ng to soothe the pounding in his head. He sat in the VIP booth, the leather seat cool against his back. He lifted his gl

. "She actually hit you?" Brody leaned in, a smirk playing on his l

t," he said, his voice cold. "A performance to squeeze mor

nk. He was the quiet one, the observer. "Maybe you pushed too hard

eam of. She should be thanking me." He adjusted his cufflinks, a nervous habit he couldn't shake

er off, she panics. It's textbook. Without you, she's nothing

tburst was a calculated move, that the slap was a desperate bid for attention. But the look in her e

b. The Crimson Quill was the kind of place where deals were made in whispers and secrets

ed bar, over the clusters of

eath c

orner booth near th

thing clear in her hand. She wore a silk slip dress the color of midnight. Her hair was down, framing her face in soft waves. Her

like a woman who had just shed

wasn't

de hair and her sharp, knowing eyes. Jaylynn, whose family owned half of the Up

his mind, Elinor's social circle consisted of charity committees and the

m. Or she had, unt

at your girl?" he asked, surprise evident in his voice. "She bou

Elinor smile. A real smile. It reached her eyes. It lit up her face in a way Dempsey had

hing he had ever seen. And

the keyboard. He wanted to demand she come home. He wanted to remind her of the

rate. He would look like a man who couldn't let go. H

phone back i

w, a soft, musical sound that was lost in the thump

d like a

esn't look like a woman who just lost everything," he ob

white. "She's putting on a show," he spat. "She found a new au

s meek. She was invisible. She didn't command the attention of someone like Jaylynn Livingston. She

nor was

d her to see him. He wanted her to flinch, to look away

re, Elinor turned her head. Her eye

hing. Her eyes swept over him-a slow, deliberate assessment-and then she looked away. She tur

than the slap. It was a complete erasure

acity. He had made her. He had given her everything. And she sa

didn't dull the edge of his fury. He watched as Jaylynn said something else, her expre

They stood up together, a united front. They began to w

raped against the floor. "Where is sh

"Whoa, man. Sit down. Y

retreating figure. "She's meeting someone," he sai

to see who was waiting