Page 17 of Blackmail of a Billionaire

Thomas held his wine ready to drink but could not take his eyes off Julia. “Fascinating. Tell me, what do you draw from?”

Julia lifted a shoulder. “Oh, anything, everything. A song, a lyric, the way a certain color catches the light, a picture, anything can inspire a story.”

“Unbelievable. I really must pick up one of your books and read it before we meet again."

“Well, I would love for you to try one and hear what you think.”

“What would you recommend?”

Julia gave it some thought before passing along a recommendation with a smile. Grant eyed her with a sparkle in his eyes that may have come from the low lighting or something else. She offered him a tiny nod, trying to reassure him that whatever happened early was not affecting her performance at the dinner party.

The first course was delivered by the staff, and conversation slowed until Carolina Foster addressed the table at large. “So, how did you two meet?”

The dark-haired Veronica, who from her attitude Julia had gathered was not a friend of Grant’s on the board, chimed in as she picked up her wine glass. “Yes, I’ve been wondering the same. It all seemed…such a whirlwind.”

Julia’s heart skipped a beat at the question. Despite being a fiction writer, her mind went completely blank. They couldn’t possibly admit to how they’d met. She imagined their guests’ reaction as she said they met in a nightclub at an interview for his new wife.

Julia licked her lips, her eyes immediately moving down the table to find Grant’s. He grinned at her, a quick wiggle of his eyebrows. She arched an eyebrow as he launched into the tale.

“That’s actually quite an entertaining tale. It was by accident. I was…consulting with Sierra on a few things, and she had a meeting scheduled with an author who turned out to be Julia.”

“Who is one of our best, of course,” Sierra added to the tale.

Eyes flicked toward her as chuckles sounded over Sierra’s added information.

She offered a polite smile as she adjusted a lock of her hair. When she glanced up again, she found Grant’s gaze fixed on her.

“When she walked in, I was…enamored.”

The way he said it almost made her believe it. He certainly knew how to turn on the charm and win over a crowd. No wonder he’d had four wives.

Veronica sipped her wine. “And you asked her on a date?”

Grant held Julia’s gaze a moment longer, a silent signal from his eyes of some kind, but she couldn’t read it. He finally slid his gaze to Veronica. “Actually, no, she forgot her purse. I tracked her down, took her to dinner, and the rest is history.”

“Aw, how lovely,” Greg’s girlfriend said as she clamped a hand on Greg’s arm and shot him a pointed glance that Julia read as a silent signal for a proposal.

“Cheers to the beautiful couple,” Sierra said, raising her glass. “I’m certain we can all agree they’re just perfect together.”

“Well, they must be,” Veronica said with a chuckle after a sip of her wine. She flicked a pointed gaze at Julia. “Forgive me for seeming to pry, but you do understand with Grant’s position, it is up to the board to…protect Harrington Global.”

Julia swallowed hard as she glanced at Grant. The tension in his jaw belied his upset over the woman’s comment.

Julia tried to diffuse the situation with a polite smile at the woman, but she did not let it go, adding to the tense situation. “Which is why I found it so curious when I did my due diligence that I did not find a prenuptial agreement between the two of you.”

Julia arched an eyebrow. It was a detail she hadn’t considered either. Obviously, she had no claim on the company or any of his assets because of the contract she’d signed, but she couldn’t admit that.

Veronica set her wine glass down and continued, “Understandably, I became concerned. If you should leave Grant…well, the effect on the company could be detrimental.”

Grant’s hand thudded against the table, tension edging his voice. “That’s out of line, Veronica.”

“I don’t think it is, Grant,” Veronica shot back. “Given your track record, I think it’s a very material concern.”

Julia bit her lower lip as the woman spoke. Veronica was not letting this go.

“My private life is–” Grant began when Veronica cut him off.

“Very public as CEO of this company. And I have every right to be concerned about a new marriage that seems to have come out of nowhere.”

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