Page 262 of A Matter of Time

I was already home that evening when my friend Sloane called and invited me to dinner with her and her boyfriend, Derek. Because I had turned her down the last five times she’d called me, I accepted and went to meet them at a steakhouse downtown. When I met them outside the restaurant and was introduced to three other people, Kellen Attwood among them, I understood that I was being “fixed up.” I dragged Sloane to the bar with me, where she confessed that because she loved both Kellen and me, she hoped we would hit it off. I stifled a groan.

When we rejoined the group, Kellen had a glass of white wine for me. I took it to be polite, even though I preferred red. He stood close, asked me what I did, and complimented my leather racing jacket. I was listening to him answer all Sloane’s questions about his job, his house, his car, and his plans for the holidays. She was obviously interviewing him for me, letting me hear his answers and him tell me himself that he was a catch. A hand on my shoulder made me turn, and when I did, I found myself faced with Aaron Sutter.

“Hey.” I smiled at him.

“Jory.” He smiled back, hand closing on my jacket. “What are you doing here?”

“Just having dinner with friends.”

“Great.” His eyes were locked on mine. “Eat with us.”

“There’s, like, six of us, Sutter,” I teased him, smiling wide. “How can you⁠—”

“I’ve got a private room upstairs,” he said, easing me closer to him. “Come on, I feel like crap about last time. Treat your friends, eat with me.”

And it would be a treat, for anyone. Unless you lived under a rock, everyone knew Aaron Sutter. People saw his name splashed all over newspapers, read articles and saw his picture in magazines, understood that he was rich, powerful, and connected. Partying with him was champagne and caviar—nothing but the best. So there was no reason to say no when someone was offering to make a normal Wednesday night into an event. It was assumed that dinner would just be the beginning. The expressions given to him were ones of wonder as he led the entire entourage through the crowded restaurant, one arm draped over Sloane’s shoulder, the other hand tight on my bicep.

Up the marble staircase to the second floor was a private room that had its own tiny dance floor and was set up like someone’s living room instead of a restaurant.

“This is amazing,” Kellen said, watching Aaron as he mingled with his friends.

“Yep,” I sighed, motioning the waiter over to me, passing him the full glass of wine and ordering a Chivas and water. “It’s all first class with Aaron.”

“He’s even better looking in person.”

The man was handsome, period. Live or in print, he looked exactly the same.

“Don’t you think so?”

“Sure.”

He stepped in closer to me. “So, listen, before this evening goes on any further, I would like to get your number so I can call you and ask you out on a real date.”

“Who’s going on a date?”

We both turned to find Aaron beside us, his hand on the back of my neck, fingers sliding up into my hair.

“I…” Kellen faltered, and I saw him watching Aaron’s obvious show of possessiveness. “I wanted to thank you for inviting me, Mr. Sutter.”

“Aaron,” he corrected gently. “And I’m sorry, did you want to ask Jory out?”

He swallowed nervously. “I did, yes.”

Aaron nodded before he excused us both, leading me toward the table. “Sit with me.”

I chuckled. “That was kind of an asshole thing to do, don’t you think?”

“No,” he said. “He needs to know that if he wants you, the line forms behind me.”

I smiled at him. “C’mon, Sutter, order us all something to eat already. Everybody’s starving.”

“Yes, dear,” he said, smiling back, pulling me closer.

It was fun, as it always was when Aaron was the host of his own party. He didn’t order off the menu but instead rattled off selections that the chef would only prepare for him. And normally I took offense to the making of assumptions about what I wanted, but I wasn’t in the mood to argue, so I let him tell the waiter what I would have.

“Lemme take your jacket.”

I took it off and passed it to him. When he complimented the dress shirt underneath, I gave him a look.