Chapter Thirteen

“Bad idea. Such a bad idea,” she said as Jackson steered her through the throng of people mingling in the center of the ballroom. Few still sat at the tables while the servers cleared away all traces of their meal.

“I don’t have bad ideas,” he said into her ear.

“Really? I’ve seen photos of your teen years. Frosted tips, hmm?”

“If I can’t remember it, then it didn’t happen.”

“I’m not sure that’s how reality works.”

They’d reached the edge of the dance floor. “I’m not kidding when I say I’m a bad dancer,” she said. “Also, you’ve never asked me to dance at any of the events we’ve both been at.”

His eyes were back on her. “My mistake, then.”

“No, you just danced with your actual dates.”

“Ah. There, see? This will be utterly normal, then.”

“Except I’m not your real date,” she hissed.

“Lori.”

She tore her eyes away from the dancers and glanced up at him to see an expression on his face she’d never seen before. He’d never looked at her like that. With a gaze that was equal parts exasperated and…

Affectionate?

“Even if I could be here tonight with any woman and not worry about our secret, you’re still the only one I would have asked.”

Danger. Danger!

He couldn’t think like that. Couldn’t want her like that.

Could he?

“You don’t know any other women,” she pointed out.

He shrugged. “Doesn’t matter. I only want you.”

She tore her eyes away even as every inch of her body became far too aware of him. “You shouldn’t say things like that.”

“Stop me,” he whispered in her ear before catching her hand and pulling her onto the dance floor.

Fear of tripping over her own feet filled her for a split second before he pulled her into his arms.

“I think I’m a good dancer,” he told her. “Just let me lead.”

“Or, you could be a terrible dancer and we could both end up on the floor.”

“Equally possible.”

Taking her hand, he swept them into the crowd on the floor.

The first minute, all she could do was stare at their feet and try to mimic his movements. They stumbled through one round of the dance floor before he shook his head.

“Look at me.”

“I’ll fall,” she said, ignoring the request.

“I promise, I’d never let that happen.”

Those words brought her head up fast. As soon as she stopped thinking so much about her feet, the dance got smoother.

“You’ve been my guide,” he said for her ears only. “Let me return the favor for once.”

With deft movements, he steered her around the floor, throwing in the occasional twirl that often had her overbalancing right into his arms.

“Much better,” he said the second time she crashed into his chest.

“I highly doubt it.”

“I’m one of the richest men in this room. Who the hell cares what anyone else thinks?”

“We do,” she pointed out. “That’s the whole point of this.”

“Right now, we’re just a couple dancing. That’s all. Our stock won’t drop if you step on my toes.”

“Good to know,” she muttered, glancing around them.

It was mostly older couples on the dance floor, and no one seemed as out of their depth as she was. But even so, by their third rotation, she was starting to get the hang of things. He was right. If she trusted him to lead, she didn’t have to do much except move the way he wanted.

“Much better,” he complimented her.

Her cheeks heated in a blush, but she didn’t stumble this time when he spun her.

“See?” he said. “We’re getting the hang of it.”

“You mean I am.”

“I mean you are,” he agreed.

A laugh escaped her. “We’re supposed to be serious tonight.”

“I’d rather dance with you till dawn than exchange polite small talk with the people in this room.”

“Next you’ll be telling me Richard has inspired you to sell your company and live a life of pleasure.”

He sighed. “It sounds damn appealing. I can’t imagine how I ever got pulled into this sort of life. But I also realize I’m only the temporary captain of this ship. When I get my memory back, the real me would probably be annoyed if I ruined his empire.”

“For what it’s worth, you really love your job.”

“I’ll have to take your word on that. Just like I do everything else.”

“Give it time,” she said, her voice gentle.

He gazed down at her. “And enjoy what parts of the ride I can.”

The butterflies were back, fluttering in her stomach when she couldn’t pull her gaze from his.

Not bad advice.

If her fairytale had to end, she might as well enjoy what she could.

…

She’s perfect in my arms.

Jackson spun his date once more, deftly maneuvering them out of the path of another couple. This was the most normal he’d felt in days. Even for a few minutes, he didn’t have to wear a mask or play a part.

He could just be a man enjoying the company of the woman in his arms.

I want more moments like this.

With her.

It couldn’t last. Soon the music would end, and they’d head back into this shark tank of a benefit dinner.

But until then, he could pretend he wasn’t a poor stand-in for the man he should have been.

Lori stumbled on their turn, but instead of dropping her gaze back to their feet, she looked up at him and laughed.

“Klutzes should be banned from dancing,” she said.

“You dance beautifully.”

“I don’t. But you should see me at a normal club. Then my dances move are just…well, probably equally awful, but at least there’s tequila shots involved, so no one cares.”

“Or remembers.”

“That too.”

The music slowed to a stop and he reluctantly twirled her one last time.

The other couples were making their way off the floor but he didn’t want to let her go.

She seemed to feel the same, her arm still wrapped around him. “Thanks,” she said. “I would never have tried that, but it was really fun.”

“I’d say we could do it again, but we should probably go find the board members.”

“Yeah.”

But she didn’t move.

Neither did he.

“Jackson,” she said, her voice no more than a breath.

“We need to be responsible adults, right?” he asked. “We can’t duck out and just go home.”

For a second her eyes brightened at the suggestion before she sighed. “No, we can’t leave. Not yet. Come on.”

She stepped out of his arms and he tried not to care about the loss.

What is it about this woman?

Matching her stride, they walked back to Will and Mimi who were chatting with a woman who looked vaguely familiar.

“That’s Trisha,” Lori whispered to him. “Head of the board and your colleague for at least ten years, I think. You trust her. Or you did, I guess.”

“Who’s her date?”

“Her husband, Gordon. You’ve met him a few times.”

“Got it.”

They reached the little group and he gave Trisha an easy smile. “Good to you see. Enjoying the evening?”

Trisha nodded. “It’s been a decent evening. Good food, at least.”

Out of the corner of his eyes, he saw Lori’s head whip toward the other woman at those words.

At least the two of us are in agreement that tiny portions don’t make a meal.

“Gordon, good to see you again,” he said, holding out his hand to the graying man by Trisha’s side.

“Likewise.” They shook hands firmly.

“Perhaps we could leave our dates for a bit of shop talk,” Trisha suggested.

“Not a problem. I brought my assistant tonight in case she was needed. How about we let Mimi and Gordon go refresh their drinks?”

Trisha’s eyes flicked to Lori. “I’d prefer it just be the three of us.”

Her partner-in-crime shot him a worried look before pasting her smile back in place. “Of course, Mrs. Barrett. We’ll give you your privacy.”

As the three dates walked away, Lori glanced over her shoulder at him. He tried to give her a reassuring smile, but this was exactly the sort of situation they’d wanted to avoid.

“Now,” Trisha said, turning to them. “I’ve heard some troubling rumors about HynCor.”

“I’ve already brought them to Jackson’s attention,” Will cut in. “He assures me everything is fine and running as it should.”

“Really. Then why is Marc in Australia meeting with Uni Industries?” she asked.

Will blinked, glancing his way.

“Marc is exploring some partnership opportunities on my behalf,” he said. “Uni is an excellent entrance into the Oceania market, and from there it’s an easy step to expand to Asia.”

Will nodded, a satisfied expression on his face.

Trisha, however, looked less than impressed. “My sources tell me HynCor is trying to get the cash to acquire a major competitor. If they find the funds, then—”

“They’d shoot past us in the market. We’d get completely edged out,” Will said.

“Won’t happen,” he replied. “We’ll be bigger than they are with the deal Marc is negotiating.”

“When does he expect to close this agreement?”

“Any day now,” he lied to the head of his own board.

She shook her head. “I’m nervous about this.”

“Just give us the time to show you how this will all come together,” he said. “You have my word this will make us all another fortune.”

“Or ruin the company if HynCor becomes the major player in our space. Our stock will bottom out.”

“Won’t happen,” he vowed again.

“Remember in the seventies when a similar situation happened between Condev and their competitor? Both companies were vying for the market position only one could hold? Condev wiped the floor with their rival just as we will here,” Will said.

“Exactly,” Jackson agreed. “If Condev can do it, so can we.”

Two sets of eyes swung to him.

“Excuse me?” Trisha said.

“Condev is us,” Will added. “It was your father’s first company, wasn’t it? The basis for Sinclair Industries?”

Hell.

“Of course,” he said, trying to undo his mistake. “I meant, if we’ve survived a situation like this before, we can do it again.”

Trisha was still frowning.

“Let me get a report from Marc this weekend, and I’ll update you both on Monday,” he offered.

“I look forward to it,” she said. Turning, she waved her husband back over.

Dodged that by the skin of my teeth, he thought as Lori came back to his side.

She held out a fresh drink to him, silent questions in her eyes.

He took it and swallowed a bracing mouthful of scotch.

“I hear you had a racquetball accident,” Gordon said.

“Yes,” he said, holding out his right hand and the black brace on it. “Tripped over my own feet and landed on my wrist. Rookie mistake.”

“At least you’re staying active,” the other man said. “I need to get back into the swing of things.”

“We should set up a game sometime, Tim.”

He registered the mistake the second he saw the confusion bloom on Gordon’s face. But before anyone could speak, Lori dumped her entire flute of champagne down the back of Trisha’s dress, causing the board member to let out an ear-piercing shriek.

“Oh my God, I’m so sorry,” Lori exclaimed. “My ankle turned in these damn heels. Can I help you, Mrs. Barrett?”

“Stay away. You’ve done more than enough,” she said, shaking the alcohol from her arms. “Excuse me, I need to go get cleaned up.”

If looks could kill, Lori would be six feet under.

“Come on, Gordon,” she said to her husband, twirling in a huff before stalking away. Gordon scrambled to follow as she headed to the women’s restroom.

“I’m so clumsy,” Lori said.

“Way to make a good impression,” Will said. “She’ll be gunning for you now.”

“I’ll keep a low profile for a while,” she promised. “I really am sorry.”

“Well, I don’t know about you two, but I’m going to disappear before she comes back out here. Mimi, ready to call it a night?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” his date replied.

They exchanged goodbyes, and soon their group was down to just the two of them.

Lori stared up at him with worried eyes. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t know what else to do.”

“You were brilliant. I was the idiot that got his name wrong.”

“Hopefully they won’t even remember after I ruined that Dior gown.” She sighed. “My career is over.”

“You’ve got a CEO in your corner. I think you’ll be fine.”

Her smile was thin. “The important thing is we bought some time. Let’s follow Will’s lead and get out of Dodge before she comes back.”

“I thought you wanted me to rub elbows with all the board members.”

“She’s the most important. What did you talk about? Is she concerned about HynCor?”

“I think I smoothed it over, but I need to give her an update from Marc on Monday. They know he’s in Australia.”

“Let’s hope he’s got something good to report, then.” She shook her head. “But if she’d giving you more rope, we’re probably in the clear. Let’s make ourselves scarce before anything else happens.”

“Music to my ears.” Grabbing her hand, he pulled her toward the door.

“Let go of me,” she hissed. “I’m not your real date, remember?”

“I think we’re way beyond caring about that, don’t you?”

Her shoulders slumped in defeat, but she didn’t protest as he led her from the room.

Just get home. We’ll straighten the rest out. Just get out of here before you do something else stupid.

Like blow their cover worse than he already had.