Page 77 of A Taste of Trouble

The star of the evening had read an excerpt and thanked the publisher for her success, and with the obligatory speeches and thank yous over with, the guests were free to mix and mingle. Of course, his boss had missed the entire night so far. He was late—even later than fashionably late—but at least it gave Jake more time to muster up the courage to tell Liv the truth. If he could only pry her away from the other guests long enough to warn her, make her understand that he wanted to be with her, despite what might look like an underhanded situation.

Pride swelled in his chest as he watched her from across the room. That black dress was out of this world. The neckline fit straight across but dipped in the back, exposing her sleek back all the way to her bottom. She had been the object of many stares tonight. But she only had eyes for him.

He'd also never seen her so enthusiastic. To his surprise, she worked the room with grace and engaged in conversation with ease. There was no need for him to be attached to her side the whole evening—a trait that Jake found refreshing.

Liv caught his eye from across the room and leveled him with her smile. It wasn't just a look of happiness. It was happiness wrapped in appreciation tied with…love? Maybe not love, but there was something behind that smile. The friendship sail had definitely passed, and they were on their way to developing something meaningful, something lasting.

His attention was drawn from Liv by the sound of a crowd forming at the entrance to the ballroom. There was only one person who could captivate a crowd like that: Robert Shelton. He had finally arrived. It seemed Jake's plan to educate Liv on his feelings would have to wait. His most important job of the night was going to take place any minute.

And he felt like hell.

Jake rushed over to where she stood, in a crowd of her own, and joined the conversation already in progress. Or at least he tried. It was hard to discuss books you'd never read.

He finally caught her eye and motioned for them to step away.

“Do you know who that was?” she squealed. “That was Liz Feeney.” The look on her face was priceless.

“So I take it you're having a good time?”

“Uh, yeah.” She jokingly slapped his bicep with the back of her hand. “I can't believe I'm here.”

“Tonight is all about you. And later…” He pulled her closer and whispered in her ear. “It's all about you and me in bed.” She released a slow breath against his neck, her fingers curled into his bicep. If there was a later. He'd give anything to skip to that part of the night. To completely bypass the next few minutes, where her meeting with Shelton could shatter all of the progress he had made. But…he had a mission to complete.

He wasn't ready to make the introduction. He wanted Liv to himself for a few minutes longer.

Jake grabbed two glasses of champagne from a waiter and directed Liv to one of the empty tables in the corner of the room.

“It's quiet over here,” he said as he clinked his glass with hers. Before he had a chance to say anything else, a booming voice sounded from behind them and Liv jumped.

“Jake, my boy.” A hand clapped on his shoulder.

He tensed, hoping like hell that the introduction would go well, but the grip of Liv's hand on his arm tightened. And tightened. Her fingernails dug into his skin.

He knew Shelton was a little intimidating at times, but she shouldn't be nervous. It was time to break that ice. “Liv, this is my boss.”

“Robert Shelton.” He held out his hand to Liv. “Hello, Olivia.”

Jake tensed and looked between the two of them. Although he knew they had already met, why was he calling her Olivia? She hated that. “I think you two have already met,” Jake said, running a hand through his hair.

When he finally turned to look at Liv, his mouth dropped open. All of the color had drained from her face, her smile wiped clean. Instead of the glow of excitement that washed over her not two minutes ago, horror took its place. And it was directed at Shelton.

Robert waved over the waiter and picked up his own glass of champagne. A few moments passed before anything was said.

Finally, Jake ran the back of his finger down her arm. “Liv?” Her eyes were wide with fright. Definitely an unexpected reaction. “So, how do you two know each other?”

She turned to face him, but was still unable to speak, not even a small squeak of speechlessness. Shaking her hands to get her attention, he tried to jolt her out of her shocked state. “Liv?”

This was not how he expected this meeting to unfold. There was something strange going on between them. Why was she so horrified? What had he done to her?

“It's nice to see you, Olivia.” Shelton was trying to make an effort.

Her shocked expression finally faded as she slammed a look of disgust Shelton's way. And in that moment, Jake understood why Shelton approached while they were alone in the corner of the room. So as not to attract attention, because right now, he looked uncomfortable, his confidence replaced with fear.

And just as suddenly as Liv's mood changed, so did the realization that Shelton and Liv had a deeper connection. Liv had been brief when she discussed her personal life, but from the little he did know, there was only one man who could elicit such a disgusted look. He stared between them, hoping like hell that there was no resemblance.

His stomach churned. He should have known from the moment they met; there was no denying the similarity. Liv's black, soulful eyes were the same eyes that made him trust Shelton all those years ago.

Robert Shelton was her father.<

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