d.a.m.n.
"Let"s go mingle," he said to Camille over his shoulder as he headed toward his friends.
Camille followed at his heels, pulling him to a halt. "Here." She handed him a champagne flute and took a sip of her own. "I wish they were serving something better."
"This is fine with me." He tossed it back just as his friends walked over. Someone else walked over too. Toni.
"You should take it easy with that, Mr. Pallis. I don"t want anyone thinking my employee is an alcoholic or a-"
"Misogynist," he finished her sentence, holding her glower with his own. He"d began to feel irritated at her. If anyone should be annoyed, it was him. But she was so beautiful... He was convinced he needed to get to the bottom of her lie and why Stephan was hanging around. Something wasn"t adding up.
"This t.o.s.s.e.r is a load of things, but I don"t think a misogynist is one of them," Konrad chimed in, chuckling. Dallas and Ty laughed. All eyes on Toni.
Toni nodded at the guys. "h.e.l.lo. Nice to see you again."
The guys said their h.e.l.los, all feeling the chill coming from Camille who stared at Toni for way too long to be friendly.
"Looks like we need another drink, lads," Konrad said, tossing a sympathetic glance to Fabian who didn"t know how the Camille/Toni meeting would go. The fewer spectators the better.
"Come to the Halman table. I got prime seats for you," Dallas said as the three friends left the scene.
Toni made the first move. "Hi, Camille. Lovely to see you. Again." Toni reached out to shake her hand. Camille hesitated before she took it in an awkward handshake.
Smugly, Camille said, "Nice to see you, too. Fabian didn"t tell me you do yoga in his complex."
"It"s really just a coincidence. I"ve been going there for at least a year now."
Fabian"s chest tightened. He needed to get Toni alone. Everything he wanted to say to her in the conference room was bubbling up in his mind. The words were ready to spill from his tongue.
Ringing bells sounded throughout the dining area. Fabian"s father stood near the head of the table holding a gla.s.s of champagne. "A quick word, everyone." The crowd settled and he continued. "Thank you so much for sponsoring the Museum of Fine Arts Gala. Without your contributions, this event wouldn"t happen, and Pallis Engineering is honored to have you join our yearly pre-Gala Sponsors dinner here at Halman Hotel. So thank you for coming!" The crowd cheered and clapped for several seconds. "And a huge thank you to my personal friends, the Halmans, for allowing us to use this beautiful hotel for this event. With that said, please find your seating a.s.signment. L"Atelier will begin the six-course meal shortly." Another burst of claps and cheers sounded.
"Bon appet.i.t," Toni said, just as she turned away from Fabian.
"Toni, wait," Fabian called to her, carelessly taking her arm in his hand. Both women"s sets of eyes zeroed in on where he"d touched Toni.
From behind, that deep annoying voice sounded and Toni"s arm tensed. "Is there a problem here?"
Stephan.
Toni continued to glare at Fabian. "No problem at all."
He"d released her arm, and noticed Stephan"s hand replaced his, but Toni yanked away from him. Fabian watched them walk toward the long dinner table. No way was she with Stephan again. An idiot could see there was nothing between those two. This renewed Fabian"s hope, and urgency to get her alone.
"You like her." Camille"s accusation was spot on.
He didn"t deny it because he couldn"t. The silence spoke for him as he led Camille to the special Halman table.
"How was Fabian this week?" Mr. Pallis nearly rammed his bulbous belly into Toni. The dinner ended and the gala was in full swing.
"Mr. Pallis!" Toni flinched, her grip tightening around her martini gla.s.s, though a good bit spilled over the side on her fingers. "h.e.l.lo."
"He"s been gone-" Stephan came up from behind her only to be cut off.
"Go get me another drink." She shoved the martini gla.s.s onto the lapel of his designer suit, spilling vodka all over him. With a few choice words, Stephan took the gla.s.s and turned on his heels toward the bar. By the looks of the line, it could be a while.
"You are a sight." Mr. Pallis"s dark eyes, unlike Fabian"s bright green eyes, dragged over her. He took a hefty gulp of whiskey or scotch perhaps. "Look just like your mother."
Her body warmed. Up until that point, she"d been secure in her dress, quite proud of it. But Mr. Pallis"s stare made her feel like she might as well be naked. Toni struggled with a smile. "Thank you."
"How is Helene? I haven"t heard from her in nearly a month." His breath smelled of alcohol. Not to mention the waver in his stance. He might have had more than enough alcohol.
In that second, Toni had never been more grateful to see a scantily clad woman throw herself at a man she had been talking to. A young woman lunged onto Mr. Pallis, squealing as she did so, and proceeded to cover the side of his face with kisses. Red lips trailed down the side of his face.
Toni averted her gaze to the display, it was painful to watch. Fabian walked across the ballroom, clearly disgusted from what he saw. His father liplocked with a woman less than half his age. Her heart ached for Fabian. She only could imagine what it must have been like for Fabian to grow up with a man like Mr. Pallis. He definitely wasn"t going to win a dad-of-the-year award anytime soon.
"Mother is doing fine." She did her best to ignore that they"d still been making out in front of her and for all to see. "I actually would like to talk to you about something. It"s regarding your son"s report..."
He parted from the woman. "Oh?"
"Uh, yes..." Toni glanced at the woman who glared at her for taking away Mr. Pallis"s attention. "It"s a p-private matter."
"What is a private matter?" Fabian"s voice startled her, his fingers curved over her shoulder. He"d touched her every chance he got thus far, and she didn"t hate it. Actually, she craved it.
"I want to speak to your father, Fabian." Toni"s body coursed with the energy of being close to him again. Though she wanted him near, she knew it would be best if he stayed away from her. Far away. And how could he bring Camille to the gala? Toni moved away, his fingers slipping from her. "We"ll speak later, Mr. Pallis. Excuse me."
"You can call me Victor, sweetheart." Mr. Pallis winked.
She"d never seen Fabian frown that hard. What was he thinking?
Doesn"t matter. I need to get out of here. With a deep breath, she moved toward the bathrooms. She"d never walked that fast in five-inch heels before.
The gala was not the time to sort out her drama with Fabian, albeit caused by her. G.o.d, she really hated herself. Hated how much she"d made a mess of things. But Fabian affected her so tremendously, she couldn"t control herself. She was wild with the thought of his fingers on her shoulder. All their other encounters came back to her, leaving her weak and breathless. She was hot with the memories. Intending to get the h.e.l.l out of there, she entered the dark hall to leading to the ladies" room and was spun around by a strong hand.
She gasped. "Fabian."
His green eyes glowed in that dim hall. His jaw clenched with some attempt to control what was raging inside him. She knew that control. It kept her from throwing herself at him, kissing him, or doing something else her body craved. Raw energy sizzled between them. When he backed her against the wall, she knew it was over for her.
"G.o.dd.a.m.n it, Antonia, tell me the truth." His voice was low and growling, like he"d let his animal instincts take over. It scared her a little, but excited her just the same.
She trembled. "So you"re with Camille again, are you? Or is she just a friends-with-benefits thing?" Her jealousy showed its ugly head. That she tipped her hand enough to show him such an emotion irked her.
"I"m not with her." He palmed her throat. The soft pad of his thumb lay on her pulse as it raced. "And don"t change the subject. You owe it to me. Tell me why you lied to my father," he demanded softer that time, leaning closer to her face.
Desire worked through her body, igniting her senses. "I... I..." She moaned, acutely aware of how close his mouth was to hers. All she wanted was his lips on her lips. His lips on every part of her.
"Tell me, Toni." His fingers tightened on her throat. She gasped at the eroticism of being caged by him, demanded by him. Her c.l.i.toris throbbed with how turned on she was by his power.
And without thinking, the words came. "Because I don"t want you to go."
His mouth crashed down on hers. He bit her lips, sucked her tongue and tangled it with his. They matched intensities, both taking exactly what they wanted. She took it all. His lips, his tongue, his touch. He slid his hand down to her s.e.x and rubbed hard until she pushed away in fear of o.r.g.a.s.ming right there in the hallway.
"We can"t," she croaked, trying to get her bearings, only finding the room was spinning faster with each blink.
Fabian pulled her against him. "Don"t run from me."
She jerked away from him. "You don"t get it."
"Oh, I get it." He scrubbed the side of his head in exasperation. "Admit it, Toni. Admit I might be the one you want."
"What kind of a fool would I have to be to admit that to you?" A spike of anger rose inside her at the thought of Camille and all the other women in his life. "The last thing I"ll ever be is your fool." But she wanted to be, horrifically. She wanted him in the worst way for the worst reasons. She wanted to be his fool, his stupid fool who showed up at his place of employment and nagged about a future. She wanted to be just like the others. And that was plain stupid.
"You have no idea what you would be to me." His eyes glistened with the words.
"And I"m not going to find out either." She turned on her heel, reeling in what had just happened between them. Again. She ached deep within, regretting walking away, but knowing she"d regret it more if she stayed.
Chapter Seventeen.
At Camille"s family River Oaks home, Fabian parked the Bentley in the circular driveway. They"d left the gala early. He was reeling, frustrated, and angry. Confused might be the better word. Way more confused than he was before. And, as much as he didn"t want to feel it, sad. The delusion that he could have Toni in some way had collapsed, leaving him with nothing but the numbness of acceptance.
Camille smiled that smile when she wanted him in her bed. "Are you coming in?"
He shook his head. "No, I"m not."
She frowned. He didn"t know a woman who hated rejection as much as she did. Why wouldn"t she? No other man rejected her. Camille could have anyone she wanted. He only wished she didn"t want him. She brushed her forehead with the tip of her index finger. "Why not?"
He hung his head a moment, gathering his thoughts. "Because you should have more."
Her blue eyes narrowed. "What?"
"I could go in, f.u.c.k you and make you come until you lose your voice. But that"s all I would be giving you and you should have more than that." Crude as usual, but he finally was honest with her. She deserved it.
Camille"s forehead creased as the realization sank in. By the time she spoke, her eyes glittered with unshed tears. "I can give you time, Fabes. I can wait for you."
He shook his head with a sigh. "No. Don"t wait or you"ll wait forever and hate me more."
"I can"t hate you." She choked on her words.
"But you should." He averted his gaze. All the women he"d used should hate him. Even Sweet Tina.
"Please..." Her voice was a painful whisper.
"I"m not the one for you, Camille. I"m just not." His gaze met hers.
In the smallest, most achingly painful voice, she said, "I wish I never met you." But he couldn"t say "sorry" before she practically jumped out and slammed the car door, never looking back at him as she marched up the steps to her father"s house and slammed the front door.
He sighed. It was for the best. He continued home, knowing he"d finally done the right thing.
Each step from the elevator to his condo took effort. The kind of effort that involved dragging a sack full of concrete bricks behind him. His heart pounded in his ears as he turned the corner to his wing of the building. What he saw winded him completely. He thought his knees would buckle.
Toni, still in her c.o.c.ktail gown, sat in front of his door. She stood the moment she saw him, no smile on her face. Uncertainty filled her eyes. From the short distance, he heard the breath surge between her lips.
"I"m a liar."
He didn"t speak, only moved into action. He felt light as air as he advanced toward her, drumming up all the energy he had as he lifted her, pressing his mouth on hers hard enough to feel the pain of his desire. She wrapped her legs around his waist. Somehow he was able to get into his condo with Toni in his arms, still kissing her.
In the door to his bedroom, she spoke, her lips on his, tongue teasing him. "I was told to stay away from you."
After biting her lip, he replied, "I was told you"re off-limits."
"Take off my dress." She moaned the second he dropped her on the ma.s.sive bed. She flipped over, exposing the zipper along the seam of her dress.
"You"re gorgeous." He filled his palms with her perfectly plump a.s.s, squeezing hard until she cried out. He found the hem of her dress and slipped his hand under to touch her smooth skin, while his other hand ran up to the back of her head, embedding in her hair. He wanted to caress all of her. Suck and lick all of her. He wanted everything with her.
One kiss after the other, his lips trailed down her back with each inch he"d unzipped her dress. He reveled in her smooth skin, taking in her vanilla scent until his lungs stretched to capacity as he covered her with his breath and touch. She moaned, urging and completely compliant. She wanted him, and he honestly couldn"t believe it was all happening. If it was a dream, he would deserve the cruelty of it. But he silently prayed it was real. That she was really there, under him, letting him kiss her, touch her. Allowing him to make her feel like she deserved. Adored. Because he did adore her.
Fabian slipped a hand under her, hiking it up to her breast. And then he flipped her. She yelped. "Fabian!"
"You have no idea what I want to do to you, Toni. None." He yanked at her dress, peeling the silk from her body like it wasn"t worth a few thousand dollars he knew it was. He"d buy her another one. As many dresses as she wanted. In nothing but a glittering G-string, she looked at him. "It"s like a tiara. Like a princess." She laughed at his ridiculous words, but she was a princess to him. His focus would be one thing alone. Remind his neighbors who lived there.
"I like flashy things," she said low in her throat, the look in her eyes making him harder than he"d ever been.
"So do I." He lowered his head to her stomach, nipping as he trailed down to her princess panties. He slipped a finger under the material at her hipbone and yanked until they tore off. "But you already knew that."
"Oh G.o.d, Fabian!" She parted her thighs, showing him everything.
A sigh came out of him. Beautiful didn"t describe what she was, laying there on display. She was magical. Heavenly. No word would do her justice. Their eyes met. Pace yourself. He wanted it to last. He wanted to give her pleasure she"d never had before. He wanted to be the best she"d ever had.
"What man would leave this?" He spoke mostly to himself, gazing at her body. With both hands, he spread her thighs farther apart. He"d never been so hard in his life. But he didn"t want to undress yet. He wanted to focus on her.
"Take your clothes off," she said, reaching for his shirt. Thankfully, he"d left his suit jacket in the car.
He shook his head. "Not yet." He dipped down to her most private part and tasted her there with his lips, and then his tongue.
Fabian did it again. He brought her to pleasure quick and hard. Toni moaned at the rising tension inside her. The faster he darted his tongue over her c.l.i.toris, the faster her moans turned into cries until the final release quieted her. But for only a moment.
"Oh, G.o.d!" she choked, grabbing handfuls of his hair. "Fabian..." She could barely speak.
He lifted his head, revealing a crazed look in his eyes. He wasn"t done with her. He stripped off his shirt, barely getting his bow tie off first. The belt came next with clumsy precision. Toni held her breath until he was down to his boxer briefs, the outline of his c.o.c.k both frightening her and turning her on more if that were possible.