Page 5 of Take Me Under

My father had used that term of endearment for me when I was a little girl. But with him, it was a fatherly thing said to his only daughter. With Anton, it took on a different meaning. Like I was the damsel locked in a tower and he was the rogue warrior sent to rescue me. After all, he had just saved me from a fall. What was he if not my knight in shining armor? I kind of liked the idea.

No. Ireallyliked it—even though I knew I shouldn’t. I was too busy to entertain fairytales.

My eyes focused on his, and I was instantly ensnared in his gaze once again. It caused my heart to do the sort of flip I hadn’t felt since high school.

“All business and no play? Such a shame,” he mused with atsk-tsk.

“Not really. These things aren’t my cup of tea.”

“Oh?” he questioned with a raised brow.

“I don’t fit in here. I mean, just look at me.”

His eyes darkened.

“I am.”

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph…

So much seemed to be packed into those two little words, and I found myself blushing again.

“I just meant that these events are…” I fought a sigh of frustration as my foolish blathering continued. “I guess I don’t…I don’t know how to explain how I feel.”

“Try me,” he coaxed, as if it were so easy.

I looked away. I had a PhD, and I’d given countless lectures to hundreds of people, yet I could barely string more than four words together in front of this one man.

I bit down on my lower lip and contemplated how to describe my irrational fear of attending such a high-profile event, where I would be forced to interact with some of the world’s most famous, influential, and wealthiest people. I was terrified of experiencing a monumental failure—a bitter defeat of everything I’d ever worked for. But worse, failure would mean I’d never follow through on my promise to my father.

Sweat began to bead on my brow, and my stomach lurched. For the second time in ten minutes, I thought I’d be sick. However, I wasn’t so sure if it was from the tight dress or from my nerves. Perhaps it was neither. The feverish feeling had returned, and I was starting to think I was coming down with something. If I was going to be sick, I didn’t want it to happen in front of him.

I brought my gaze back to meet his. The sexy stranger waited patiently for an answer I didn’t feel comfortable giving.

“It’s complicated.” I tried to shrug off the question, suddenly overcome with the need to escape.

“Most things in life are, Serena.” His gaze was heavy andwarm. It was like a blanket on the coldest winter day, making me want to get lost in all the comforts he could offer.

Still, I didn’t want to admit my insecurities about not belonging—especially to someone who looked as confident as he did. This event was for the elite. For all I knew, he was among them, hailing from a prestigious lineage that I’d never measure up to. But at the same time, he didn’t come across as an arrogant snob like one would expect from someone who appeared beyond reproach. He seemed genuinely interested in hearing what I had to say.

“A lot is at stake,” I said honestly. “There are investors here I need to connect with to keep the lights on. I know what to do and say, but I’m…”

Not good enough. Out of their league.

But I didn’t say those words out loud. Instead, I paused and pushed my brows together in consternation. Something about this man made me want to divulge more about myself than I should.

“Go on,” he encouraged.

“I guess I’m just not in a hurry to walk the red carpet. It’s intimidating, and I’m awkward at these sorts of events,” I admitted, pointing toward the museum.

“Is this your first time attending the Met Gala?” Anton asked, cocking his head to the side curiously.

“Yes, and surely it will be the last. You?”

“First time. This isn’t really my scene either,” he said. His eyes narrowed, and the set of his jaw tightened. “It’s a bunch of rich people carrying little plates of food that will never get eaten, pretending to care about a cause while wearing ten-thousand-dollar suits and priceless designer dresses. It’s become more about political statements and gaudy displays of wealth than anything else. Like you, I’m only here because I have a need. Otherwise, I’d find better things to do with my money. Thesecelebrity events are all the same. Once you’ve been to one, you’ve been to them all.”

I raised a brow at his cynicism, but I couldn’t disagree.

“You’re right about that. This isn’t really all that dissimilar to other events I’ve attended, although none of them have been quite this grand. They were smaller scale with less media attention, but the pretenses and shows of wealth are all the same. You’d think attending things like this would get easier over time, but they don’t. If anything, they’ve gotten harder for me.” I looked down, focusing on an old, flattened wad of gum on the sidewalk. I wasn’t sure why I was divulging so much, but I found myself continuing. “I guess you could say my insecurities rule me, even when I know the emotions are irrational.”

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