The Design(52)

“Are you seeing anyone right now?” Jason asked.

ACCOUNTANT, PLEASE BE QUIET SO I CAN HEAR GRAYSON’S REPLY.

“Oh, yeah, I’ve just been—” I heard the first part of Grayson’s answer before Stuart’s voice cut in.

“I’ve just always had a knack for numbers,” Stuart said. “Ever since I was a kid. I remember doing the 'million dollar' project in school and using it to buy a fictional laundromat. I was the only one to spend the money on a business that would make money in return!”

Oh my god, so he's not just a boring adult, he's been boring since he was a kid.

I leaned closer to where Jason and Grayson were chatting, trying to hear their conversation.

“Did you hear about the match-up for Sunday’s game?” Grayson asked.

No. Noooooooo. I’d missed his answer. C’mon!

“That’s so great, Stuart,” Brooklyn said, cutting in before I made a complete fool of myself. “Cammie always had a knack for drawing. When she was little she’d carry around a sketchpad with her everywhere,” Brooklyn said, basically carrying the conversation for me.

“How neat. I always wish that I could draw, but I never learned how,” Stuart said, trying to catch my gaze. "Even my stick figures are terrible!"

I couldn’t stand it any longer. I didn’t want to talk to Stuart and who knew when I’d get another chance to be in a bar with Grayson. I excused myself for a bathroom break then sought out the first bartender I could find.

“Can I do the thing where I send a drink to a guy and you give him a napkin that has a sexy message on it?”

The bartender scanned me once, feet to chest.

“I’ll do whatever you want me to do,” he said, taking a step closer.

I held up my hand. “Jeez, alright. My eyes are up here.”

He chuckled and pulled out a pad of paper. “Who do you want me to send a drink to?”

I pointed Grayson out for him and he nodded.

“And what drink?”

Oh damn, I’d forgotten to check what Grayson was drinking. Did it matter?

“Is there some kind of sexy drink you usually send?”

His laughed. “None that a guy would drink.”

I groaned. “Whatever, just give him a drink with this note. I don’t care what it is.” I took a pen out of my purse and jotted down the sexiest thing I could think of. Three simple words that hinted at so much more.

Come find me.





Chapter Twenty


I stood in a dark hallway of the bar waiting for Grayson. Black and gold filigreed paper masked the walls. Ornate gold light fixtures hung from the ceiling and five doors dotted the hallway, each leading into small private bathrooms. I blocked the last door at the end of the hallway. People trailed in and out of the other rooms, seemingly unconcerned with my presence. I watched two girls stumble out from behind a closed door, giggling and supporting one another as best as possible. One of them fell against the wall, her blonde hair spilling down around her face as her friend tried to keep her from slipping down onto the black marbled floor.

I was watching them when Grayson turned the corner and came into view at the end of the dark hallway. Dark sleek hair. Sharp, defined jaw. Straight nose, strong brows, and a predatory look aimed right at me.

I wiped my sweaty palms on the front of my skirt and then slid them up, crossing and uncrossing them for lack of a better pose. The lounge’s seductive music seemed to pick up, the beat of a kick drum matching each of Grayson’s steps as he approached me.

His narrowed eyes proved he was more than prepared to take me up on the challenge I’d penned for him. When he was a few feet away he pulled his hands out of his pockets and unbuttoned his suit jacket.

He passed by the drunk girls without so much as a side glance and then his gaze met mine. As he stepped closer, I realized the full extent of what I’d begun by sending him that note.

“Skipping out on your blind date already?” Grayson asked. At once he wrapped a hand around my neck and used his other to turn the door handle behind me so that we fell back into the small bathroom. “That's not very ladylike.”

We stumbled, entwined together. I closed the door behind us and he locked it.

Click.

The audible confirmation of what we were about to do.

He walked me back to the edge of the black sink and I glanced around the room. For a bathroom, it was covertly sexy. It’s like they wanted couples to sneak away into them. The black marble floor and decorative wallpaper continued into the room, but the lighting was even dimmer, casting a romantic yellow haze over the two of us.

We were right up against the sink when Grayson spun me around to face the mirror. I was sandwiched between the countertop and Grayson, and when I glanced up into the antique mirror, I caught sight of us together for the first time. Grayson was right: I didn't seem very ladylike. My dark brown hair fell around my shoulders. My blouse was pulled tight over my chest, revealing a sliver of my pink lacy bra. My eyeliner and mascara had smudged around my eyes, giving me a mysterious, dangerous glow. My darker side was showing.

Grayson’s height made it so the top of my head fell just beneath his chin.

“Do you realize how much of a tease you are? Walking around my office in outfits like this everyday?”

I managed to shake my head no, mesmerized by his words.