Page 6 of An Unexpected Love

“I didn’t bring it with me,” she informed him primly,sorry she’d even mentioned it. “A friend had it delivered.”

“You’re getting married?”

“No. I— Oh, I don’t have time to explain.”

Jordan eyed her as if he had plenty of questions, but wasn’t sure he wanted to ask them.

“Wear the one you showed me, then,” he said testily. “I’m sure it’ll be fine.”

“All right, I will.” By now Jill regretted agreeing to attend the dinner party. “I’ll be ready in five minutes.” She closed the door again, but not before she got a glimpse of the surprised look on Jordan’s face. It wasn’t until she’d slipped out of her sundress that she realized he probably wasn’t accustomed to women who left him waiting in the hallway while they changed clothes.

Although she knew Jordan was impatient, Jill took an extra few minutes to freshen her makeup and run a brush through her shoulder-length brown hair. Using a gold clip, she pinned it up in a simple chignon. Despite herself, she couldn’t help feeling excited about this small adventure. There was no telling whom she might meet tonight.

Drawing in a deep breath to calm herself, she smoothed the skirt of her dress, then walked slowly to the door. Jordan was waiting for her, his back against the opposite wall. He straightened when she appeared.

“Do I look okay?”

His gaze narrowed assessingly. His scrutiny made Jill uncomfortable, and she held herself stiffly. At last he nodded.

“You look fine,” was all he said.

Jill heaved a sigh of relief, returned to her room to retrieve her purse and then joined Jordan.

The dinner party, as he’d explained earlier, was in a private room in one of the hotel’s restaurants. Jordan led the way to the elevator, his pace urgent.

“You’d better tell me what you want me to do,” she said.

“Do?” he repeated with a frown. “Just do whatever you women do to let one another know a certain man is off-limits, and make sure Suzi understands.” He hesitated. “Only do it without fawning all over me.”

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Jill said, gazing up at him in mock adoration and fluttering her lashes.

Jordan’s frown deepened. “None of that, either.”

“Of what?”

“That thing with the eyes.” He motioned with his hand, looking annoyed.

“Should I know something about who’s attending the party?”

“Not really,” he said impatiently.

“What about you?” He shot her a puzzled look, and Jill elaborated. “If I’m your date, it makes sense I’d know who you are—something beyond your name, I mean—and what you do.”

“I suppose it does.” He buried his hands in his pockets. “I’m the CEO for a large development company based in Seattle. Simply put, we develop projects, gather together the financing, arrange for the construction, and then once the project’s completed, we sell.”

“That sounds interesting.” If you thrived on tension and pressure, that is.

“It can be,” was his only response. He looked her over once more, but his glance revealed neither approval nor reproach.

“I didn’t like you when we first met.” Jill wasn’tsure why she felt obliged to tell him this. In fact, she still didn’t like him, although she had to admit he was a very attractive man indeed. “When I sat next to you during the flight, I thought you were very unfriendly,” she continued.

“I take it your opinion of me hasn’t changed?” He cocked one brow with the question, as if to suggest her answer wouldn’t trouble him one way or the other.

Jill ignored him. “You don’t like women very much, do you?”

“They have their uses.”

He said it in such a belittling, negative way that Jill felt a flash of hot color invade her cheeks. She turned to look at him, feeling almost sorry for a man who had everything yet seemed so empty inside. “What’s made you so cynical?”

---