Chapter 1: Sawyer

Here we go. Two hours. That’s all I had to get through was two hours tops. That shouldn’t be too hard. It is a masquerade ball after all. The vast majority of the people here wouldn’t have recognized me without the mask anyway. At least that can last a bit longer after tonight and I wouldn’t have a problem slipping out.

I took the glass of expensive champaign that was offered to me and downed it, replacing the empty glass with a full one from another passing waiter. I wasn’t going to get drunk but I was certainly going to need to be libated for this.

THIS meaning my mother’s wedding anniversary celebration. It’s been one year since she married Dimitrios Drakos, CEO of Wyvern Capital Enterprises, a multibillion-dollar company with a finger in more pies than you could count. So, needless to say, no expense had been spared on the party of the season.

“Okay, girl, I know it’s hard for you to not be all broody and everything, but I’m really going to need you to lighten up tonight,” Christina, my best friend, said as she found me in the shadowy corner I had found to hide away in. “It’s not going to kill you to mingle a little.”

“I have no interest in mingling with these people,” I said with an eyeroll. “I should be home preparing for Monday.”

“Oh, come on, you’ve been studying for two weeks straight,” Christina argued. “You know those accounts inside out. It’s time to take a break and let it all sink in. Besides, this is a social event. Not a business one. I’m sure we’ll find out some juicy gossip we can use to mock the one-percenters over ice cream tomorrow.”

I laughed as I shook my head. “I love how being a catty bitch is you’re idea of downtime,” I teased. “But I guess the appearance of being social should keep my mother from throwing me at every available bachelor in the building.”

“That’s the spirit,” Christina cheered.

I tugged at the all-too expensive and form fitting dress that my mother had forced me to wear as Christina hooked my arm to drag me toward the nearest congregation of guests. Hovering close, I tried to pick up their conversation as Christina studied the room, no doubt finding a strategic spot among the party-goers. Still, she must have sensed my continued apprehension.

“You wait here while I go get you something a little stronger,” she instructed, leaving before I could protest.

I let out a slow sigh as I caught the woman next to me talking about her recent trip to her Italian villa. I forced a smile as I listened to these woman complain about the most ridiculous things. Hopefully my mask hid the fact that my brain quickly started to tune them out. I zoned out so completely that I gasped when someone yanked my arm. Suddenly, I was spun onto the dance floor where I was pressed against a sturdy chest.

“Pardon me,” a deep, silky voice spoke, sending a shiver down my spine as warm breath grazed along my cheek. “You looked like you needed rescuing from a mind-numbing exchange of small talk.”

“Ha, you could say that,” I replied, getting a look at a rugged jawline covered in effortlessly attractive stubble framing a pair of surprisingly inviting lips. “I suppose I owe you a thank you.”

The corner of his mouth tipped up. “Not at all,” the mystery man stated. “My motivations were purely selfish. Still, you get to experience more stimulating conversation and I successfully avoid a family inquisition.”

“You’re pretty self-assured to assume you’d be able to provide more interesting conversation,” I commented, failing to suppress an amused grin.

He continued to fluidly lead me around the other dancers. Like the rest of the room, half of his face was hidden behind a mask, which did enough to hide his identity. Still, I doubted we had ever met before. From the laugh lines at the corner of his eyes and the gray that speckled his perfectly styled hair, he was older. Not that age worked against him. There was no mistaking the firmness of muscle beneath that tailored tux. He clearly had a physique that improved with maturity and I would be lying if I said it didn’t have my heart beating just a little bit faster.

“That’s certainly not the worst thing I’ve ever been called,” he replied. “And entirely accurate. The question is—can the same be said of you?”

I lifted my chin defiantly. “I’m not sure what you mean, sir.”

My breath hitched as he pressed me closer to him, his hand splayed across the small of my back with an intoxicating pressure.

“You’re out of place,” he stated. “I can’t decide if it’s because you’re supposed to be here but don’t want to be or you don’t belong and aren’t sure how to hide it.”

If anyone else had said that to me, it would have been intentionally offensive. For some reason, I sensed he was genuinely fascinated by either possibility. Still, I wasn’t just going to give him the smug satisfaction of a straight answer.

“Why wouldn’t I belong here?”

“If my opinion determined the guest list, I couldn’t fathom a reason you wouldn’t,” he said smoothly, his hazel eyes keeping me completely captivated. “But your body language was telling a different story.”

“Like what?” I asked, licking my lips that suddenly felt dry with how close he was leaning in.

“That you feel out of place in that dress,” he said huskily. “You wouldn’t have chosen it if you weren’t in a place that required the attire. Which is a shame, because it suits you incredibly well.”

My cheeks flushed. There was no mistaking the sexual undertone of the compliment. Maybe it was the champagne going to my head but I was surprisingly into it.

“What else is my body language saying?”

Catching the cue, his mouth claimed mine. It was like an explosion of heat washed over me. Every nerve ending of my body responded with a tingling sensation. I stopped breathing as his tongue encouraged me to open for him. He was undoubtedly the best thing I’d tasted all night. I’d completely forgotten where I was until a burst of nearby laughter pulled me back to reality.