A Calculated Seduction(36)

Pete took her glass away from her and she frowned at him.

“You’ve had enough of that. You need to keep a level head tonight. ”

“I couldn’t agree more, Anderson.”

Dulcy peeked over Pete’s shoulder and giggled again. “Uh oh, we’re in trouble, Pete. It’s the boss man.”

* * * *

Ethan’s temper was riding a thin line. It had taken him over forty-five minutes to make it to Dulcy and Anderson. As he weaved his way through the crowd, he kept one eye on them and had to be cordial to their guests. He counted at least two glasses of champagne and nothing to eat. He didn’t want Anderson taking advantage of her.

Anderson turned. The relief Ethan saw on his face puzzled him.

“Mr. MacMillan. Dulcy is not a drinker and she needs some food to sober her up. She won’t listen to me, but she will listen to you. ”

“I’ll take care of her.”

Dulcy was frowning at both of them. “How very male of you two to decide that.”

“Dulcy, go with Mr. Macmillan. They have pigs in a blanket over there.”

Her expression lightened. “Munchies. Still don’t like you telling him I’ve been drinking.”

She’d crossed her arms, accentuating her breasts even more. All her creamy white skin held him mesmerized. His hand itched to touch, to caress. Anderson looked down at her, his hand on his hips. He acted completely disinterested. What was wrong with the man?

“I didn’t have to tell him. Now, go with the boss and stay away from stepsisters and ex-fiancés.”

Before he could interpret that statement, Dulcy had grabbed his hand and was leading him to one of the food tables. She stopped at the one with the pigs in the blanket. Releasing his hand, she grabbed up a plate and filled it with quite a bit of food.

“Aren’t you getting anything?” she asked.

He ignored the question. “What did Anderson mean back there?”

“What...oh. One of my stepsisters brought my ex-fiancé with her tonight.”

He raised an eyebrow but didn’t say anything. He couldn’t. She had picked up a fat chocolate covered strawberry and was wrapping her lips around it, humming with pleasure, her head tilted slightly back and her eyes closed. The sound singed a path to his cock. She finished it off and then opened her eyes.

“You really should try these, they’re wonderful.”

She smacked her lips. “I need something to drink.” Before he could stop her, she was at the bar, ordering another drink.

He hurried to stop her, but he hesitated. If she was a little tipsy, she might tell him things she normally wouldn’t when she was sober.

She was downing another glass by the time he reached her side. “Dulcy, you need to take it easy. Don’t let anyone think you’re doing this because of him.”

Her eyes widened. “I’m not drinking because of him.” She smiled up at him, just a curve of the lips and it shot straight to his groin. “You called me Dulcy.”

“That is your name. Why are you drinking?”

She rose to her tiptoes and had to grab hold of him to keep from falling. “Can you keep a secret?” she whispered in his ear. Her breath tickled his ear and he shivered.

“Yes.” His voice was almost a whisper.

“Well, so can I.” She stepped away from him, laughing as she attempted to steal away from him.

“Dulcy.” He grabbed her arm. “You need to slow down on the drinking and have some more to eat.”

Belatedly, he realized she’d lost her plate somewhere along the way. He turned her to face him. She tilted her face up, a sloppy smile on her face, her skin flushed, her topaz eyes half-closed. Something completely unfamiliar moved through him. It warmed him from the inside, heating his blood, but not with lust. Well, not really. There was a fair amount of lust there, but mingling with it was something he didn’t recognize. He didn’t know why his knees felt weak or his heart pounded. For a moment, he stood there, looking down at Dulcy and thinking he didn’t want to go through another day without her by his side.

“I think you need to call it an evening.” His voice was hoarse.

“What do I need to call an evening?”

He chuckled and it hurt. It hurt so much to laugh when he didn’t know what was going on inside of him. All those feelings, jumbling around, messing with his brain.

Gently, he took her arm as he searched for his uncle. Ethan hadn’t planned on making all the announcements and really, there was no reason he couldn’t leave. Bill was the master of ceremonies and he needed to get Dulcy away from the hotel before she embarrassed herself.