems different with you," Andrea said casually, and then took a sip of her wine.

Butterflies leapt to life in Faith's belly. First Adam and now their  mother-what was it with Dylan's family fishing for information? "You  only saw us together for about ten seconds," she said, matching the  other woman's casual tone.

Andrea waved the objection away with a flick of her wrist. "A mother  can read between the lines. Also, I know my son, and his face is  different when he speaks about you."

"He speaks about me?" Faith asked before she could think better of it.

Andrea grinned. "He's mentioned you a few times when giving me an update on this launch and your work with the Ruby Iris."

Faith could see the expectation in the other woman's eyes, the  excitement that her son had found someone to settle down with. But it  wouldn't be her, and that hurt more than she could let on.

She took a breath and chose her words carefully to ensure there was no  misunderstanding. "I feel I need to tell you that nothing is going to  happen between Dylan and me."

"Huh, that's funny. I seem to remember hearing the same story from Liam  and Jenna a while ago." Her expression said Andrea wasn't deterred in  the slightest. "Is this because you work for him?"