“We’re not near the bed.”
“Naomi said?—”
“I don’t take orders from Naomi.”
Of course he didn’t. He looked like the intersection between victory and a war crime she’d commit twice.
Her resolve wore thin as his fingers brushed the bare skin at her hip. “Gage…”
“There are at least five things we can do in nine minutes,” he said, voice husky. “Do you really want to waste them negotiating?” His other hand slid to the small of her back. Her spine arched in response.
No, she didn’t. Not even a little bit.
Barely five minutes after Gage left, another knock sounded at her door.
Bea’s heart jumped.
Please not again.If he came back, they were going to get arrested. Or expelled from the venue. Or married.
She cracked the door open?—
And was promptly shoved aside by Georgina, Naomi, and Isabel storming in like they had a warrant.
“Congratulations,” Georgina said. “You’re back in black.”
Bea blinked. “What?”
“Rafael,” Isabel started, “just executed a beautiful performance with a weapon. For you.”
Naomi flopped onto the bed, looking delighted. “Yesterday Catherine tried to tank your valuation. Today Rafael delivered a heat-seeking display of elite marksmanship. And then Gage escorted you off the field like a wolf with his mate in his teeth.”
Bea dropped into the chair, wincing. “They’re not going to duel at dawn or something, are they?”
“Of course not.” Georgina scoffed. “Rafael’s not suicidal. He’s not challenging Gage.”
“It wasn’t a love declaration. But itwashelpful.” Isabel perched on the arm of the chair. “It was a reputation correction. Rafael made it clear you’re not invisible to other men. Gage made it clear you’re his. Put together? Your stock is surging.”
“This isn’t how this weekend was meant to go,” Bea muttered.
“You know what it costs to be unforgettable? Two billionaires.” Naomi cackled.
They called it a win. And she saw how it was. She’d been raised, not wrecked. But she didn’t feel elated. She felt exposed.
It was the kind of power you didn’t ask for, but couldn’t give back.
Bea exhaled. “Let’s pray something even better happens at the ball tonight.”
Georgina raised an eyebrow. “Better than being the center of a billionaire bidding war?”
“Like a meteor. Or a power outage,” Bea suggested. “Or maybe the vineyard just sinks into the sea.”
Isabel smirked. “Don’t tempt fate.”
Chapter Nineteen
Bea had never been in a private ballroom before. Not one that looked like it should come with its own pope and incense.
She’d been to a couple of wedding venues that tried. Her senior prom had been held in something vaguely similar.
