Page 45 of Forget

‘Just peachy.’ She flashed a smile for good measure.

‘You’re awfully flushed.’

‘The hospital’s over-heated.’

His gaze locked with hers and when his eyes widened imperceptibly she knew he could see all her horny thoughts reflected there.

‘You know, we could always skip this stupid awards event?’

She could’ve almost said yes if not for the weird family dynamics she’d witnessed earlier. ‘We could, but your dad’s counting on you to represent him at this thing, isn’t he?’

A scowl curled his upper lip. ‘Yeah. So?’

‘So you don’t want to let him down.’ She squeezed his hand. ‘Besides, it’ll be over by eleven.’

He arched an eyebrow. ‘And?’

Even with her four-inch stilettos she had to lean in and stand on tiptoe to whisper in his ear. ‘And after that, we have all night.’

21

Brock stepped intothe function room and stared, his mind officially blown.

He’d expected the warehouse venue in Melbourne’s trendy Docklands to be sparse, even a little garish, and nothing like this lavish winter wonderland. The white and silver theme, from the napkins to the candles in the pale pink posy rose centrepieces to the silk chair bows, glittered beneath stunning chandeliers, casting crystallised shadows against the stark steel walls.

At least thirty tables of ten filled the room, with people in semi-formal gear mingling or topping up drinks from the silver buckets placed strategically next to the tables. The loud din made his ears ache, the excited chatter of people he’d rather avoid.

All the beautiful decorations in the world couldn’t detract from where he was as he struggled not to run a finger beneath his collar and itch until he bled. He’d never had hives but if the uncomfortable sensation prickling his neck was any indication he might be suffering his first case.

He knew the cause. He was allergic to bullshit and setting foot inside a function filled with used-car salesmen was one giant BS fest waiting to happen.

‘Table twenty-eight is over there.’ Jayda tugged on his hand and pointed to the front of the room with the other. ‘Near the stage.’

Great. Not only would his ears suffer from the crap spouted by a bunch of practised liars, he’d be deafened by the band too.

‘Hey, lose the frown.’ She bumped him with her hip and he glanced down at her, something he’d been trying not to do too often since she’d strutted into his office an hour ago.

She’d pushed open the glass door to his office and it had taken every ounce of willpower not to hang up on important clients and sweep his desk clean so he could spread-eagle her on it and not resurface for a week.

She looked phenomenal in a slinky black satin dress that skimmed her thighs and swished around her calves. The halter style did incredible things to her tits and he wanted to bury his face in them. The fancy up-do, a twisty thing of curls on top of her head, showed off her pretty neck that he yearned to nibble on, and her makeup played up her deep blue eyes and lush mouth.

She looked stunning. Then again, he’d seen her with bloodshot puffy eyes and streaked mascara on graduation night and he’d found her beautiful then. He knew that a woman like Jayda glowed from within. She was kind-hearted, sweet, and loveable. No surprise that his folks had fallen for her so quickly.

If he wasn’t careful he would be in danger of doing the same.

Having to introduce Jayda to his parents had sent him into a tailspin. He’d mentally cursed for a full five minutes when he realised he’d have to ask her to accompany him from his office to the awards night, which meant she’d be along for the ride when he swung past the hospital to pick up the tickets and he couldn’t be rude and ask her to wait in the car.

As if the introductions hadn’t been bad enough, his folks had appeared genuinely happy. They’d swapped banter and actuallylaughed. At his expense, but he’d been too shocked to care. Combined with his initial visit to his dad, when he’d definitely seen signs of change, he wondered if things had improved between them and he hadn’t noticed.

Considering he rarely spent time with them, it was entirely possible. Maybe his dad had hit his head when he fell along with breaking a hip? Or maybe spending time with Jayda was seriously messing withhishead and making him see positivity where there was none?

He thought she could be a good influence on him, get him to lighten up a little. But when he started noticing small things, like the fond glances his folks exchanged, he had to wonder if embracing her optimism was a good thing.

Thankfully, Jayda had found his parents’ ribbing amusing, but he couldn’t get their overt matchmaking attempts out of his head. Since when did they take an active interest in his life anyway?

‘What’s going on with you?’ Jayda shook his arm and jolted out of his reverie, he glanced down at where their hands were joined.

‘Sorry. I’m mulling a work problem.’

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