Gideon set his empty glass on a tray that a waiter was carrying around and picked up a full one.He guessed by the end of the night, he’d need more than one.
“There he is,” Edward Arnolt said, jovially.“Sweetheart, this is the man I was telling you about.”
Gideon could feel the older man’s excitement.When he looked at the woman, he found her studying him as if he were a bug under a microscope.What caught his attention was her scent and the way it made him feel.It was close to the way he’d been told he’d feel when he found the one.
God, was she the mate he’d been thinking about for a few decades?He thought the feeling of possessiveness and arousal would be stronger.
“Gideon, I’d like you to meet my beautiful daughter, Bambi,” Edward said, beaming with pride.
Bambi?That was her name?Jesus.Gideon had to bite his lip to keep from laughing out loud.
He held out his hand to grasp hers, and it felt like a wet noodle.Limp and overly soft.He caught her flinch, and she yanked her hand away.He wondered at it.Most women found him handsome, so he had no clue why she was being like that.Even as a human, if she were his mate, she should feel the exuberant attraction.
Well, this wasn’t going well and was damn confusing, he thought.
“Daddy, I’d like a drink,” Bambi said.
“Why don’t the two of you dance while I get you something, sweetie?”Edward said.
Gideon could see the startled expression on her face.Although beautiful and the possibility that she was his mate, he didn’t feel anything for her besides a slight desire and boredom.But he had to remind himself he needed a wife, and she was as good as any, and it wouldn’t be forever.Or he didn’t think so.If she were his true mate, he might not be able to let her go.
Gideon handed Leo his glass and laid a hand on her lower back to lead her onto the dance floor.He almost rolled his eyes when she stiffened as he set one hand on her hip and the other took her hand.She made another face again when her palm touched his, and he wondered if it might be the calluses he had on his hands.
“What’s the problem?”he asked.
“Your hands are rough, and they’re scratching me,” she complained.
Hell, another mark against her.
Most businessmen he knew had soft hands because they rarely or never did any physical labor.
He, on the other hand, loved getting out in nature.He had a huge house in the city that had been in the family for generations.But he had also bought an acreage an hour or so out of the city.It had a small cabin, a barn, a large grove of trees, plenty of space, and room to shift and run.The solitude and break from his responsibilities were a godsend.
When he needed to get away, he went there for the weekend and hiked, cleaned up the place, shifted and ran for miles, and chopped wood.He’d always been a rambunctious boy who liked to get in trouble, get dirty, and make messes, so his hands hadn’t ever been soft.
He cleared his throat.“So, what do you like to do for fun?”
He watched a smile bloom on her thin face.
“I like shopping, going on trips, going to spas, partying with friends,” she said.
Everything he hated.Great.
She went on to describe some of her favorite stores and places to fly to.He was bored within the first minute and had to bite his tongue to keep from yawning.
“My daddy says you’re a Rothschild?”
He nodded.“Yes.”
She perked up a bit.“So, you probably know some actors and actresses?”
Jesus.He shrugged.
“My daddy says you’re very rich,” she said loudly.
He saw the look that people dancing around them, who were a part of his pack, gave her.
“Yes.I suppose,” he said.
