Total pages in book: 110
Estimated words: 104081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 520(@200wpm)___ 416(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 104081 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 520(@200wpm)___ 416(@250wpm)___ 347(@300wpm)
But that was the infuriating truth, wasn’t it? Any woman who wasn’t smiling and laughing and being amicably pleasant was a bitch.
I wore the insult with pride.
“And a lot of the people here will donate maybe one percent of what they make in a year and brag to all their friends about how involved they are in the community.”
Vince angled himself toward me then, and I met his gaze with my chin still held high.
“So anyone who doesn’t dedicate their life and finances to activism is just a shit human, huh? You must be a perfect little angel — a modern day Mother Theresa.”
“At the very least, I don’t do community events for PR stunts,” I shot back, folding my arms over my chest. That called attention to the camera still strapped around my neck, and Vince arched a brow.
“Right. You just cover the stunt and pretend to be above it all.”
“Aw, were you expecting me to fall at your feet and fawn over how amazing you are like the rest of your doting paparazzi?” I asked with my bottom lip poked out. “That’s so cute. Go ahead.” I held up my phone and pretended like I was recording. “Tell me about all the charity work you do, and I’ll pretend you do it because you want to and not because it looks good for the team.”
His eyes were hazel stone where they watched me, the corner of his mouth crooking like he wanted to smile. But his jaw was tight, brows in a hard line, like I was an opponent skating out onto his home ice.
“I guess you have me all figured out.”
“Wait, this is a perfect shot,” I continued, tucking my phone away and grabbing my camera, instead. “Tampa’s Hotshot Rookie and The Most Heinous Vase Ever Created.”
His lips did quirk up a bit at that, just a smidge, just enough for me to feel supremely satisfied when I snapped a photo of him standing in front of the auction table with his hands still resting easily in his pockets.
When I dropped the camera to hang around my neck once more, we were in a standoff, both of us watching the other. I wore a smirk that matched his. At least, until his eyes broke contact with my own and raked slowly down my body. He didn’t even pretend to be ashamed, just took in the deep V of my neckline with appreciation, his brow arching more when he noted the high slit of the dress that revealed a sliver of my upper thigh.
My neck burned furiously under his gaze, but not half as hot as my temper, and I was ready to lay into him when an arm looped through mine from behind.
“Sorry,” Livia said. “Got tied up telling gruesome stories to the crowd our GM was entertaining. Oh, I see you’ve met Tanny Boy.”
Vince turned his attention to my best friend, a wide smile spreading on his face. It was so different from the sly smirks he’d been giving me all night it nearly knocked the breath out of me.
“Hey, Livvy,” he greeted, leaning in to kiss the side of each of her cheeks. It brought him a little too close to me, considering Livia still had her arm threaded through mine. “Long time no see.”
“That’s a good thing for you,” she mused. “Take care of those veneers and avoid another puck to the jaw, and we can keep our time together in more fun settings like this one.”
He flashed his teeth again, and I found myself wondering which ones were real.
“Ah, but I miss your chair,” he said, and his eyes appraised her just the same way they had me. “You know we look forward to having a tooth knocked out knowing it means a trip to your office.”
I was tempted to scoff, but Livia seemed used to the blatant flirt. She only rolled her eyes and waved him off with a smile.
“Sorry to interrupt,” a slight voice said, and then we all turned to a young girl with cheeks as pink as a rose. She wore a simple black cocktail dress and a golden name tag that told me she was a volunteer working the event. “But are you Mr. Tanev?”
“The very one,” he said.
With a shy smile, the girl gestured toward the vase behind where Vince stood. “Perfect, thank you for coming over. I’m so sorry to disrupt your night.”
“Not a disruption at all. In fact, it’s been the highlight so far,” he said, and his eyes caught on mine before he followed to where the girl was leading him to the table.
“If you can just sign that photograph we placed there beside your artwork, we’ll frame that and include it as part of the bidding package.”
I frowned, trying to make sense of what she said as she handed a Sharpie to the rookie.