Page 15 of If The Shoe Fits

"You don't?"

Her new confidence allowed for him to lead them through a smooth waltz until the last note died. But he hadn't had enough of her. Not even nearly. Keeping her hand in his, he led her to the bar, and gestured at a bartender.

"Whatever the lady would like."

"Anything wet and white, please."

Cade choked on his saliva, and coughed. Fuck. The last thing he needed was to think of her in relation to wet and white things, right here in the middle of a crowded room.

But here he was, anyway.

She didn't miss a beat. "Get your mind out of the gutter, Lawson."

"You don't get to dictate that, after that order."

The little witch dared wink at him. "It's not my fault you're a perv. I meant wine."

The bartender said nothing, but by the smirk he had a hard time hiding, Cade guessed he agreed with him. "We have Chardonnay, Sauvignon, and champagne—a Veuve Clicquot."

"I'll go for the bubbly."

Cade ordered a scotch, before redirecting their chat. "Well?"

She tilted her chin. "Sorry?"

"You don't think people want to improve themselves, get rid of their flaws?"

"Some people, sure." She shrugged. "Others, less so." She turned to look at the crowd. "Look at them. The people here earn more than the rest of New York City. Maybe their flaw is greed. If it is, do you think they'd want to change?"

Cade turned her question in his mind. He wished he could put it down to bitterness, but she made a certain point, overall.

"You assume that everyone wealthy became that way because of their greed. What about those born into it?"

She frowned.

"James and I got our trust when we finished college. Sure, we could have given it away, and struggled in the workforce like anyone less fortunate. Instead, we chose to build our company. One of our friends—who wasn't wealthy—had the brains. He was selling apps in his teens, and designed his first prototype freshman year. Other companies wanted to hire him and use his intellect to further their gain. We decided to finance it. With our contacts and our money, we became a billion-dollar corporation in ten years. None of that was born of greed. Now, we have thousands of employees whose livelihoods depend on us. What would you call that?"

"An exception." Damn, she was ruthless. "Tell me most billionaires don't trade their money here and there and sit back on their investment."

Cade sighed. "Fine. Capitalism is evil. We're all monsters."

"Don't put words in my mouth, please. I don't think you're evil. I just think the world isn't fair. I'm luckier than most. I never was hungry; I never was discriminated against for my race or sexuality. But the way the system works only helps the one percent. Even this charity thing is a joke. Carter means well, but they'll give a bit of money to a few families, and then what? What about everyone else? What about these people when the money runs out? They'll still struggle to find a job that'll pay barely enough to survive. You guys are the only ones living."

Cade downed what was left of his scotch. "I'm going to need another one of these."

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