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Her smile is completely gone. So is the cheerful light that was in her eyes only seconds ago.
Good job, asshole.
“It’s… it’s fine. No biggie.” Daphne waves it off and turns to leave the room.
Why does it feel like she’s waving me off, too?
I flop down on the couch with a heavy sigh. But as she passes, at the last second, I loop my arm around her waist and tug her down on top of me.
Daphne squeaks with surprise. I wrap my arms around her and bury my face in the curve of her neck where it meets her shoulder. She smells so good. She feels even better.
“Tell me about your day,” I croak into her sweater.
She balks. “My day? My day was boring. My days are always boring.”
I hold her tighter. “Nothing about you is boring, moya plamya.”
Daphne sighs and leans into me. “Well, The Tweedles aren’t too happy about losing what they called their ‘golden goose.’ They’ve been trying to find ways to keep the showcase on the books for Conrad, but Hazel refuses to work with him and Sofi scared them into leaving me alone.”
“She’s good at that.”
“Maybe too good,” Daphne agrees. “I keep trying to tell them there are other, better artists with more consistent performances in both sales and audience pull, but what do I know? I’m just the curator.”
I move on to massaging her wrists. She moans in satisfaction and just like that, I’m hard. “You’re more than just a curator,” I murmur into her throat.
“Yeah? Tell them that.”
My mouth moves to the shell of her ear. “I can. I will. If you want me to.”
She turns just enough to give me a knowing smile. “I do actually love my job, despite my complaining. I’d like to keep it.”
“Fine. Ruin my fun.”
A wiggle of her ass on my lap makes me suck in a breath. “If it’s fun you want, don’t let me stop you from enjoying it.”
“Naughty plamya.” I rub her hip, lightly smack it, then rub again. “Don’t tempt me.”
“Why not?” Her lashes lower and so does her gaze, down to my lips. “We have plenty of time.”
“Actually, we don’t.” I reach up to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear. My God, her skin is so soft. “We’re going to a dinner party tonight.”
“At your mom’s?”
“Fuck, I wish. No, this is one of those fancy state dinners. Black tie only.”
Daphne stiffens. I don’t know what’s set her on edge, but she’s skating right on it. “Do we have to? Can’t we just don’t and say we did?”
My hand flits toward her thigh. “I’ve been daydreaming about you in a sexy gown. Taking you out of it, specifically.”
She doesn’t relax. She’s tense. Too tense based on the little scrap of information I just gave her.
What am I missing?
“I just… I’m so over dealing with the posh and pompous.” Daphne sighs and tries to relax. She doesn’t fool me, though. “If I rub any more elbows, I’m gonna be raw. All those egotistical men and catty women. Throwing themselves at each other and for what? Clout?”
“You can throw yourself at me. I’ll give you way more than clout.”
She levels her gaze at me. “I’m serious, Pash.”
