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He chuckled. “Yeah, it’s a party to celebrate the newly found couples. You should be celebrating with me, not serving like the help.”
Ouch. “I am the help.”
“Fuck. I’m sorry. That’s not what I meant.” He ran his hand through his hair and frowned. But he wasn’t frowning at me.
He knew he’d screwed up and was back peddling, but the damage had already been done.
I sighed. This could only go from bad to worse since he’d already thrown his unfiltered observation of my work out into the open air.
Deciding to put him out of his misery, I held up a hand. “I have a job to do. Whether or not you approve, I am the help.”
Chapter 6
Ty
“What did you say to her?” Bryce approached me almost carefully. “From where I was standing, it looked like things were going well. Her body language said she wanted you. She was leaning in, smiling, but then, just like that”—he snapped his fingers in my face—“she stormed off. What the hell, man?”
Things had been going well up until the point I’d let my big mouth get the best of me. I’d called her the fucking help, for fuck’s sake. Now, I’d potentially ruined any chance I had with Liza. I’d be lucky if she ever talked to me again without me having to force it.
Being that close to her had been torture. Every muscle, every bone in my body ached to pull her into my arms and never let go. I wanted to kiss those full lips and caress every inch of her smooth, pale skin. But instead of swooping in and claiming what was mine, I’d insulted her. I wanted to kick myself for being so stupid and ruining the moment.
“I called her the help.” I lowered my head and stared at the floor. Of all the dumb ass things I could’ve said, I picked the help.
Bryce’s eyes widened. “Fuck, man. That was a low blow.” He shook his head and clicked his tongue against his teeth.
“I’m such an idiot.” I slapped my forehead. “She owns the company, for fuck’s sake. Did I commend her for that?” I shook my head because I’d lived it, and I still couldn’t believe I’d done something so stupid. “No, because I am my mother’s fucking son. I insulted her job.” It really didn’t matter that it hadn’t been my intention. “Now she thinks I’m an asshole.”
When Bryce laughed, I wanted to kill him. “Yeah, dumbass move. As a bonus, you’ve turned her off with your very first real conversation.” Bryce scoffed. “I thought you were smoother than that.”
Bryce always called me out when I needed to hear the truth, though I was already fully aware of my blunder.
“I didn’t mean for it to come out the way it did.” I shoved my hands into my pockets. “You should’ve seen the look in her eyes. She went from staring at me with interest and intrigue to complete disgust within seconds.”
Bryce patted my shoulder like I needed consolation or advice. I didn’t. What I needed was a minute with her so I could fix this. “Look at it this way. It’s not the worst thing you could’ve said, but it definitely didn’t win you any brownie points.”
“What do I do now?” Desperation seeped into my voice as I tried to figure out how to fix what I’d fucked up.
Bryce shrugged. “I suggest you make a genuine effort to apologize. Make it right with her first, then take it from there.”
I stared at my best friend, wondering when he’d become a relationship therapist. This was the same guy who slept with anything that had breasts and refused to commit to anyone for more than twenty-four hours. Yet, here he was, explaining the best way for me to win back Liza’s trust.
“She may never speak to me again.” I scanned the room. Almost everyone had moved to the dining room. Fuck. I couldn’t duck out yet, but I damn sure was going to as soon as possible. “We’d better take our seats.”
Bryce nodded and followed me into the dining hall. Someone’s sharp gaze was burning a hole into the back of my head, and I turned to see who it was. Cecily watched me from a corner table, licking her lips like a hungry lioness.
She was the host of the event and had invited my family and me. No doubt she’d expected the ceremony to come and go without me finding my mate. It had happened so many times before. After all, that was what everyone had come to expect of me—a forty-year-old man who’d been to every ceremony over the past two decades and walked out as single as he’d walked in. Why would anyone expect anything different this time?
Cecily, though, was more than just an innocent bystander who watched as I consistently failed at finding a mate. She’d expected me to fail one last time and had spent weeks lobbying my mother to make my father agree to a selected mate instead of a fated one.
There Cecily would be, just waiting to sink her claws into me. I’m sure it had blown up her entire world when Liza and I spotted each other last night. No wonder she’d cornered Liza at the first opportunity. She wanted to stake her claim.
Cecily’s family was new in town, but they’d quickly made a name for themselves. That tended to happen when you had more money than God. Unfortunately for her, money couldn’t buy everything. Sure as fuck couldn’t buy me.
What she had in looks, she completely lacked in maturity and class. So, it wasn’t the least bit surprising that she made sure I had no choice but to reprimand her over the way she’d spoken to Liza.
Unfortunately, Cecily had chosen Jacob’s wife to be her best friend. That didn’t win her any additional points with me since I considered Kelis to be a total diva and gossip, but it had probably been a calculated move once she learned I hadn’t found a mate at one of those soirees. It was a way into the family, to get close. For me, seeing the two of them together was like watching a volcano’s lava slowly bubble to the surface. Eventually, there’d be an explosion with several casualties, though I intended to protect Liza from their venomous words and intentions.
I spotted Mother, who’d already taken a seat at our assigned table at the front of the room. She glanced toward the kitchen doors, probably wondering why lunch wasn’t being served the second her ass touched the velvet pad of her chair.
