Already knowing her small wardrobe by heart, she steeled her spine and pulled out The Dress as she thought of it, the one garment that somehow transformed her into someone gorgeous when she clearly wasn’t. It was that once-or-twice-in-a-lifetime article of clothing that should somehow be treasured and only brought out for special occasions. An article of clothing that was timeless, that she could own forever if she treated it lovingly and only wore it sparingly. Looking at it now, draped across her bed, she began berating herself for not finding the time to go shopping for new clothes. It wasn’t as if Garrett wasn’t paying her enough now, because suddenly, she could easily afford to shop if she wanted to. If she had time.
Refusing to let the small detail of having to wear The Dress unbalance her, she pulled her clothes off and slipped into the shower.
Late that night, Garrett returned to the hotel. He’d been gone most of the day, having felt a need to escape from the unrelenting pull he felt toward Maria. While he’d been gone, he’d done some unnecessary banking and visited several properties in the area. His day out hadn’t helped much; he hadn’t been able to fully get her out of his mind for more than ten minutes at a time.
And that only pissed him off. He was beginning to get a nagging feeling in his gut that was telling him that fucking Maria wouldn’t be enough. Refusing to believe it, or in fact to even allow the thought to take hold, he walked inside the lobby with determined steps. Just one more fucking taste; that should be enough to hold him for the day.
Just inside the lobby, there was a large gilded frame set up on an easel, in which a beautiful scripted font announced the Calderon party’s rehearsal dinner. That name hit him; the memory of Maria laughing with the man over the telephone the night he’d met her hit him full force with a punch of jealousy that, had he allowed himself to acknowledge it, would have disturbed him.
Unannounced and uninvited, not giving a shit, he walked inside the ballroom. It was late, the catered-meal was over, and now people were scattered all over the room, talking in small groups, some of them swaying to the soft music that played in the background. The open bar in the corner was still manned by one of the hotel bartenders, but the atmosphere in the room told him that around now, the party was about to break up, the guests needing to prepare for the wedding that would undoubtedly take place the next day.
As he glanced around the room, it didn’t take five seconds before Garrett saw her.
And when he did, his ire rose up, almost swallowing him whole.
She held a glass of champagne in one hand, and a masculine arm was draped over her shoulders. A man was leaning over her with a smile as he laughed at something she said, and then he reached up with his other hand and touched her cheek. Touched her fucking cheek. The move put her within the circle of the unknown man’s arms, and Garrett felt a wave of fury rise up and inundate him.
As he stilled just inside the double doors and watched, it took everything he had not to go over there and physically rip the guy from her side. Breathing deeply, even from this distance, he could see the blush that stained her cheeks as she shook her head, her eyes filling with a teasing laughter.
Garrett took in the blush right before he noticed the dress she was wearing. His heartbeat flew off the charts as his cock hardened and jerked against his fly. The anger and jealousy running through his veins only made his erection more potent. There was nothing wrong with the dress, per se. On a mannequin, it would have been impressive. But on Maria, the dress took on a life of its own. The allure of sexiness that she’d been ramping up the last few days dimmed in comparison to the way the dress enhanced her figure. The garment was black, came a few inches above her knees, but it clung with a tenacity that seemed to make it show off every feminine attribute that she had.
And she had attributes in fucking spades.
At that moment, a waiter carrying a tray of champagne passed them, and the man she was with reached out and snagged only one flute, as Maria’s was still full. When the fucker let go of her with one hand to accomplish the feat, Garrett was only mildly appeased that she seemed to take the opportunity to gracefully dance out of the man’s reach. As she made the move, she glanced over the party with that precise eye for detail that told Garrett she was still on the job. As her gaze traveled around the room, he prepared for the moment when her eyes would meet his.
Expecting the punch to his system, he braced himself, feeling his lips flatten. When her gaze hit his, it was like a shot of electricity that almost knocked him over. Her allure only irritating him more, with a sharp tilt of his head, he motioned for her to join him, knowing damn good and well that if she refused, the outcome wouldn’t be good. For either of them. He wasn’t in the mood to tolerate any bullshit this particular evening.