Page 14 of Bedding The Best Man (Bedding the Bachelors)

In truth, the publicity would be invaluable; but the opportunity to put Leland in his place was practically making her salivate. He needed to be taken down a peg or two, and his clients deserved better than his tired and unoriginal events. She would be more than happy to take them into the new century for him.

He chuckled. “I’m impressed with your self-confidence,” he said, indulgently. “Would you care to make it more interesting?”

Alarm bells went off in Brianne’s head, but she couldn’t help herself. “How exactly do you propose we do that?”

Leland laid his hand on her desk, his perfectly manicured fingers tapping the surface.

Brianne couldn’t help but feel a little repulsed by them; they were too shiny and his hands were too pale and delicate to belong to a real man. Even Eric, for all his money, had calluses on his hands from years of riding polo ponies and mucking out his own stables. She made a mental note to wipe down the surface of the desk when Leland left.

“What if winner takes all?” he replied with almost predatory pleasure.

Her eyes narrowed. This was dangerous territory he was leading her into, and he knew it, the reptile. “What exactly do you mean by that, just so we are absolutely clear on the stakes?”

“The winner of the contest gets all the funds raised,” he said, nodding, as if the idea was the best one he’d had in a while. “And,” he continued, looking triumphant, “to make the judging fair, neither of us will know who will be attending our events.”

Brianne frowned. She didn’t miss his implication that the only way she’d beat him was if she used her family’s influence to invite everyone from her own social circle to her event. Leland had great contacts and knew it, but virtually everyone Brianne had ever known was a billionaire many times over. “Who would find the attendees?”

“The magazine,” Leland said, sitting back, a smug look on his face. “Life and Societywill select the people to attend the events, and they are the ones that will vote on the winner.”

Brianne felt a little nauseated by his arrogance and the cloying scent of his sickly aftershave. It would be one thing to go up against Leland and lose. Many did—there was no shame in that. But to lose to him, then also lose the raised money? That seemed not only damaging, but downright dangerous.

Leland read into her hesitation and took the chance to twist the knife. “Of course, if you’re still having personal issues left over from the wedding, I wouldn’t want you to overtax yourself.”

He’d thought it all out long before he stepped into the office. Every step, every dig at her self-esteem. He couldn’t keep himself from looking gleeful.

Bile rose in her throat. She swallowed it back down and took a deep breath. When she looked across the desk at Leland, at his oozing over-confidence and certainty in his victory, she knew she needed this challenge not just for her company, but on a personal level. This could be the moment that everything turned around. Beating him would be a game-changer for Lavish; and cutting the head off the vile snake who sat so casually in front of her would be a major personal victory.

She stood and stuck out her hand. “Okay Leland, you’re on.”

Leland stood up and shook her hand.

She had to suppress a physical shudder of distaste.

“Excellent,” he said. “I’m looking forward to some friendly competition.”

Brianne smiled a wicked grin, and for the first time in weeks, the expression felt natural. “You have no idea.”

As she ushered him from her office, she felt a burst of excitement rising in her chest.This could be the best thing I’ve ever done, she thought as she began scribbling ideas down.

* * *

“Oh my God, Evie, this is the worst thing I’ve ever done,” Brianne moaned, burying her head in her hands. For a week, she’d been pouring over her ideas. Nothing seemed original enough, fun enough, spectacular enough to beat the snakelike Leland Mahoney.

“Oh, come on, Boss,” Evie said in a soothing tone, sitting on the opposite side of Brianne’s desk. “It’s not that bad. In fact, it could turn out great.”

“How?” Brianne cried. “Leland’s won this damn contest for the last three years. He’s practically unbeatable.”

“Nobody’s unbeatable,” Evie said firmly, toying with her blonde ponytail. “They said the Titanic couldn’t be sunk, and look at what happened there.”

“So you’re comparing me to the Titanic?”

“No, I’m comparing Leland to the Titanic!” Evie rolled her eyes. “Never mind. There’s no Titanic. We just need to concentrate on coming up with something great, something new.”

“Yes, but what? It’s got to be something different, maybe something that hasn’t caught on here yet.”

“That’s it, keep those thoughts coming. I knew when I saw that faraway look in your eyes that something spectacular was coming.”

“Something fresh, sophisticated but unexpected. Something European?”

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