Page 6 of The Angel and the Agent

Piedmont was waiting patiently where she’d left him. He smiled at her approach. “Everything all right? You were gone for a while.”

“Everything is perfect,” she said, unscrewing the water to take a few drinks. She wanted to guzzle the entire thing, but her mother’s voice rang in her head, reminding her to be a lady. She offered the bottle to Piedmont, but he shook his head, his lip curling slightly. He didn’t like to share food or drinks. For Amelia, who had grown up in a family of sharers, that was almost but not quite a strike against him.

“Would you like to dance some more, or are you ready for a break?” he asked.

“Dancing, if you please. I so rarely get the chance anymore,” Amelia said.

“I’m going to have to take you to some more charity events. You’ll get enough dancing and canapés to last a lifetime.”

“What’s a canapé?” she asked.

“As far as I can tell, it’s a dry piece of toast with some sort of grayish meat on top,” he said.

“Mmm, my favorite,” she replied, earning a smile from him.

“Did I mention you look especially beautiful tonight?” Piedmont said.

“You may have, but I’ll allow another,” Amelia replied. She wasn’t insecure, but Piedmont was quite the snag. Of all the women in DC, she wondered how she had been the one to catch his eye. It was only by some stroke of luck he’d chosen her salon for his last haircut. She hadn’t been his stylist, but she’d beennearby with her own client, chatting happily. New to DC, she’d had no idea who he was until after he asked for her number. Since he was a stranger, she had at first refused. It was his stylist, Julie, who snatched one of Amelia’s cards and shoved it into his fingers.

Don’t you have any idea who that was, stupid?Julie had hissed after he left.When Piedmont Bonvoy asks for your number, you give it to him.They’d been out a handful of times the last few weeks, and each time he seemed more interested than the last. Amelia was fairly certain she liked him, but there was also a part of her that wondered how much she liked him versus how much she liked the idea of him. Either way, she was flattered by his attention.

“I liked your maid of honor speech,” Piedmont said, drawing her back to the present. “I should have you write for me next time I have to give one.”

“I could only do it if it’s for my sister,” Amelia said. “She and I go back a ways.”

“Your family’s nice,” he said.

“They seem to like you, too, although it’s hard to tell because they pretty much like everyone. I mean, that came out wrong,” she tried, frowning.

Piedmont chuckled. “Don’t worry about it, I got the gist. They’re warm, nice people. And so is their daughter.”

“Maggie’s sweet,” Amelia agreed.

“Maybe everyone else in the room is thinking about Maggie today, but I’ve only had eyes for the other Eldridge sister,” he said.

“Yeah? I’m not familiar with that one. They must keep her in a closet to hide the crazy,” Amelia said.

In reply, he kissed her palm before spinning her so quickly she had to grasp his shoulders to keep her balance. When she reoriented herself, she found that she was facing Ethan whostood against the back wall, arms crossed. They locked eyes. He smiled and shook his head, mouthing something. It took a while to work out what he said, and then she got it:

It’s on now.

Chapter 3

It was after midnight by the time Amelia was finally able to leave the reception. She tried to get Piedmont to go home without her, but he said he was happy to stay. Knowing how absolutely crazy busy his life was, she didn’t take his time or attention for granted. He even pitched in to help clean up after Maggie and Ridge left. Ethan, she noted, was markedly absent for that part.

Piedmont’s driver took her home. There was a part of her that couldn’t believe she was dating a man who had a driver.It’s a luxury, I know, but it’s such a timesaver. I can work while we sit in traffic, and he’s the one who has to deal with rush hour stress.

Amelia had never invited him up to her apartment before, but there was no getting around it tonight. Mostly because he followed her inside her building uninvited. She was nervous about having him see her teeny tiny little studio. DC was an expensive city, and she wouldn’t start making good money at the exclusive salon where she worked until after her probation was over. Some of the more senior stylists made six figures. Amelia couldn’t wait until it was her turn to do so. Being poor in thecity was no fun, especially when her quasi-boyfriend was likely a millionaire.

She paused outside her door. “Piedmont, about my apartment…”

He rested his hands on her shoulders. “Amelia, do you have any idea where I lived during law school?”

“With your parents?” she guessed. He had been a teenager, after all. Some kind of super genius who finished high school at twelve.

“Yes, so you can imagine the sorry state of my dating life. And then when I finally moved out, I had a crummy little walkup over a crack den. Believe me, I didn’t start out with a townhouse in Georgetown.”

Townhomes in Georgetown were in the millions. “You’re not really easing my anxieties here,” she told him. She had never seen his home either, and right now she was glad. If she’d actually landed a glimpse of his luxury digs, she’d for certain never be able to let him see her peephole of a dwelling.

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