His mind drifted away from her chatter. He imagined how Kenzie looked in the dress and wondered if she had accepted the diamonds. If she did, he bet she’d cursed him every which way before she put them on, and she might even let him have it when she arrived, her ire not having subsided. His lips twitched with an effort to keep the smile off his face.
Beautiful women surrounded him, all close to his financial level or from families that were wealthy. A few were personal assistants, trained to anticipate every whim of their employers. He had one floating around, but he’d sent her off with a clipped word. Tonight, agitation ate at him, and the single person to pin it on was Kenzie Bridges. Why did she get under his skin so much? Why couldn’t he keep his hands off her? She was no lovelier than the rest of these beauties.
No, that was a lie. He took in the pale, smooth skin, the blush in the cheeks, and the fine clothing encasing sexy figures. There wasn’t a woman here he couldn’t have—or had already. Kenzie, however, exuded uniqueness. He’d forgotten himself so much that he’d almost taken her without a covering, a foolish mistake for boys, not him with all his experience. More than one woman had tried to get pregnant in order to trap him, but he was up on all the tricks. Sure, he would love not to use a condom because the sensation felt better without it, but taking chances like that was not smart. As Kenzie had convinced him, he needed his children mothered by the right woman to avoid a nightmare.
Jocelyn interrupted his thoughts. “Want to dance?”
He focused on her face and noted the high color. She’d caught on to his sour mood and the fact that he paid her no mind.
“What do you think of children?” he blurted out.
Her eyes widened, and her small mouth made a perfect o. “I…um… That came out of nowhere.”
“Yes, but would you ever consider getting married, and if so, would you have children?” He grated his gaze over her slender body. “I know a lot of you women don’t like messing up your figures.”
“Damn it, Easton, you’re in a rare mood tonight. For a minute there, I thought… Never mind. What happened? Did a deal fall through?”
“Forget it,” he grumbled. If Kenzie were there, he’d have known what to say. This was her fault. He usually did better than this with women. Of course, conversation had only ever been what position they both enjoyed, or business, which was second nature after his grandfather’s tutelage.
Kenzie. He checked the entrance to the ballroom once again. Many guests were still arriving, but she wasn’t among them. He’d enjoyed sex with her yesterday and wanted more. In fact, he had every intention of suggesting it to her tonight. As long as he hadn’t declared himself to any woman, he could do what he pleased.#p#分页标题#e#
A new thought occurred to him. He’d noticed Kenzie taking a birth control pill and recognized the container she took it from. Perhaps if they were exclusive for the time being, he could forgo the condom. How good it would feel to be inside her uncovered. That instant he’d done it in his apartment had been incredible. Yes, she would agree no matter what. He would convince her.
A hand on his arm caught his attention again, and he looked down into Jocelyn’s flushed face. He cleared his mind, having made his decision, and smiled. Time to prove to Kenzie he did have charm. “Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?”
Jocelyn’s cheeks pinked even more, and she lowered her lashes—fake ones if he had to guess. Still, the makeup had been done flawlessly, probably by her maid or assistant.
“Let’s dance,” he suggested, as if she hadn’t asked him the same thing moments ago. He led her to the center of the dance floor and took her into his arms. Her tiny waist beneath his palm, he drew her close enough to glance over her head, and they began to move about the floor and sway to the music. Another interesting feature about Jocelyn he had always liked was her grace. Few of the women he’d dated carried themselves as she did. She matched his steps without effort and seemed to anticipate when he would draw back and give her a turn to flare out her gown, the color of a rich wine.
Now she smiled, and her eyes lit up. The flush made her even more beautiful and contrasted with her creamy breasts, which were on display with the low-cut dress. With such perfection before him, he didn’t know why his gaze drifted back toward the door.
The song ended, and he spent the next twenty minutes listening to Jocelyn speak. When a group of her female friends came to claim her for a woman-only chat session, he raised her hand to his lips and kissed her palm. “Maybe I will find you later.”