His gaze took an exceedingly long time to make it back up to my face. I watched him suck in a deep breath.
“That’s a hell of a dress,” he declared.
“Yeah?” I asked, smoothing my hand nervously down it. “I was a little worried about the slit,” I said, sticking my leg outward to show off the deep slit.
Venezio’s gaze helplessly followed the line of my leg. He cleared his throat a little before he spoke. “Can’t imagine anyone’s gonna complain about that. You got any shoes, though?”
“I’m putting them off until the last possible moment,” I admitted.
“Not a fan of heels, huh?” he asked as I walked over to them.
“It’s been a long time. I don’t imagine my feet are going to be happy.”
I slid one foot in.
But I teetered on the icepick heel.
Venezio was right there, offering his arm to steady me.
It was such a gentlemanly gesture for such a rough-around-the-edges guy.
“Thank you. Okay. I just need my clutch and I’m ready. Should we call for a rideshare? Is showing up in a cab tacky?”
“I have a town car.”
“A town car?”
“With a driver.”
“With a driver?”
“You gonna parrot everything I’m saying?” he asked, lips curving up.
“I’m processing out loud. You hired a driver for tonight?”
“I did.”
“Wow. That was so forward-thinking. Thank you.”
“It’s nothing. But he is double-parked out front.”
With that, he pressed a hand to my lower back. It was just a nice gesture, but I was pretty sure he just wanted to be close to make sure he could catch me if I fell, since I was definitely wobbly at first.
As promised, there was a sleek, expensive black town car out front with a driver in a suit in the front. Venezio waved him off and got the door for me himself before going around the trunk and climbing into the other side.
It was a frustratingly short ride.
I would have preferred to sit in thick traffic, so I could enjoy the press of his body against mine, the spicy scent of his cologne, the warmth I felt emanating from him since a coat didn’t exactly go with my outfit.
The holiday party was being held at one of Manhattan’s swankiest ballrooms. I had no idea what kind of sway these lawyers had to snag space during such a busy time of the year, but I was excited to see the inside for myself.
I tried to play my excitement close to my vest, but as soon as we moved into the doorway of the ballroom itself, I couldn’t seem to hold in the shockedWowthat slipped between my lips.
The space was massive.
Long rectangular tables lined the sides of the room with large circular tables scattered between.
The space was done up for Christmas in an understated, classy way: trees sat in the corners with warm white lights, garland draped the stage, and each of the tables featured lush red poinsettias and candles in tall hurricane holders.
