She made a low sound of dismissal. “One glass won’t affect you, I’m sure. We’ll try the ’86 Mou—”
“The lady may have anything she wishes,” I interrupted, staring hard at Penelope for a moment before looking up at the wine steward. I smiled at the young woman. It wasn’t her fault Penelope thought she could lead people around by the fucking nose. “But I’ll stick with water, thank you.”
“Of course, Mr. Snow.” She gave us both a polite smile and looked back at Penelope and correctly guessed what Penelope had planned to order.
“Yes, that would be it.” A dark frown marred her brow but for only a moment. It smoothed away in seconds. Too bad. Those few seconds of frowning gave her face more character than I typically expected from her.
As the server walked away, Penelope said coolly, “I apologize, Dominic. I simply thought you’d enjoy relaxing with a friend over lunch. How was I to know that a simple glass of wine would make you so uncomfortable?”
“Uncomfortable?” I laughed and the humorless sound made Penelope shift in her seat. Leaning forward, I said, “I’m hardly uncomfortable, Penelope. But this isn’t the first time you’ve attempted to make a decision for me.” I paused and let those words sink in. “I don’t care for it.”
“Ah…” She smiled and settled back in her chair. “Yes. You prefer your quiet, docile little toys like, what’s her name? Adriana?”
“Her name is Aleena and you know it,” I said calmly, refusing to rise to the bait. “I’ll assume my mother told you that Aleena and I are involved.”
“Sexually.” Penelope made dismissive motion with one hand, a ring of platinum, rubies and diamonds flashing in the dim light. “It’s not really surprising. A girl like that can only hope to rise above her station by using sex.”
This time, when I laughed, I really was amused. Aleena…using sex to get what she wanted. It was ridiculous. I was…
Now my laughter faded, because I had to admit the truth.
I was the one using her, if anything. Using her, because sex was all I’d ever allow myself, even if I did care for her. And I did.
My tone became serious. “Aleena doesn’t use people.” I fell silent as the sommelier reappeared, bringing Penelope’s wine. I remained silent as she opened the bottle and it occurred to me how inane this whole thing was. Stupid, really. Although the wine steward made a lovely presentation of it, presenting the cork and the glass to Penelope, the bitch didn’t bother to take the time to appreciate the wine or the time the sommelier had taken with the process, tossing back nearly a third of the wine like a sailor coming on shore leave.
I looked up at the sommelier and smiled. “Thank you.”
She nodded and left as Penelope stared at me over the rim of the glass.
“Everybody uses people, Dominic. That’s how the world works.”
“For people in our world? Typically,” I agreed then shrugged. Placing the phone on the table, I stroked one finger across the smooth glass surface and then said softly, “Yes, that is how our world works, but Aleena isn’t from our world, is she?”
Penelope took another sip of her wine and then put the glass down. “I didn’t come here to discuss your…assistant.”
She smirked as she said it and the expression in her eyes clearly relayed another message, but I just stared at her and waited. I knew better than to say something and let Penelope twist it.
“Have you had any luck finding a match for me?”
“There are a few.” I named one.
“No.” She curled her lip. “He’s made noises recently about going into politics. I don’t want to be a politician’s wife.”
I hadn’t heard that. Interesting. The politics part, not what Penelope wanted. I was sure the life of a politician wouldn’t appeal to her. Too much struggle to stay in the limelight without a scandal. “Travis Masters—”
“No. He’s divorced and has a child. I don’t want some other woman and a brat to compete with.” Her eyes glinted over the rim of her glass.
Over the next twenty minutes, as we placed our orders and was served, I tossed out a few names—most of them random acquaintances—and Penelope shot down every last one of them.
“Penelope, has it occurred to you that you might be rather difficult to match up if you’re this…selective?” I finally asked with an exasperated sigh.
She pushed her food around her plate and smiled at me. I realized I hadn’t seen her take more than two bites of the expensive lobster bisque or its accompanying salad.
“I actually have somebody in mind who’d be ideal…Dominic.” She speared a small, plump tomato with her fork and slid it between her lips, her lashes lying low over her eyes.
The woman was about as subtle as...well, I couldn’t think of something that was less subtle than her.
“Is that a fact?” I placed my napkin down on the table and signaled for the server. I was done with this.
“You can’t tell me you haven’t thought of it.”
Shifting my eyes back to hers, I elevated a brow. She was going to be that direct, was she? At least she’d stopped pretending to be coy.
She reached out a hand and covered mine. “I was thinking, perhaps what we need to do is take a few days away, just the two of us. Get to know each other. I’ve got a soiree of sorts coming up in Philadelphia next month. Perhaps you could attend with me…?”
“My plate is rather full.” I pulled my hand out from under hers and reached for my wallet as the server laid the bill down, tucked inside a discreet leather folder.
“Dominic—”
I looked over at her. “I’ll be in Philadelphia off and on myself over the next few months. I can possibly help set you up with a date for your event if you’re looking for companionship—”
She jerked up, moving so quickly she banged into the table.
“Do you really think that
I
need help finding a man to attend a function with me?” She glared down at me, her eyes glittering, color rushing into her face. “The very idea is
absurd
. The only reason I’ve even talked to you about your
stupid
matchmaking company is because you’re too obtuse to see what I’m offering you.”
Rising to stand in front of her, I inclined my head. Penelope glared at me and all around us people were staring. I saw at least one with their phone out.
Leaning in, I said quietly, “Keep this up and you’ll have some interesting commentary on social media to follow that piece ECHELON did on you.”
Her mouth went tight but then, bit by bit, the tension faded and she smiled. The polite society mask was back in place. “Really, Dominic…”
That was all she said, and then she laughed. The odd, tense silence shattered and the pace around us resumed. I held out my arm and she took it. It didn’t surprise me. It was the best thing to do to diffuse the scene.
As we stepped out in the brilliance of the spring day, a camera flashed in our faces. Penelope didn’t even look fazed and I suspected I knew why. She’d contacted somebody, told them we’d be there. She hadn’t planned on me turning her down, but she’d sure as hell set me up.
Now we’d end up on a local gossip site. Great.
It was nothing new to me, yet I was irritated all the same. Leading her to the curb where my car waited, I let Maxwell open the door for us, but after Penelope climbed in, I looked at him. “Take her wherever she wants. I’m walking back to the office. It’s not far.”
He gave me a nod. He’d been with my family my whole life and had often been more like a father to me than my adopted father had. He could tell with one look that I was annoyed and that Penelope was the cause.
Turning my back on the car, I pushed through the crowd of people and began to walk.
This whole mess was going to bite me on the ass, I knew it.
Penelope could cause trouble, and I knew that too. But I wasn’t somebody she could jerk around, and that was something
she
needed to know.
My phone chimed and I pulled it out, reading the text from Amber. She had a firm date set in Philadelphia. In two weeks, I’d be meeting with White and the heads of
Devoted
. A nice, low-key—
bring your spouse and significant others
...
we’re all friends here
—sort of event. I would attend, and then I’d cut them off at the knees and hand them their balls, financially speaking.
I had work to do.
Blowing out a breath, I wondered if maybe I should have waited to piss Penelope off until after this event had passed. She would have made an excellent ice princess to have on my arm.
Although, really…Aleena could cut people off the knees rather well.
After all, she’d done a hell of a job on me.
Chapter 6
Aleena
Pacing never accomplished anything.
Except it burned off energy and it was better than chewing on my nails.
I’d paced until I’d all but worn a trail into the plush carpet and I didn’t feel any better for it.
It was almost seven and I’d given up trying to work at least an hour ago.
I’d expected to be done well before now, but less than thirty minutes after my lunch with Molly, my phone had rung and it had been Amber on a conference call. Dominic had been the third person.
“We’ve got work to do,” Dominic had announced and then he named a date. “That evening, Eddie White will be having a dinner party at his office location. It’s for the VIPs at
Devoted
and other key personnel. The plan, they think, is for him to get them to lay off and let him work out until he’s ready to retire. What is going to happen is that they are going to have their asses handed to them. Aleena, are you ready? I’ve got a list of names and I need you to dig up information on them. You should know what sort of information I need. I’ll give you a couple names of some investigators you can trust to help out with some of the...less savory aspects.”
That had taken up most of my day, and now he was due home. He’d want an update and I wanted to talk.
Could I convince him to go out for a drink? That would be…well, like a date, right? At least it would show he didn’t mind being seen with me in public on something other than official business.
Before I could think the idea through and debate the merits of it, the door opened and I spun around, my head spinning from all the noise inside it. Dominic came striding inside and stopped abruptly, as though the sight of me standing there caught him off guard.
“Aleena.”
My heart did a strange little dance, almost flipped around inside my chest at the sight of him, the sound of my name on his lips. “Dominic.”
His eyes started to slide over me and heat danced along my spine. Then, abruptly, he looked away.
Cold replaced heat.
“Ah…”
“Did you get started on the information I needed?” he asked, his voice taking on that blunt, all-business tone I was so familiar with.
The one he hardly ever used with me anymore.
Slowly, I nodded, trying not to feel hurt. He was probably just concentrating on the deal. It was complicated.
Moving forward, I gestured toward the folders I’d organized on the low-lying coffee table. There were groups who’d have a field day with so much paperwork, but Dominic did better when he had hard copy in front of him. I made sure everything was recycled when he was done with it and we were careful to use recycled products as much as possible. Personally, I had too much data to deal with and did better when I could organize digitally, but one thing I’d learned quickly: everybody dealt with things better in their own way.
As he sat down and started to flip through my organized piles, I slid into the seat across from him.
He didn’t even look at me.
There was no reason, really, for my heart to give a funny little lurch. Or the slightly sick feeling in my stomach when he kept his head down.
“Annette and I had to reschedule for the meeting out to the house,” I said tentatively. “She…um…she’s not feeling well. She wanted me to apologize.”
“That’s fine.” He was clearly distracted, his gaze racing over the data I’d compiled for him. I’d already committed much of it to memory and I knew he was doing the same thing. It was strange that I’d found myself working with somebody whose brain worked in a way not similar to mine, but complementary. “She’s asthmatic, she told me. Did you know that?” I don’t know what made me blurt it out, but there it was.
He flicked a look up at me finally, his blue eyes faintly annoyed. “I think she mentioned it once. Why?”
“Spring. Allergies. It’s why she’s sick. I was just…” The words trailed off.
He didn’t look surprised. Or concerned. Or…well, much of anything. He just shrugged. “She can get to it when she’s feeling better. There’s no rush. The
Devoted
project is now front and center.”
I nodded and looked down at the piles he was making. My brain was already making sense of it. I knew what he was planning and there were some who wouldn’t fit for what he needed, others who were a bad risk. Those went into one pile. I’d guessed many of them, I was happy to see. A few surprised me, but there were a couple I would have pegged for that pile that didn’t go.
When one of them ended up in the other pile, I went to say something and then stopped myself.
Dominic looked up. “What?”
“She…” Then I shook my head.
“If I didn’t want your opinion on things, Aleena, you wouldn’t be here.” Some of the distance left his eyes and he crooked a smile at me.
For the first time in what felt like a lifetime, the ice in my chest receded and I smiled back. Then I gestured at the employee data he held on one of the top matchmakers for
Devoted
. “Miriam Beckman. Are you sure you want to contact her? She’s one of their top people and she…” I stopped, cleared my throat and then continued, “At one point, she was engaged to the owner.”
“I know,” he said mildly.
I pressed on. “She must be incredibly loyal to the company to still be working there. Are you certain you want to contact her?”
He stacked the pages, tapping them on his hand. “What makes you think these are the ones I want to contact?”
“Please.” I rolled my eyes. “Two of those in the other pile recently left Eddie to work for
Devoted
. The other one changes careers more often than I change my purse.”