Just the Sexiest Man Alive(81)

Jeremy pointed at him.

“That could be a close second.”

Thirty

“SO THEN WHAT happened?”

Taylor rolled her desk chair over to her credenza and grabbed a file from the bottom drawer. “So then I ran off the dance floor, and I haven’t talked to him since.”

It was Sunday afternoon, and she had come into the office to catch up on work. To save time on the Black & Pink post-game analysis, she had three-way called Val and Kate.

“And what about Scott?” asked Kate.

Yes . . . and what about Scott? Now that was an interesting question. Taylor filled them in on all the details.

After leaving Jason on the dance floor, she had hurried over to the bar where she had last seen Scott. She wanted to tell him she was leaving the party, not that she thought he’d mind terribly much, given the fact that they had exchanged about ten words total since arriving.

She was making her way across the veranda when she felt someone grab her by the arm. She looked over and saw Scott.

“Can I talk to you for a second?”

Without waiting for an answer, he led her off into one of the gardens, where they were hidden behind some trees. He stared at her angrily.

“Are you having fun out there, making a fool of me?” His eyes narrowed. “I saw you dancing with him, Taylor. The whole f**king party saw you with him.”

Despite the fact that she didn’t think Scott had exactly been the perfect date, either, Taylor felt guilty. She knew it was time to put an end to this little charade of theirs.

“I’m sorry, Scott, I wasn’t trying to embarrass you. I—”

He cut her off. “Christ, Taylor, everyone here knows you’re the Mystery Woman. The paparazzi have been going nuts, trying to get a shot of you and Jason together.”

Taylor started to speak, then caught something Scott had just said.

“Paparazzi? I thought you said those were just ‘industry photographers.’ ”

“Yeah, well . . . whatever. The point is, they think you’re here with Jason, not me.”

Taylor again tried to make amends. “Like I said, I’m sorry. We were just dancing.”

Scott scoffed sarcastically at this. “Oh well, if that’s all it was, don’t let me get in the way. Perhaps you should go back and find him. Although I should warn you—Jason Andrews’s dance card is usually pretty full. He doesn’t normally make it around to the same girl twice.”

Suddenly tired with the whole scenario, Taylor decided it wasn’t worth the effort to respond. “You know, I think I’m going to call it an evening,” she said. “I’ll just call a cab to pick me up.”

Scott appeared surprised by this. Then his expression softened.

“You don’t need to call a cab, Taylor” he said, his voice full of concern.

Mocking concern, as she learned with his next snide words.

“After all, I’m sure your ‘friend’ Jason would be happy to give you a ride home,” he said. “At least one of us should get to f**k you for getting you into this party.”

Taylor nodded. Okay . . . so that’s how it had to be. At least now there was nothing more to be said between them.

“Thank you for making this so much easier. Good-bye, Scott.”

He seemed surprised when he saw she was actually leaving, and blocked her way.

“Wait—are you serious? You’re really going to leave, just like that?”

“Yep, just like that.”

He grabbed Taylor by her arm. Apparently, she had struck quite a nerve.

“You think you’re so smart,” he hissed. “But do you know how many women would kill just to get one look from me? Who the hell are you, you f**king nobody? You’d walk away, just because of one dance with Jason Andrews? You think that’s worth it?”

Taylor peered up at Scott’s furious face. There really was only one thing she had to say in response to that.

“Absof*ckinglutely.”

Finished there, Taylor pried Scott’s fingers from her arm and slid by. She cut through the garden on her way out, being careful to avoid the paparazzi.

And just as suddenly as she had appeared, the Mystery Woman left the party.

AFTER HEARING TAYLOR’S story, Kate and Val were silent on their ends of the line.

“What? Say something,” Taylor demanded anxiously.

Kate responded first. “You know, ending your date with an A-list movie star with an ‘absof*ckinglutely’ really is so played these days.” She laughed. “Seriously, Taylor—where do you come up with this stuff?”

Taylor noticed that her other friend had been uncharacteristically silent. “Val, you’re awfully quiet.”

Valerie spoke slowly. “I just want to be sure I have this straight. You manage to score a ticket to the best party of the year with one of the biggest celebrities in town. But then you dance with another guy—who just so happens to be, like, the hottest man in the world—then you ditch your date and run out of the party like an obscene Cinderella, never to be heard from again.”

Taylor squirmed uneasily in her chair. “Well, it really was just the one obscenity—”

Valerie cut her off sternly. “Taylor Donovan.”

Then her tone changed. To one of pride.