Page 16 of Black Tie Billionaire
Six
Shay smiled up at her server as she accepted the black folder containing the check for the meal she’d just finished. Well, a little more than a meal. Her smile widened at the warm glow of satisfaction radiating inside her chest. A business meeting with the two women who had just left the restaurant, and one that had gone extremely well.
This had been her reason for ducking outon dinner with Trevor, Madison and her family. As much as Shay’s job at RemingtonNeal bored the hell out of her, she was grateful for it. Without the six-figure salary, she wouldn’t be able to finance her own secret company—an investment firm that funded innovative, promising start-ups—start-ups founded by women.
Shay made it possible for women to achieve their dreams, and with a percentageof the profits, she was able to continue growing her own business. Leida Investments—named after her mother—was hers alone, without any connection to her family. Even the incorporation documents weren’t in her name. The anonymity—and the NDA she had all her clients sign—allowed her the freedom to use the degrees she’d earned without anyone trying to pigeonhole her. Yes, enduring the time she putin at her brother’s company was well worth it when she could be her own boss.
If Trevor discovered her secret, he would do more than disapprove of it; he would sabotage it. As archaic as it sounded, he possessed firm ideas about her role in the family and the business. He might have created a lip service position for her at RemingtonNeal, but he intended for her to be a replica of their mother—wife,mother, philanthropist, socialite and the perfect hostess. The philanthropist part wasn’t bad, but the rest of it? She mentally shuddered.
Tonight was a reminder of why she went to such measures to maintain her subterfuge. The excitement and joy that had lit Jennifer Ridland’s and Marcia Brennan’s faces as Shay slid an investment contract across the table had reinforced for her why her companymust continue to thrive without any interference from her brother. The two women could revolutionize the travel industry, and she wanted to be the one who helped them do it.
Oh yes, this was well worth missing out on Trevor’s dinner.
“Good evening, Ms. Neal. Do you mind if I join you?”
That voice. Shock blasted through her, and under it wound a current of something darker, sultrier.Her voice and breath crowded into her throat like an angry mob, strangling her for a long, panicked moment.
Even when Gideon Knight slid into the chair across from her, she remained speechless, frozen. It was as if her thoughts of him earlier that morning had conjured him. The bottomless onyx eyes no longer glittered with lust, but they held the same piercing intensity. It had her waveringbetween ducking her head and allowing him to pilfer her darkest secrets. The angular but beautiful face with its sharp angles and unsmiling, sinfully full lips... The tall, powerful body that seemed to dwarf the chair and table...
A shiver shuddered through her body, and she prayed he didn’t notice.What are you doing here?almost tumbled from her lips before she hauled the words back. Butrecognition didn’t shine in his eyes. Then, why would it? He’d spent a hot, sex-drenched night during a blackout with Camille, a member of the waitstaff. Across from him sat Shay Neal, composed heiress with long, dark brown hair instead of a wig, no glasses, hazel eyes instead of brown contacts and an eggplant-colored, long-sleeved cocktail dress instead of a uniform.
She bore no resemblanceto the woman he’d known. Touched. Brought such immense pleasure.
“I’m afraid I’m just finishing up dinner, Mr...” She trailed off. God, she felt like such a hypocrite, a liar. Intentional deception wasn’t her. But she couldn’t confess how they knew one another, either. One, she’d lied to him about her identity. Two, if he discovered that she and Camille were the same person, he could use thatto embarrass her family. If Trevor found out... She mentally shook her head. No, not an option.
“Gideon Knight,” he said, setting a brown folder on the table. “And I promise not to take up too much of your time. But I believe you will want to hear what I have to say.”
Though every instinct for self-preservation inside her screamed to run and runnow, she remained seated. His almost emotionlesstone didn’t conceal the faint warning in his words.
And then there was the part of her—the part she struggled not to acknowledge—that trembled with desire from just being near Gideon. If she could just erase that night from her head...
“I’m sorry, Mr. Knight, but I don’t know you.” Not a lie. Biblical knowledge didn’t equateknowingsomeone. “Therefore, I don’t believe there is anythingwe need to speak about. So if you’ll excuse me...”
She set her napkin on the table and started to rise from her chair. Yes, she was being rude, but desperation trumped manners. She needed to get away from him before she did something foolish. Such as beg him for a repeat of a night that never should’ve happened.
“I know your secret, Ms. Neal.”
Shay froze. Except for her heart. It poundedagainst her sternum like an anvil against steel. Hard. Deafening.
Slowly, she lowered herself to her seat, forcing her expression into one of calm disinterest. Hiding the fear that coursed through her like a rushing current.
He knew about the night of the blackout? What had she done to betray her identity?Oh God. What did he intend to do with the information?
“I’m afraid I have noidea what you’re talking about,” she replied.
His aloof, shuttered demeanor didn’t alter as he cocked his head and studied her. “Is your brother aware of where you are tonight? Does he know about the meeting you concluded just minutes ago?”
Wait. What?“I’m sorry?” she asked.
“Does he know about Leida Investments?” he clarified, leaning back in his chair. “I must admit, I can’t imagineTrevor Neal supporting his sister running a company that is outside of RemingtonNeal. More specifically, out from under his control.”
Equal parts relief and unease swirled in her belly. Relief because he still hadn’t equated her with Camille. But unease because how did he know about her business? Better question, why did he care?
“Forgive me for not seeing how it’s any of your concern,”she answered, ice in her voice.
“Forgiveness. Oh, we’re so far past that,” he murmured, and as she frowned at the cryptic words, he slid the brown folder across the table toward her.
That sense of unease morphed into dread as she stared at the banded file. She lifted her hand, but at the last moment, she froze, her fingers hovering above it as if it were a scorpion, ready to strike andpoison her with its venom.
