Ellie couldn’t remember a time when she’d felt more out of place.
However, she wasn’t about to let her nerves spoil her fantasy evening with the most handsome guy at the ball.
She’d had exactly one day to get ready for Zane’s charity fundraiser once they’d arrived at his Denver home. Luckily, she didn’t find as much organizing that she’d need to do at his place in the city, but there were still piles of paperwork everywhere that needed to be filed and put away.
The Denver mansion was gorgeous. Not that she’d expected it not to be, but it wowed her just the same. Unlike his home in Rocky Springs, the bedrooms were all upstairs, making the downstairs living space enormous. Honestly, she wasn’t sure she’d even seen every room in the house yet. They’d arrived last night, and she’d been busy most of the day.
Earlier, she’d treated herself to a makeover, getting her hair put up in an elegant style, the short locks almost refusing to be tamed into a sophisticated style. Her makeup had been done by a professional, and she’d chosen a simple cocktail dress in black, a garment that was pricey enough to make her squirm. But she’d bought it anyway, after hanging it back on the department store rack several times because she wasn’t sure if she could justify spending that kind of money on a dress. After the dress, she’d needed accessories. All in all, she’d spent more money today than she had in several years in Rocky Springs.
But somehow, she couldn’t regret it.
As she’d stood in front of the mirror earlier, Ellie had done a full assessment of herself, and not just the physical body in the reflection. Yeah, she had admitted that she looked nice, but mostly she recognized that she was changing the way she looked at herself. She felt stronger, freer than she’d ever been. Maybe it was her harrowing experience she’d been through, but she had an inkling that Zane was beginning to make her see herself in a whole new way. He liked her. He cared about her. He pointed out things that he really admired or liked about her, and she’d started to take notice of things about herself that she’d never even considered.
She was getting stronger.
She was learning to handle her fears.
She wasn’t letting what happened to her shape her life.
She liked what she was doing, and she liked…herself.
Ellie sighed and swiped another glass of champagne from a passing waiter as she made her way back from the restroom, eager to find Zane. She had the most handsome, most intelligent date at the ball, and she wasn’t about to let him hang out alone, waiting for her.
He’d made it very clear that she was his date, and he’d treated her like a princess. Zane didn’t miss the opportunity to tell her how beautiful she looked, and he’d given her a beautiful bouquet of flowers before they left the house because he knew how much she loved them.
Dinner had been amazing. Zane had taken her to a fancy steakhouse, and the food was so good she had a difficult time not moaning with pleasure as she consumed way more than she should have, including the rich dessert.
When they’d arrived in the beautiful ballroom, she had to admit that she’d been intimidated by the blatant wealth all around her, but she’d had Zane there to remind her all of them might be rich, but they were still human, just like anyone else. It had made her relax a little, but everything around her was so perfect and such a stark contrast to her old life that she couldn’t help but feel nervous.
Trying to make herself taller by standing on her tiptoes, she scanned the elegant, crowded ballroom for her handsome date. It was pretty difficult to recognize him easily since every man was here in a tuxedo, including Zane.
God, he’d been breathtaking when he’d wandered into the kitchen earlier in the day, perfectly groomed and impeccably put together in his black tux. His face was freshly shaven, his hair still damp from the shower, but he’d looked delicious. Ellie had wondered for a moment if she needed to wipe the drool from her mouth.
She had just finished chugging down her second glass of champagne when she spotted Zane. He was talking to some curvaceous redhead, and he looked uncomfortable. Not that anyone else would notice, but Ellie could see the subtle signs.
Wriggling her way through the crowd, she made her way across the room, hesitating because she didn’t want to interrupt him. But when she saw the redheaded female put her finger on Zane’s face, tracing the line of his rugged jaw, Ellie saw red, and she was certain he wasn’t discussing business.
He’s my date, dammit. I feel like Cinderella, and I’m not missing my time at the ball.
Dodging all of the handsomely dressed couples as she steadily made her way to Zane, it wasn’t difficult to discern that he wasn’t responding at all to the pushy redhead’s advances.
Ellie smiled as he grasped the woman’s wrist and pulled it from his jaw, his expression stoic as he spoke to her.
Stopping abruptly as she neared the couple, Ellie was momentarily surprised to see that the woman was young, and drop-dead gorgeous.
And Zane was obviously completely and totally…uninterested.
Striding forward, she took her place next to Zane and put her arm on his muscular bicep. “I’m so sorry,” she told him with a bright smile that she hoped didn’t look as fake as it felt. “The restrooms were busy.”
She’d felt him tense beneath her fingers for a brief moment before he realized who was touching him, and then he relaxed as he finally turned his head to look at her. “You’re worth the wait,” Zane answered smoothly, wrapping a strong arm around her waist.
“Who is this?” the woman who had been fondling Zane asked haughtily.