“About who is allowed where.”
“We were in the VIP—”
“Yeah, in the VIP area.See that square of couches you were sitting in?”
“Yeah.”
“Anyone not in the inner circle has to be invited to approach or sit.You didn’t notice security?”
“I thought they were for Roxie,” she said almost flabbergasted.“Invited?”
“If just anyone was allowed to approach Roxie and Zairn, they wouldn’t get a minute alone.The empty couch?It’s theirs.No one sits there except them.”He shrugged.“Sometimes Roxie has her girls with her if Zairn isn’t around, but the rules stay in place.”
“I wasn’t invited.”
“You arrived with Roxie and one of her people would’ve called ahead to make arrangements.”So much went on behind the scenes; she’d been oblivious to it.“If you wanted one of those guys, you should’ve sat at the bar or invited him over.”
“I wouldn’t do that in Roxie’s private space.”Not that she’d known that was its designation.No one told her the rules, she guessed, because they thought she was with Cam and not looking for other options.“There were really guys checking me out?”
Even if someone had told her, would she really have invited anyone to sit with her?Around Cam’s friends, his family…?It wasn’t fair to put anything on them.They hadn’t prevented her from doing anything.Her lack of action, and interest, was all her.
“Yeah.Quite a few.”He snickered.“You want to go back over there—”
“No,” she said, linking her fingers at the back of his neck.“I honestly didn’t notice.”
It wasn’t like she went into a bar or club, eyes wide, searching every face for interest.But she should’ve noticed, shouldn’t she?For a woman who wanted to go wild and date, she was keeping herself insulated.No, she hadn’t known her seat was in an exclusive area, but she hadn’t been looking either.In fact, she couldn’t remember a single guy.Tripp was the only guy she noticed and that was because he’d arrived with them.He was a friend, in a sense.Though it wasn’t like he needed supervision.
“You look confused,” he said, his brow creasing.“More confused than normal.”
And that had to be a lot, she went through life never knowing what would happen next.
Searching his face, the possible answer was in this man.“I was young and stupid with Spencer,” she whispered her previous words.
“You won’t be young and stupid with me.Take your time.I’m going nowhere.”
No and she didn’t want him to go anywhere.Patience.God, she envied him that.Guiding his mouth back to hers, the sensation of his kiss was the one thing that made sense.
TWENTY-FOUR
INTO THE OFFICE.Oh, boy.Next morning, waking with Cam led to a makeout session that ended with him silently leaving her to take a shower.That might have been flattering, if it wasn’t so frustrating.
Patience.
Patience.
It wasn’t a difficult concept, yet her brain couldn’t figure it out.Stupid brain.
The email from her boss came after she showered and dressed in the downstairs bathroom.So much for one thing at a time.
Allan wanted her in the office.Important.Urgent.That couldn’t signal anything good.
Just as she was about to exit the bathroom, her phone pinged a message.From Mason.Karma really had it in for her today.
Oh, God, another man she had no interest in seeing wanted her company.Why would she have lunch with him?It would be rude to tell him where to get off.Especially when it was possible he might know what Allan wanted.No, it couldn’t be that.The only thing Allan was likely to do was fire her.Mason was not the kind of guy to comfort or commiserate with her.And she didn’t want him schadenfreuding either.
Everyone was scattered in the kitchen, though her thumb was still hovering above her phone’s keyboard.What should she say?Be polite but decisive.Why was she so hung up on not being rude to the man who’d humiliated her in front of everyone they knew.
Cam closed the fridge and her eyes met his as he turned.He’d given her good advice.Okay, maybe just advice.
