“Yeah, I tend to make jokes when there’s nothing left to laugh about.” I smile, but it fades quickly. I suck my bottom lip into my mouth and chew it. The remnants of nervous habits never seem to fade. They poke their heads out at the strangest times.
Gabe stops at a light. He glances up at me in the mirror as he speaks. “Yeah, ain’t that the truth?” Something changes. I don’t know what, but I see that look in his eyes. Gabe turns in his seat and says more candidly, “Listen, I don’t pretend that it’s my place, but the boss is kind of miffed at you. I like you. I’ve liked you since day one, so I gotta say that you need to make sure tonight goes smooth. No hiccups. You owe too much money. Things’ll get dirty if you can’t work it off, and I don’t want that for you. You get what I’m telling you?”
My eyes drift from the mirror. “I get it.”
A somber feeling snakes out of my stomach and into every inch of my body. I can’t imagine how I could mess up tonight. I’m confident that I won’t make a mistake, that tonight will go smoothly.
I was so utterly wrong that it’s unfathomable.
CHAPTER 9
The car slows in front of a sleek hotel with hundreds of glowing windows. Gabe tells me that he’ll be back and slips out of the car. I slide across the seat to make room for my fake date. From the picture I saw, I know Henry Thomas is in his mid-thirties and all lean muscle. He has that distinct runner’s body, complete with trim waist and narrow hips.
In his picture, Henry’s arms were folded over his chest. There was a smirk on his lips—like he intends to know my deepest secret and that he’ll enjoy teasing it out of me. Henry is an attractive man, although he’s older than my normal preference. Since I don’t have to sleep with him, I don’t mind. I’ve never really had a relationship with someone so much older than me. All my friends are college age. The oldest is a seventh-year-senior that’s coming up on twenty-six. I wonder what Henry will be like compared to the people I know.
Henry steps out of the front doors of the hotel and strides toward the car with that same smirk on his face. I wonder if that smile is always there, so easily strewn across his face?
Gabe says something to him, and Henry inclines his head before the car door opens and he ducks inside. When Henry settles into his seat and looks up, my heart races a little bit. He doesn’t look older than me now. His eyes sparkle like sunlight on the sea. The deep gray color is so unusual that I stare at him a beat longer than I should.
He extends his hand and says, “Henry Thomas. Please, call me Henry.”
I wrap my fingers around his hand and shake. I nod once. “Allison Stanz.” That is my alias tonight. No real names is the normal rule, but since we are supposed to be a couple, it would be difficult to have a conversation—or an introduction to his business associate—without having a first name, so Miss Black said I am Allison.
“It’s lovely to meet you, Allison.” Henry looks up after Gabe gets back into the car. “Head toward the restaurant, but take your time about it.” Gabe nods and pulls into the traffic. Henry looks back at me in my blood red gown. His eyes sweep over me swiftly before landing on my face. “You’re a beautiful woman.”
I smile slightly and tease him. “You sound surprised.”
“Pictures can be deceiving.” His lips curl into a boyish grin. “I suppose you hear this a lot, but you honestly took my breath away. I expected…” Henry sighs and runs his hand through his hair. His silvery eyes sweep over me again before he glances at my face, “I don’t know what I expected.” He laughs. I hear the nerves in his chuckle and want to put him at ease. The jitters don’t help either of us.
I place my hand on his and say, “It’s okay. I’m glad you’re not an ugg-o, either,” and wink at him before leaning back in my seat.
Henry laughs. His smile lights up his face, creasing the lines around the corners of his eyes. “Oh, tonight is going to be fun.” He rubs his palms together and chuckles again, like he can’t wait.
“May I ask what the night entails?” I shift in my seat and smooth my skirt. I can’t really breathe in this dress and hope that I won’t have to think too hard. There isn’t any oxygen going to my brain. I think the gown is shoving all the air into my boobs. I can barely see my lap from here.
“The usual, dinner, dancing, and talking to a complete ass and trying to get him to sell me his patent. You know, nothing too weird.” Henry leans back in his seat and lets out a rush of air like he’s nervous. “This guy is an arrogant son-of-a-bitch. He’s young and I know that’s part of it. The guy is a certifiable genius. The technology he came up with is perfect, exactly what my company needs. I just have to get him to sell it to me and not someone else.”
“Ah, so tonight is to butter him up? Or do we want to smack him over the head with a frying pan and toss him into the fire? Just tell me what you need and I’m there.” I’m half serious, half kidding. I glance up at Henry after smoothing my skirt. For some reason I think it’ll help me breathe, even though it doesn’t.
There’s an easy way about Henry, like he knows how to handle himself most of the time. “You’d whack him for me?” Henry looks up front and asks Gabe, “Did I call the wrong number? Did you people set me up with an escort or a femme fatal?”
“Miss Stanz is not authorized to whack anyone,” Gabe says flatly. He doesn’t look at us.
“Ah, well, that’s brilliant.” Henry’s voice catches and I hear a wisp of an accent.
“Where are you from?”
“Oxford, originally—England.”
I smile at him, at the way he seems certain and uncertain at the same time. It’s kind of endearing. “You mean that big island across the pond? Yeah, I know it.”
“You’ve been?” he asks, interest flashing across his face.
“Once, yes. I got to hear the Beatles sing, and eat fish and chips next to Twining’s Teashop...” I don’t mean to tease him, so I’m not sure why I am. Henry looks confused. “At Epcot.” I feel bad two seconds after I say it. “I’m sorry. I’m just kidding. I’m a little nervous.”
“Could have fooled me, and a little humor never killed anyone.” He winks at me and adds, “Besides, life’s too damn short to be dull. Just don’t offend Patent Boy and you’ll be bloody brilliant tonight. That dress alone is enough to distract him. Listen, at the end of the night, if the man is still foolish enough to withhold his plans, I want you to dance with him and see if you can get him to talk.”
I nod slowly. “So, I’m posing as your date—”
“My fiancé.”
“Your fiancé,” I repeat, and add, “And I’m here to help keep things from turning adversarial, and if all else fails, you want me to try and butter him up?”
“Exactly, love. A good night would be conversation, food, and a deal for that gizmo of his. A bad night would end with Patent Boy running off the way he usually does when things don’t go his way. That’s where you come in. You just keep him from leaving—apologize for me being ass, and that kind of thing. It’s all a game anyway. The man is as aware of that fact as I am.”
The car turns a corner and I see the restaurant. “So, keep him there, help him mellow out, and that kind of thing?” Henry nods. “Can I ask you something?”
“Sure, why not.”
“Why’d you hire me to do this?” I ask. “It seems like the kind of thing that a friend could have done.”
“Maybe,” Henry replies, studying my face. I don’t feel like his possession. Call girls and escorts don’t seem to be his normal kind of thing. “But this way, I am sure to stack the odds in my favor. I heard the man favors New York women, beautiful brunettes, stacked with curves, and a bit of a sassy lip. I think I hit the jackpot. I’ve never been so glad I called for a girl in my entire life. With any bit of luck, I’ll walk out with the deal tonight, and you—my lovely date— will be rewarded.”
My heart is pounding and I don’t know why. When the car stops, I feel a chill slink down my spine. Glancing at Henry, I ignore the premonition. He’s so excited and my job sounds so easy—flirt with the patent man a little bit and make this more of a social gathering. That, I can do.
Henry steps out of the car and I follow. He leans in and whispers in my ear, “I’m serious about the reward. Help me win this guy over and I’ll triple your fee.”
Smiling at him, I say, “Sounds perfect. Lead the way Mr. Thomas, love of my life.”
I’m smiling now. I can’t help it. The past week has been so goddamn awful and tonight feels promising. This is something I can totally do and Mel was right about it feeling like a date. This guy has an agenda and needed someone to help him make it happen. I feel perfectly comfortable and take his arm.
Henry kisses me on the cheek. “For good luck.”
“Come on, let’s get you nailed—I mean, nail that contract.” Henry’s laughing and so am I.
It feels comfortable, familiar, even though I have no idea who he is. Henry could be some serial killer with really good manners and a sexy accent for all I know.
Gabe comes inside. He’s a few steps behind us and passes by to sit at the bar. I’m under observation tonight, but it doesn’t make me nervous, not anymore. Now that I know exactly what I have to do, I intend to do it.
Henry walks to the podium at the font of the restaurant. He walks by several people that are waiting and nods at the host. The slim man is older with silvery hair slicked back and big black bushy eyebrows. The permanent scowl on his face is intimidating. It makes me wonder how old patent man is and if I can convincingly flirt with him. The aroma of fine food and yeasty bread fills my head. Blue flames are dancing in a fireplace that extends down an entire wall of the restaurant. It’s an amazing thing to see.
Henry smiles at me. I can tell that nervous flitters are racing through him. After a few moments, a waiter comes over and offers to escort us to our table. I follow along with Henry, my hand wrapped around his arm. Eyes fall on me as we move through the restaurant, but I’m not looking at them. Something in front of me has my full attention. My heart pounds violently in my chest, like it wants to pry apart my bones and crawl out.
Glancing around the waiter, I see a man sitting alone at a large table. His eyes are lowered and his head is tipped downward, like he’s reading something on the table. Dark messy hair conceals his face, but I know that hair. I know those shoulders and those cheeks covered in light stubble. This can’t be happening, runs nonstop through my mind. But it is happening and there’s no way to stop it. It’s like watching a train wreck. You see the two forces speeding toward each other, and they’re on a collision course. I swallow hard, trying to keep my pleasant face intact when we stop in front of the table.
Henry steps around the waiter and extends his hand, “Mr. Ferro, good to see you again. When I heard you were delayed in New York, I couldn’t believe my luck.”