When he pulled back, she felt dizzy. “Do you think they’d mind if I borrow you tomorrow night?”
“You don’t have to borrow me. You already own me.”
Sweet heaven, the man had a way with words. “It’s the foundation gala tomorrow night. I want you to come with me.”
“Does it involve you in a fancy dress and me glaring at your asshole brothers?”
“Yes to both.”
“Then I can’t wait.” He kissed her lightly. Then not so lightly. They were both panting by the time he pulled back again. “Spend the night here Christmas Eve,” he said gruffly.
“With your family?”
He winked, understanding her meaning. “I’ll try to behave.”
“But you have traditions and—”
“And I want you to be part of them.” He straightened and lifted the hair from her shoulder. “It’s time someone showed you what Christmas morning should be like.”
When she didn’t answer, he grinned. “Say yes. You know you want to.”
The way he could see right through her. “Yes.”
“Text me when you get home,” he said, stepping back.
“Worried about the dark again?”
“Worried about you.”
In that moment, the final puzzle piece fell into place. He wasn’t Colton Wheeler to her either. He was just Colton. The man who made her swoon and melt. The man who made her want to know what Christmas morning could be like.
The man who now held every single piece of her heart.
CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE
“I changed my mind. We’re staying in tonight.”
Colton lost all sense of time and place when Gretchen walked out of her bedroom the next night. She’d chosen a form-fitting, black velvet gown that dipped low in front to reveal two creamy mounds of flesh that required further inspection.
“Too late,” she said, draping a black wrap around her shoulders that blocked his view of her breasts. He was both annoyed and relieved. He would crash the car if he caught a glimpse of them while driving.
She actually allowed him to open her car door this time. “You’re sure your family isn’t mad that I’m taking you away tonight?”
He leaned down for a quick kiss. “I’m sure. You can do no wrong in their opinion.”
“Give ’em time. They don’t know me yet.”
“Well, I know you. And every minute makes me want you more, so . . .”
She squinted her eyes at him in the dark. “You’re after something. What is it?”
“Just that we leave early enough tonight that I have time to take full advantage of that dress.”
“Trust me,” she said, settling into her seat. “We will stay only as long as necessary for them to announce my position on the board.”
When they arrived at her parents’ house, she directed him to park around the back so they could use the family entrance, which not only afforded some privacy but saved time as well. The line of cars waiting for a valet attendant at the front was a half-hour deep. The fact that they could actually fit that many people in their house was still difficult to get his mind around.
“Do me a favor,” he said, tucking her arm in the crook of his elbow as they entered the long hallway toward the Great Hall.
“What’s that?”
“Point out all the convenient dark closets I can drag you into.”
“There’s always my pink bedroom again.”
He growled. “Don’t tempt me.”
The party was in full swing when they made their way to the hall. The room that had been mostly empty a week ago was now packed with tall cocktail tables, waiters with trays of food and drinks, and people. Lots of people. The last time he’d seen this many women in evening gowns was when he’d won his third-straight Artist of the Year Award. A live string quartet had set up on one of the balconies overlooking the room but could barely be heard above the rise and fall of conversation.
“You want something to drink?” he asked, leaning down to be heard.
“Not yet,” she said, a hand pressed to her stomach. “I haven’t eaten much.”
Their appearance had gone mostly unnoticed at first, but whispers eventually started to spread and with them, craning necks. Gretchen’s fingers tightened around his elbow. “I’m usually pretty anonymous at this thing,” she said. “I don’t know how you get used to everyone staring all the time.”
“You learn to ignore it.” He covered her fingers with his hand. “But let me know if it becomes too much. I’m more than happy to find one of those dark closets.”