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Steve looks less than thrilled, but my dad just laughs and smacks him on the back. “I’m sure your wife would love to dance with you. Let my daughter dance with the young man. With all the money he’s donated, he’s earned it.”
Feeling like the winning heifer at the fair, I let Roman lead me out onto the dance floor, reluctantly parting with my glass of champagne. Even in the heels I forced myself to wear, he still towers over me, and when he takes my hand in his and rests the other one on my lower back, pulling me even closer, I look up at him in surprise.
“You’ve got some nerve,” I tell him, ignoring how good it feels to be touched by him.
“I think the words you’re looking for are thank you.”
I bark out an unladylike laugh while he leads me around the dance floor. He’s a graceful dancer, making it easy for me to just follow along, because god knows I’ll trip over my own feet if given the chance. I notice the roughness of his palm and what feels like a long scar below his thumb, trailing downwards. Maybe this guy isn’t some boring pencil pusher after all. I’ve never met a politician with calloused hands.
“For what?” I ask, forcing my mind from thinking any more about his skin and what it feels like. “Using me to get to my dad?”
“I don’t need to use you to get to your dad, Emily.”
He says it so matter-of-factly, and hearing him say my name in that deep, accented voice of his has me wishing there was way more distance between us. I don’t usually have this kind of reaction to men. I’ve grown up in a world where men use women to get what they want. They’re either trophy wives, dirty little secrets, or the wife they publicly proclaim to adore while secretly fucking everything they can get their hands on. I’ve seen it way too many times to ignore it or to think that any of them are different. It’s just how men are. When I was ten, I accidentally heard my dad fucking the maid. It’s not something I’ll ever forget, no matter how damn hard I try. I remember all this as I look up at the gorgeous man in front of me. He’s just like them, using me to get what he wants.
“Whatever you say, Roman,” I tell him. “But just so you know, I have no sway over my dad or what he does. I can get you seated next to him at dinner, but that’s about the extent of my pull. He doesn’t exactly come to me for political advice.”
“That’s too bad. I bet you have some good ideas.” He twirls me around before bringing me snuggly back up against him. “But I don’t give a fuck about your dad’s politics.”
That throws me for a loop. “Then why are you here?”
He leans down and brings his lips close to my ear. “I have my reasons.”
The heat of his breath hitting the shell of my ear sends a shiver down my spine, and when I stumble, he gives a soft laugh and tightens his grip on me so I don’t fall on my ass.
“Mind if I cut in?”
We both turn, and when I see Connor Daniels’s smug face, I inwardly cringe. Roman must feel my body tense because he brushes his thumb along the back of my hand, and it’s comforting in a way that I hadn’t been expecting. My family has always raised me in a sort of throw her to the wolves kind of way. They never did anything to try and protect or shelter me, but that one caress from Roman gives me the smallest glimpse of what it would be like to have someone watching over me. I like it more than I should, and I don’t want to be passed over to Connor, who I know for a fact is an abusive asshole.
“I do mind, yes,” Roman says, surprising the hell out of both me and Connor.
“Excuse me?” Connor says. He drags a hand through his thick, blond hair, trying to keep his temper in check. Connor is also a man who’s not used to being told no, but something tells me that’s where the similarities end between these two.
“You heard me,” Roman says, and his calm relaxed voice just pisses Connor off even more.
His blue eyes turn to mine, and I see the dark rage that’s brewing right below the surface. I imagine that’s what that girl saw right before he beat the hell out of her.
“Emily, come on,” he says, holding out his hand to me. “Your mom told me earlier that you’ve been dying to dance with me.”
Goddammit, Mom.
“She must’ve been confused, Connor. Thank you, but I’m happy where I’m at.”
His eyes narrow at me, but before he can say anything else, Roman spins us around, leading us in another direction with a small smile playing at his lips.
“I’m glad you enjoyed that,” I tell him, watching Connor storm off, his face red with rage. “I’m never going to hear the end of it, but totally worth it as long as it made you happy.”
“Is he someone you’ve dated?” Roman’s voice is calm, but he keeps scanning the crowd while he waits for me to answer.
“God no,” I say.
“Good. You should stay away from him.”
“I am,” I say, but then I add, “but not because you told me to. I knew he was an asshole long before you showed up.”
He looks down at me, that same soft smile playing at his lips. “You need to be careful, Emily. You look far too innocent to be swimming with such sharks.”
“You don’t know the first thing about me, and you sure as hell don’t know how innocent I may or may not be.”
