Betting on You (Danvers #4.5)(8)
***
Mia couldn’t remember the last time she had enjoyed something more. Watching Seth shift uncomfortably on stage while the women in the audience went crazy was hilarious! Beside her, Margie added to the noise level with some encouraging wolf whistles of her own. She had to admit, he did look amazingly hot in his tailored suit. The fact that he wasn’t even trying to work the crowd like his predecessors made him that much more desirable. Women tended to want the men who didn’t seem interested and he was definitely giving off that vibe. When the bidding started, women were screaming amounts. As the action continued though a blonde at the end of their row clearly became the front runner. No matter the top bid, she would immediately counter it. She smiled at Seth, but found herself becoming strangely annoyed at this woman’s determination to have him. She wasn’t surrounded by a group of friends egging her on as many of the others were. No, she worked it almost like a job. Mia had no doubt: this woman was going to win the date with Seth. Why that bothered her, she had no idea, but it did.
When the bidding ended, Margie leaned in saying, “I can’t believe he sold for that much. I’m never going to be able to live with him. He’ll probably demand I call him Mr. Jackson now and spend half the day staring at himself in the mirror.” Nodding to where the winner was acknowledging everyone’s congratulations with polite nods, she added, “Boy, Blondie sure is hot for him, isn’t she? He might get more than he bargained for out of that one.”
Mia had to admit that she was curious. She knew most of the people here tonight and she was certain she had never seen the woman before. Looking back at Margie she asked, “Do you know who she is?”
Margie shook her head. “Nope, I sure don’t. She seems a little calm though to be buying a date. What do you think? Maybe she went off her meds recently?”
Mia giggled at Margie’s joke. She really did like Seth’s assistant. It made her wish that she had this kind of relationship with her own mother. What would it be like to actually joke and have fun with her rather than the distant relationship that they had? Oh, well, if that hadn’t happened by now, it wasn’t likely to.
“Even uptight women get horny, ya know,” Mia deadpanned, which sent Margie into a fit of laughter loud enough to draw the attention of everyone in the vicinity.
When she had calmed down, Margie said with a wink, “Honey, we all get the urge, but if I’m gonna buy it, it’s not going to be in public.”
Chapter Five
“You did what!” Mia stuttered. “Oh my God, why would you do that?”
Her mother sat across the table from her at Starbucks sipping a non-fat soy latte. “Please lower your voice, Mia; we don’t need the entire place hearing our conversation.”
Mia knew it was bad when her mother called her early the morning after the charity auction and demanded that she meet her for coffee before work. She had imagined a million different reasons but none of them came close. “I can’t believe you had your secretary buy Seth Jackson for me. I . . . don’t even know what to say. Does Dad know about this?”
“No, he doesn’t. Your father would never pay attention to a bachelor auction, so he never noticed Cathy bidding. She has only been with me a few months.”
“Okay,” Mia sighed. “That still doesn’t answer why.”
Her mother appeared to take her time answering before finally saying, “You never seem to be interested in anything other than work. I watched you with Seth at lunch yesterday and you were so at ease with him.”
Exasperated, Mia said, “Mom, it was just business.”
“You laughed, you smiled, and your whole body was relaxed. I haven’t seen you like that in so long. I know you will finish your work there and move on. But, I thought if you and Seth had the opportunity to get to know each other in a social setting that maybe your connection might continue after your assignment there is complete.”
How was she supposed to respond to a statement like that? She was attracted to Seth and she had been hoping something might come of it after her job at the Oceanix Resort was done, but she hadn’t been expecting this. Normal mothers bought their daughters dinner or some new shoes. Her mother bought her a man. It completely boggled her mind that her polished, society darling mother had even thought of it, much less taken the time for the careful execution of the scheme. Was she that concerned about her love life or lack of one? It wasn’t as if it would reassure her if she confessed that she had casual sex when the need arose or used her vibrator. Yeah, that would be a proud moment for any mother. The need just hadn’t arisen lately. “Mom, I . . . I guess this is one of those, ‘it’s the thought that counts’ moments, so er . . . thank you for that. I think though considering the circumstances, that we should just let Seth off the hook. You can just make the contribution and everyone will be happy.”
To her surprise, her mother shook her head saying, “Oh, no, I wouldn’t be happy. Seth agreed to the arrangement and it will stand. If anyone backs out, I will withdraw my money.”
“What? You can’t do that to your own charity.”
Smiling, her mother said, “The charity wouldn’t suffer, dear. Seth would pay the money instead. That was part of the agreement. If, for some reason, any of the bachelors were unable to fulfill their obligation, they would make the donation instead. It wouldn’t be fair to the person bidding for one of the men to drop out now, would it?”