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Liza wandered to the small table in the middle of the room. The woman circled the table twice before taking a seat. She didn’t seem to notice how odd it was to have a small table in the middle of a dance floor. Chandeliers hung above her head. Angelina didn’t know how old they were but judging by the wax candles lit on each one; they were old. The glow gave a romantic feel to the enormous room. Reginald nor his mother seemed to be bothered that there was such a romantic setting for the three of them.
“Your chair, my beautiful companion,” he purred suavely, pulling out her chair and waiting until she was seated before taking his own.
As soon as his ass hit the chair, servants appeared with their first course. Angelina wanted to ask if they could have it all at once. Anything to make this night go faster would be great. She had to keep it together long enough to make it through dinner. He was a client of Jake’s. He needed to stick with being her fake boyfriend because he was failing miserably as a matchmaker.
A simple dish of cottage cheese was placed in front of her. She didn’t think much of it until the next course appeared. Everything on the ornate white plate was white. The chicken had no grill marks. It was accompanied by rice and a shaved white something Angelina couldn’t identify. She almost cried in relief when the scoop of ice cream was placed in front of her.
Reginald and his mother chatted during dinner. Angelina only added when it was required. The quicker they ate, the faster she could get out of there. When Liza excused herself, her anticipation grew. It was time. A few polite excuses, and she could make a run for it.
“I have to say, Angelina, I am impressed. It isn’t often a woman impresses me.”
“Oh?”
“You are the embodiment of a perfect woman. Small and slight, intelligent and soft-spoken, impeccably dressed and affluential. Being all those things, you still understand it is a woman’s place to be a beauty on a man’s arm, speaking only when necessary. I hope I am not getting ahead of myself; however, I would be remiss if I didn’t voice my intentions.”
“Huh.” Angelina was dumbfounded.
“I want to see you again. This evening, you have excelled far beyond any of the others.”
“I’m sorry,” Angelina scooted her chair back, practically jumping out of it. “I have to go.”
“Do you need time to think it through?”
“Yes,” she grasped at his misunderstanding. “I never rush into anything. That’s me. Always thinking everything through.”
“You are more perfect than I thought,” Reginald praised her, offering his arm. “I will walk you out.”
Angelina sighed in relief. She wouldn’t have to run through the halls searching for the door. Placing her hand on his arm, she allowed him to lead her.
“I will have my new attorney deliver a copy of the contract for you to consider. I am open to negotiating the terms. With your beauty and decorum, I would even be open to increasing the incentives. I do love a good hard negotiation,” he whispered in her ear, pausing for emphasis on his last words.
She shivered as the door opened. There was no time to correct his hum of approval at her reaction to him. Her car stopped at the bottom of the stairs, and her purse was on the table by the door.
“Good night,” Angelina managed as she kept herself from running out the door. Hugging her purse close to her chest, she settled behind the wheel. Carefully maneuvering out the gate, she sped home. She needed a shower and a long soak in her tub with every bath bomb she could find. Tomorrow she would kill Jake.
Chapter 6
“Jake, this isn’t funny,” Angelina growled. “What is this guy’s obsession with white? How did you not know this? Please tell me you did not draw up a contract for more of his nastiness.”
She waited until he was in his office before she called. Max worked late most nights. There was no reason to call earlier and chance waking him up because his man was an idiot.
Angelina had been hard at work since before the sun came up. One crazy nightmare meant no more sleeping for her. Who wanted to dream about being suffocated while running through a white maze?
“You weren’t there. A white house, as in no color anywhere, because he likes to be the most interesting thing in the room. Hands down, he is definitely the most interesting person I have ever met. Almost like he could use one of those hug jackets with the straps pulled tight.”
Angelina sighed as Jake rambled on the other end. “Why would I make this up? How could you not have picked up on this guy’s crazy? No more Jake,” she fumed. “I am not going to anyone’s estate, house, cabin, or any other structure that is not in a very public place.”
She placed the phone on her desk and hit the button for the speaker. She took a deep breath and held it. People religiously followed relaxation breathing techniques. It was time to see if it worked.
“Come on, sweetness. It couldn’t have been that bad. Yes, he does have a few odd requests put in his contract but show me a man worth billions who doesn’t have a few quirks. You must have made a good impression because he called to have me courier a copy over for you this morning.”
“What?” She exploded, glaring at the phone lying on her desk. “It really was that bad. I could have been on the next unsolved true crime show, and you think I am overreacting. No more. How about the next time you want me to think about it as a chance to redo his house, you have dinner with his crazy ass. After you survive that, you can tell me all about how I am overreacting.”
Angelina hit the end button without giving Jake a chance to respond. Whoever he had in his office would surely hear every word she said, even if she wasn’t on speaker. Right now, she didn’t care about keeping up the fake boyfriend ruse. Angelina was furious.
“Not much of a boyfriend.”
Angelina whirled around, grabbing her heavy stapler as she turned. She launched it in the direction of whoever startled her. The stapler bounced off Ben’s chest and thudded on the floor.
