Page 85 of Auctioned To Be Mine

“If it were Krista, what would you do?”

“I guess it would depend.”

“I’ve never done this before,” I said. “The actual boyfriend thing. I don’t know the rules. Am I being too much? Is this the kind of thing that drives women insane? She’s capable. She told me she’s fine. Am I supposed to just believe that and stay home?”

He sipped his coffee and mulled over his response. I genuinely wanted to know. Needed to know. I couldn’t ask Drew or any of my brothers. They didn’t have any more experience in the relationship world than I did.

“Here’s what I know,” he said. “And I know this because I had to learn it the hard way. Respecting her means trusting her judgment. She told you she can handle it. You believe her. That part is settled.” He held up one finger. “But being her boyfriend doesn’t mean you disappear. It means you’re available. That’s your angle.”

“I told her to call me if she needed an out.”

“Right. So you’re available.” He shrugged and reached for a banana in the fruit bowl. “Here’s the other thing I know. If Krista were sitting across a table from some guy who made her skin crawl for a meeting she needed to take because her job required it, I would not be sitting at home waiting for a phone call. But I wouldn’t walk in and make a scene, either. Wouldn’t do anything to embarrass her or suggest I didn’t trust her. But I would absolutely be within a reasonable distance.”

“So I’m not crazy?”

“I didn’t say that.” He grinned. “I said I’d do the same thing. Whether that makes either of us crazy is debatable. I can go a little caveman when it comes to Krista. Even if she could kick my ass and every other man that looks sideways at her. It’s a natural instinct to want to protect the people we care about.”

I laughed and was so relieved to know I wasn’t alone having thoughts like these. I did have the right instincts.

“The key is being invisible about it. You’re not there to rescue her. You’re just in the neighborhood.” He paused. “And if she finds out you were there, which she probably will because women always find out, you tell her exactly what you told me. Tell her you’ve never done this before and you trust her completely.”

“You think she’d understand that?”

“I think Victoria strikes me as someone who’s never had that before,” Dash said simply. “If she’s pissed, apologize. A lot. Kiss her ass and smooth it over. Ice cream goes a long way.”

I felt that might be easier said than done, but I knew what I was going to do.

30

VICTORIA

Itold myself I didn’t care what I looked like. I wasn’t trying to impress Jeff Connors. But I was representing the charity. I was going to be in public and that meant I couldn’t just show up in my tattered tee and worn jeans.

Connors picked the restaurant. Of course. He chose one of the nicer restaurants. To me, it seemed like we could save hundreds of dollars on these lunches by meeting for coffee. But here I was. It was showtime.

I gave the hostess my name and learned my lunch partner had arrived five minutes ago. That was a surprise. I expected him to saunter in twenty minutes late and give me some bullshit story about how important he is.

He was already seated when I was shown to the table. He stood when he saw me coming, which I gave him credit for. Maybe he wasn’t completely devoid of manners. He extended his hand across the table. He was in his mid-fifties, well-dressed, and tanned. All that time on his yacht had him glowing. He had the look of a man who had never been told no.

“Victoria.” He held my hand, brushing his thumb across the back in an intimate caress. “You look absolutely stunning.”

I pulled my hand back. “Thank you.”

I sat down, smoothed my napkin across my lap, and looked at him. I was going to start with boundaries.

“Mr. Connors.” My voice was pleasant and completely calm. Never let them see you sweat. “I want to make sure we’re on the same page before we get started. I’m here to talk about the sponsorship and what it could mean for the children’s hospitals this organization serves. If the conversation stays there, I think we’re going to have a really productive lunch.” I held his gaze. “If it doesn’t, I’ll let you enjoy your meal alone.”

The silence lasted three full seconds. The look on his face was priceless. There was confusion and surprise and then understanding. I watched him flow through each emotion without saying a word. Men like Jeff Connors moved through the world operating on the assumption that their attention was a gift. That women would feel special if he even spoke to them.

Not me. Honestly, from what I knew, there were few women that wanted his attention. God had gifted women with a sixth sense and that spidey sense picked up on his sleaziness from a mile away.

He nodded. “Fair enough.”

The version of Jeff Connors who showed up for the rest of that lunch was not the same one who had hovered too close at the auction. He asked good questions. He had clearly done some reading on the charity before coming, which I hadn’t expected. That moved him up about half a notch in my estimation. He wanted to know about the hospitals specifically, how we chose who needed help and how the donations got allocated. I didn’t know if he was a really good actor or if this was the real version of him, once he stopped being gross.

I wouldn’t be inviting him to my birthday party or putting him on my Christmas card list but his sponsorship of the gala would be tolerable.

By the time we finished, I felt cautiously optimistic. I didn’t have a check and I wasn’t quite ready to celebrate, but it hadn’t been a disaster. That was a win. We stood from the table.