"Besides, they're not watching us. They're watching you," he leaned down and whispered.
"Oh and that's supposed to make me feel better?"
He shook his head. "Nope."
"Why watching me?"
"Cause I never bring a date to these things and you're easily the most stunning woman in this place."
"Why not?"
He frowned. "Why not what?"
"Why do you never bring dates to these things?"
"Because I rarely date. Never had time." He lowered his voice substantially and leaned into her. "Oh, and they don't know about the cancer so lets keep it that way."
Her smile fell, and he hated his words were the reason and that he had to remind her of his condition, but if some of the people in the room knew of his medical problems then it could cause him some issues with a number of the big deals he had in the works. Their continued ignorance on the issue was imperative.
"Okay."
"But, the engagement is completely open for discussion, and as soon as they see the ring, I assure you they won't be reserved enough to not ask."
"Damon Garratt, did you give me the ring just so I could show it off?" she teased.
He laughed. "I gave you the ring so they would stop suspecting I'm gay."
Katrina joined in his laughter as they reached the ballroom floor. "You're joking. Why would they ever think that?"
He wished he was. There had been one event where he'd been propositioned by a male business associate. It had been awkward to say the least and he was just grateful the other man had been drinking rather heavily. They brushed it off as something the other man said out of drunkin' stupidity. "Hmmm. Well, I never show up with a date to any of these things. No one has any knowledge of any girlfriends in my history. It's not that hard of a conclusion to jump to."
Her grasp onto his arm tightened and she snuggled tighter to him as the first couple approached them - his first in commend Kevin Gilbert and his wife Judith.
"Damon, how are you?" Kevin extended his hand to Damon, but his eyes were on Katrina. "So this is your friend from Bangor?"
Damon nodded. "Kevin and Judith, this is Katrina Alexander, soon to be Katrina Garratt."
Kevin's smile faded into a tight grimace. "What do you mean?"
Damon would have laughed at Kevin's reaction if it hadn't been so insulting, but he was sure this was only the first of similar reactions. "I mean, I proposed last night and she said yes. So we're getting married."
Kevin's eyes shot over to Katrina. "Congratulations. That's great news." His wife mimicked his sentiment, but with a little more truthfulness in her congratulations.
"I think so."
"Katrina, do you mind if I steal Damon away for a moment?"
Katrina shot Damon a terrified look. Giving her hand, resting on his arm a reassuring squeeze, he nodded.
She gave Kevin a smile and nodded. "Of course." She reluctantly released his arm.
"Don't worry Damon, I'll keep her busy while you two talk shop." Judith, a tall, slender woman of her mid-twenties stated slipping an arm around Katrina's shoulders.
Katrina and Damon locked gazes for a moment and the fear in her eyes lessened slightly when he mouthed, I love you. Turning his attention back to Kevin, the two men walked out of earshot. Damon didn't have long to ponder what Kevin's concern was, he lunged right into it.
"When did this happen?"
"Last night."
"Rather fast, don't you think?"
Damon chuckled. "Considering I should have done it a decade ago, I wouldn't say so."
"It's going to be a long engagement?"
"For sure. We can't get our marriage licence until tomorrow, so we wouldn't be married until Tuesday. So there's going to be a couple days before the wedding."
In the process of taking a sip of his drink, Kevin began to choke. His eyes - which had begun to water from his choking fit - jerking up to meet Damon's in disbelief. "You can't be serious! You're getting a pre-nup I assume."
A part of Damon felt he should be angry at Kevin's intrusive questions, but he cut him a little slack. It was a shock and under other circumstances he imagined he'd be as shocked as Kevin was. Perhaps even asking similar questions.
"No pre-nup."
Damon was about to speak, then thought twice about it. Damon could see him considering his next question. "Do you think it's wise not to? What if she's taking advantage of your," he cleared his throat averting his gaze and glancing over at the two women chatting, "of your... situation."
Damon took a deep breath in and slowly released it, giving himself a moment to gather his thoughts before saying something he shouldn't out of anger. Grasping the other man's shoulder he leaned into him and their eyes locked. "I'm going to make this very clear to you. Katrina is not taking advantage of my condition. I'm marrying her because I love her and I have no desire to explain our relationship any further than that, so I expect her to be treated with the respect that you would treat me in. She's going to be around a lot and learning about the company, catching up to speed on every aspect. I expect you'll assist with her with whatever she needs."
"You're serious?" A look of distress crossed his features and gleamed in his blue eyes.
"Have you ever known me to joke when it comes to my company?"
*****
"So, what do you think, so far?"
Katrina sighed as she slipped into Damon's arms and held tight to him as the blues band played a soft, sexy melody. "I'm actually exhausted. All these people... They seem so..."
"Phoney?" he offered, his lips close to her ear and his voice so low that only she could hear. The warmth of his breath tickled her neck and sent a tremor of need through her.
She nodded. "Very. Though I will admit that I kinda enjoyed the look of envy in the women's eyes when they found out we're engaged." That was an understatement. She'd loved it - relished it.
When they were growing up, her family had lived paycheck to paycheck. She never did without, but she never had the brand names or the finer things many of the girls had. She'd spent a lot of time envious of the other girls, things they had and vacations they got to take with their families. Tonight she got to be the woman who had everything, but most importantly, who had the most amazing man on her arm. She felt like the prom queen. And it was all because of him.
He pulled back and smiled. "So you're happy?"
Happy couldn't begin to describe what she was feeling, despite the dark cloud that was looming over their relationship. "Very happy." She pressed herself a little tighter to him and unable to resist herself and unconcerned about the people around her, she brushed her lips across his.