Page 5 of Seductive Desires

ChapterThree

I glancedover my shoulder but they were still whispering to one another and I didn’t want to interrupt. I gave him an awkward wave and made my way over to Cathy, the event coordinator, who looked like she was about to blow a gasket.

“I’ve been looking everywhere for you! We need you to do the introduction now.” My stomach twisted into knots. She eyed me, taking a small step back. “You aren’t going to throw up, are you?”

I sucked in a breath, shaking my head. “No, I’ll be alright. Just point me where I need to go.”

She ushered me to the stairs connected to the stage before taking off again. Panic wormed its way into my system and I stood frozen for a second. It wasn’t until she reappeared, followed by the guy I was chatting with that I gathered my nerve and stepped onto the stage. The band had already stopped playing and the room was loud with chatting and laughter. There was a mic center stage, directly in the spotlight. I hesitated, my eyes drifting over the crowd.

They landed on my knight in shining armor. He was watching me, winking when I caught his eye. Well, here goes nothing.

My speech was short and sweet, thanking everyone for coming and praising the artists who donated their pieces to this event. I threw in a little blurb about what Carlos hoped for when donating before finishing off. “And now, the host of our event, Mr. Mateo Ramirez.”

I spun, hoping to flee off stage quickly, ducking out of the spotlight and nearly running into him. The stranger from before. My knight in shining armor. Mateo Ramirez?!

He caught me as I stumbled, his hands running lightly down my arms before he released me with a grin. He didn’t stop to explain though, stepping up to the mic. The crowd cheered and he waved. I stood staring with my jaw open for a second until I heard Cathy’s harsh whisper.

“Miss Cortes!”

I snapped my attention to her, hurrying off stage when she gestured wildly. I had been so surprised I just stood there frozen on stage. Hopefully no one saw me. I made my way back over to the bar, grabbing a new glass of champagne before I turned to watch him speak.

I felt stupid now. I never asked him his name. I was too busy being distracted by his good looks and charming smile to realize I was talking to one of the richest playboys on the planet. No wonder he swept me off my feet, he probably did this with loads of women. I was a little disappointed. He was so charming. But also amazingly out of my league and known for his many love affairs. Not my kind of guy at all.

I saw the creepy old guy from before out of the corner of my eye so I made my way to the buffet instead. I heard people clapping but I was tuning him out now. I needed to focus. I had another creepy jerk to deal with and then I was home free. I snagged a truffle off the table before sneaking off to stand by the windows. It was dark over here so maybe I could hide for a little while and shake off the nerves from being on stage.

I had already popped the bite of chocolate into my mouth, letting off a little groan, when his warm hand slid along my lower back again. I jumped, spinning to face him.

“You weren’t listening to my speech, were you?”

I swallowed hard, putting my hand over my mouth. I didn’t know if there was any chocolate on my teeth or something else equally embarrassing. “I was too!”

He smirked. “Really? What was the last thing I said?”

I rolled my lips between my teeth. Busted.

“Mentirosa,” he chuckled.

“Okay, fine. I was trying to but I noticed that creepy guy from before so I snuck away before he could come talk to me again.”

His eyes narrowed and he glanced over his shoulder. Sure enough, the old creeper was by the buffet now, his eyes on us. Mateo’s hand slid farther around me, pulling me against him. He leaned closer without taking his eyes off the guy. “Play along, okay?”

“Huh?”

He turned, sliding his fingers along my jaw. He dipped down, stopping when his lips were a hair’s breadth away from mine. I held my breath, frozen against him. What is happening right now?

A disgruntled noise came from the buffet table. Mateo pulled away, glancing over his shoulder. He let out a sigh.

“Good. He’s gone. Hopefully he’ll leave you alone now.”

I couldn’t help the tremble that worked its way through me. It has been a long time since anyone kissed me, and that wasn’t even a real kiss. He turned to me, a ready smile on his face but he froze, his eyes searching mine when he noticed my shocked silence. His gaze dropped to my mouth and he leaned in again.

I didn’t know whether I wanted him to kiss me or not. The logical part of my brain kept pointing out he was a playboy and I’d just be another notch on his belt. The other side wanted to let go of my inhibitions and throw myself at him. My eyes fluttered shut as he pressed his lips lightly to mine.

“Mariana?”

I jumped,breaking the kiss. Smooth. Idiota. Mateo regarded the man behind us. The man I dreaded having to speak to tonight. Pablo Garcia, yet another man who can’t take a hint.

I plastered on a smile, though it felt more like a grimace and turned to face him. He wore a tux like Mateo but he didn’t pull it off as well. It looked too big on him. His hair was slicked back, looking stiff like plastic. His beady little eyes trailed over me and I clenched my jaw, fighting the urge to say something. I couldn’t stand men like him. They thought women belong in the bedroom or in the kitchen, serving their man instead of making any sort of contribution to society. Once he had thoroughly creeped me out and looked me over, his eyes finally moved to the man standing next to me.

---