I pushed out a puff of air. “Is that what the attitude was about at the homeless shelter yesterday? Thinking those people were just holding their hands out for a free meal.”
He shrugged. “I suppose.”
I shook my head. “Maybe you should widen the circle of people you surround yourself with then.”
He gave me a pondering look. “Perhaps I should.”
“Actual friends might do you some good.” I didn’t know much about Ian, but I could definitely tell he wasn’t the type to have close friends.
“When I was thirteen years old, the boy I’d thought was my best friend since I was five years old decided he’d had enough of our friendship. He started hanging out with a new group of friends. One day we’d gotten into a fight. His group and my group. Before I knew it a rock was thrown, landed in my left eye. Not only did I lose a friendship, I lost an eye and fifty percent of my eyesight along with it.” He stepped closer, towering over me. “In the hospital that night, all my father said to me was, friendships that don’t make you money or grant you more power are a waste of time.”
He paused, looking at me intently.
“I don’t need friends.”
I opened and closed my mouth a couple of times, not knowing how to respond to what he’d just revealed.
“Let’s go.” Ian didn’t give me much time to think before he was wrapping his arm around mine and walking us back into the gala. Guessing we were leaving, I quickly placed my now empty glass of eggnog on the tray of a passing waiter.
“Ian!”
We stopped and turned to see Jamie moving toward us hurriedly, just before we were at the ballroom’s exit.
“Where are you going? I thought we were going to talk some more to the mayor tonight. ”
I caught the way she’d said we as if she were the one who was supposed to be on Ian’s arm instead of me. She briefly cut her gaze to me before looking back to Ian and softening her gaze.
Whatever.
“Mayor’s tired and has a number of hangers-on surrounding him. We will speak more at the opera house tomorrow evening.”
“What about Andre Collins? You didn’t get a chance to speak with him.”
“I spoke with Nikola. The three of us are having lunch tomorrow, but I’m sure you were already aware of that,” Ian chastised. “We are retiring for the evening.”
“Congratulations, sir, you’re standing under the mistletoe,” a passing waiter stated to Ian.
I glanced upwards, and sure enough, Ian and I were standing right under the mistletoe that hung above the entranceway.
“So I am,” Ian stated, slowly lowering his head to stare down at me.
I was certain Ian would brush off the tradition of kissing under the mistletoe. I was wrong.
“Ian, I don’t think—”
Jamie’s words fell away as Ian’s lips came barreling toward my upturned mouth. A sharp intake of air moved through me as soon as our lips touched. A kiss that I thought would last for less than a second, seemed to go on indefinitely. But I didn’t mind. Ian’s lips were much softer than I’d suspected. And at that moment is when I realized that I had, indeed, thought about Ian Zerlinger’s lips before.
He raised his head, ending the kiss. I caught how he ran his tongue along his lower lip as if savoring the kiss. I couldn’t believe the intense desire I’d felt at that moment to grab his head and lower his mouth to mine again.
“I will see you in the morning.” His words were addressed to Jamie but his gaze was planted on me.
I let him direct me, taking me by the elbow and leading us to the elevator. He didn’t remove his hand from my elbow until we arrived at my hotel room’s door.
I fumbled a little as I attempted to pull out the keycard to my room. Somehow, I managed to find it and insert it into the door, unlocking it.
“Get some rest. We will meet tomorrow at noon for lunch in the hotel’s restaurant,” Ian stated before stepping back to move onto the elevator.
“Your father was wrong,” I blurted out, turning to him.
He halted and turned to me, forehead wrinkled, eye narrowed. His arm went out, holding the elevator door open.
“I’m sorry about what your ex friend did to you but we all need friends even if they can’t provide money or power.”
Ian raised his head, but remained silent just before nodding.
“Sleep well,” he stated, and stared at me as if waiting for me to enter my room.
“Sleep well,” I responded before entering and shutting the door behind me.