Page 35 of My Billionaire Neighbor's Secret

Chapter 15

LEIGH

TheentirenightIhad only consumed one glass of wine. But I felt as if I was tipsy, or more like the combination of giddy and floating on cloud nine kinds of feeling.

We walked along the now quiet hallways of Prime Luxent Hotel, the dazzling smiles on our faces apparent. Our chatter and laughter echoed against the walls. There was a slight bounce to my every step, which I hardly noticed, but it would probably be obvious to someone who knew me if I ran into them.

I glanced at Carter, who looked happy and content. We were both on a natural high.

He didn’t even seem concerned that his employees would see us or that someone from the party would catch us together.

Well, there was no reason to hide anything. After all, we were both single and available.

I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror inside the elevator. I realized I hadn’t really brushed my hair yet since it got messy. I had just patted it down to tame it. I couldn’t risk being seen like this by people who would recognize me. That would not be good for my company. Besides, I wanted to look nice when Carter introduced me to his friend.

When we stepped out of the elevator onto the ground floor, I excused myself to drop by the restroom.

“Can you just go to the poolside afterwards?” Carter asked.

“Yes, sure,” I said. “Let me just freshen up a bit. I look like…”

He dropped his voice to a whisper. “… like you just had the best sex ever?” he teased.

I gave him a sly look. “Yes,” I whispered.

Suddenly, he pulled me close and turned me toward the nearby wall. It’s a good thing this part of the hotel wasn’t well-lit and there weren’t many guests roaming around.

His lips lingered on mine and even pulled a bit on my lower lip. I felt the urge to do it with him again.

“I’ll see you later,” he said before sauntering away.

I was left breathless from the exciting, unexpected kiss. I went to the restroom with my legs feeling unstable in my high heels. I took some time brushing my hair so that they appeared to be in loose natural waves around my shoulders. Then I retouched my makeup.

“There, now I look more than just decent,” I murmured to myself, smiling at my reflection. Actually, I looked as if I was just about to step into another party.Great.

I’d forgotten that it was even colder now outside, so I was sort of shivering when I got to the poolside. From afar, I could see Carter speaking with another man who was about as tall as he was. His friend had his back on me, so I wasn’t able to see his face.

I approached them, feeling silly and nervous at the same time. We weren’t even officially dating, yet I was feeling self-conscious about meeting whom he said was a very good friend of his childhood in the orphanage.

There were plenty of stars twinkling in the night sky. The whole place was empty except for a couple lounging nearby.

I was only a few feet away when the tattoo on the arm of Carter’s friend caught my attention. His long sleeves were rolled up, so the tattoo was exposed. That made me pay closer attention to his stance, physique, and hair.

It can’t be!

I hadn’t noticed earlier because I’d just glanced at him and had been focused on Carter. But now it hit me.

I wanted to run and just send a message to Carter and make up some excuse. But it was too late now. He’d just seen me.

The color drained from my face as Carter waved at me, and the man in front of him turned around.

It wasn’t Drake Miller that he was talking about, was it? Please don’t let him be the childhood friend. This isn’t fucking happening.

“Leigh!” Drake exclaimed upon seeing me. His face registered surprise and then turned into an expression of delight.

“Drake,” I simply said in greeting. I won’t be able to deny it now. Surely Drake would tell Carter, anyway.

“You two know each other?” Carter asked, bewildered. He looked a bit amused, though. But he wouldn’t be anymore once he realized how we knew each other.

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