Page 40 of As the World Falls

“Oh,” I replied vaguely, trying to remain as if James were still a perfect stranger to me. I didn’t want to fall into too deep of a conversation about him because I didn’t want to accidentally give anything away.

“There he is now,” Tobias says, nodding ahead of the crowd. I follow his line of sight, landing on James, who is conversing with another person I don’t know. He glances over to Tobias, nodding in acknowledgment, and turns back to his conversation, but a second later, his gaze whips back toward us and lands directly on me.

He was clearly surprised by my presence, and although my legs trembled in fear, I couldn’t help but eat up his wide eyes and his mouth turning down into a frown. I liked that I kept him on his toes. It was addicting, the feeling of being unexpected to someone.

I shoot him a sly smile, and his mouth presses together in a hard line as he watches us approach him. “How’s it going?” Tobias greets him and the other man.

“It’s…going,” James replies sternly.

“You remember my sister,” Tobias mentions, gesturing to me.

“How could I forget?” he says, his eyes falling onto me again. “How are you, Cecilia?”

“Quite well,” I answer proudly. I quickly look away from him, focusing on the stranger at his side. “Hi, Cecilia Bowen.”

He reaches for my hand, softly shaking it and holding it for a second longer than is considered appropriate. “Alan Forcer,” he says with a soft smile. He was quite handsome. He had light golden-brown hair that was floppy and swept back to the side, as well as a charming smile. He was broad, like a square, buffer than I’d typically consider attractive, but he pulled it off well, especially in a suit.

“Alan is head of our sales department,” Tobias tells me.

“Oh,” I chime. “So, you’re good with numbers. That’s always a nice skillset to have.”

Alan chuckles warmly. “One of the many skills I obtain, yes.”

“Ooo.” I grin. “Confident, too.” James’s right eyebrow jumps as I speak, his piercing stare boring into me, but I force myself to ignore his suffocating presence.

“Okay, okay. Settle down now,” Tobias interrupts.

“Sorry,” Alan says. “It’s not every day I meet a beautiful woman with such an outgoing personality.”

“That’s it. I’m getting a drink,” Tobias grumbles, making me giggle. I draw my eyes to James, who is still standing there, his eyes dark and focused on me.

My stomach curls in on itself under his attention, and I rip my gaze away, looking back to Alan. “Do you have a table we can chat at?” I smile at him.

He reaches for my hand, and I slip mine into his as he chimes, “Right this way.” I look over my shoulder, finding James tracking my every move.

An hour later, I gulped down a glass of champagne in one swallow, staring mindlessly at Alan as he went on and on about his beach house in Malibu. All he’d done for an hour was tell me about the sales goals he never fails to meet, the year he bought his first Aston Martin that he likes to take racing, and the outdoor playhouse he built for his nephew. The playhouse is actually cute, but his bragging about its large size, which he built all by himself, was not.

“That’s nice,” I cut him off. “I have to use the bathroom…so…excuse me.” I stand from the table and race in the opposite direction, scouring the room for my brother, but I don’t see him anywhere.

I go to the bathroom, stopping at the mirror, adjusting my hair, and putting on a fresh coat of lipstick since a considerable amount has rubbed off on the three glasses of champagne I drank just so I could endure Alan’s love life with himself.

I thought Alan would be a good resource for information, considering he was head of sales. Surely, if there were anymoney problems or suspicions, he would know about it, right? But he would redirect the conversation to something about himself whenever I asked anything remotely work-related. Either he knew nothing, or he was a very well-versed accomplice. I was voting for the former.

I walk out of the bathroom, and immediately, I’m pulled by the arm down the long hall leading in the opposite direction of the party.

“Hey,” I yell, fighting against the hold when I look up and realize it’s James. He pushes me through two swinging doors, and my back lands against a row of fabric. I look around the small, dark space, realizing we are in a coat closet.

My eyes shoot forward as he closes in on me, his hard gaze penetrating me as the doors swing shut behind him. His arm shoots out, gripping the bar, holding the hangers of coats as he leans into me, caging me inside.

“What do you think you’re doing?” His thick voice slices through the air.

“What do you mean?” I yelped, my voice shaking uncontrollably. “My brother asked me to come.”

“And you had the nerve to show?” It was dark in here, and I couldn’t see well, but a sliver of light cut a small slice over his face, lighting up his grey eye, showing the creases around it and the angry curl of his mouth.

“Of course,” I manage to say. “I have a vendetta.”

He chuckles darkly now, making me stand straighter in my discomfort. “And what have you found, little owl? Was Alan of any help? Maybe you can use the mirror he keeps in his back pocket to stare at himself and keep an eye on what’s happening behind your back.”

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