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Chapter 1 Betrothed
Magnum
An engagement party. This was the reason my brother gave when he insisted I meet him in Los Angeles tonight.
The text simply said he was getting married and wanted me to attend a party to celebrate his coming nuptials.
Well, here I was.
Where the hell was he?
I'd just returned from a hostage rescue that went to shit in Guatemala, and I needed to unpack and clean up, but he'd said it was urgent. I dropped everything to be here for him because that was what I always did.
Now, I was standing in the lobby of the Golden Dragon restaurant in Chinatown and he hadn't shown, which was what he always did.
The place wasn't that busy considering it was dinnertime. The unmistakable smell of burnt grease hung heavy in the air. My attention was drawn to the cute hostess who'd been stealing glances at me. Tight little red dress, tits high and round, sexy necklace dropping down between them. My type. Might as well work my magic on her while I was waiting for Gavin to show up.
I walked up to her podium where she held a dry erase marker over a laminated map of the tables. Her head tipped back and her mouth dropped open when she saw me up close. Her eyes glazed and she licked her lower lip. "Oh my."
Yeah, babe. I get that a lot.
Finally, she gained her composure. "Just one tonight?"
I caught her gaze and held it. "No. I'm waiting for my party."
She snapped her mouth closed, popped out a hip, and plastered on a vixen smile. "What's your name, honey? I'll let you know when they get here." Her voice was much higher and sweeter now.
"Beaumont."
She bent forward and scribbled downBomounton her little map.
Excellent. My kinda girl. Couldn't spell for shit.
Her lips smacked like she was suddenly chewing gum. "You like dim sum?"
Oh yeah, too easy. Maybe my trip to LA wasn't such a waste of time. "Is that what you're serving?" I stepped forward and invaded her space, towering over her tiny wooden podium.
She held her ground and her breath hitched. "I'm offering whatever you're taking."
Way too easy. "What time you get off?"
"I'm off at nine." She smacked her imaginary gum harder.
I nodded but didn't promise her a thing. I had no idea where I'd be three hours from now, and I was already getting tired of her after just a few words. But she looked like a good lay so maybe I'd find a way to be back here when she got off. Maybe not.
She kept eye-fucking me the whole time I was waiting for my brother. Thank God, he finally showed.
Or at least it looked like him. He'd cleaned up. Short hair, no beard, suit with a bow tie, and polished shoes.
I was laughing as he walked up to me. "What the hell happened to you, man?" We hugged and I patted him on the back. I'd never seen Gavin in anything other than oversized jerseys and jeans hanging off his ass. His hair was always full afro or braided and he rarely shaved.
"A man can't look nice?"
"You look completely different."
"A good woman will do that."
He moved aside and I saw her. His woman. A petite Asian girl, dark hair pulled back, a black and white argyle sweater with a white dress shirt underneath, small string of pearls beneath the sharp points of the collar, black slacks with a crease in the front, white socks, and penny loafers.
