Page 75 of Christmas with the Denton Billionaires

But she couldn’t stay in here. Not with the alarm beeping at her.

So she headed for the hallway to check herself out in the mirror. She was presentable enough—at least for a quick trip to the bar where she knew Mitch was having his meeting.

She could steal him for a few minutes to resolve this problem, and all would be well.

She pasted a fake smile on her face as she slipped her flats on and went to the penthouse elevator, readying herself to enter the world below with a fussy baby in her arms.

Yeah.

Everything would be fine.

As long as Mitch stopped the damn alarm.

17

MITCH

Mitch gnawed at the inside of his lip as he waited for Sara to return.

His meeting with the investor was casual at her request, but he hadn’t expected it to bethiscasual.

Sara had shown up to the hotel bar in a form-fitting red dress and sky-high heels. After a quick hug and plenty of giggles, she’d suggested they start the meeting with shots. Like they were in college again, she’d laughed.

And of course Mitch had gone along. Taking a shot didn’t sound like a horrible idea, especially after the day he’d had. With his dad breathing down his neck to get everything in order for the gala and secure the investments for the next level of Denton’s expansion, he had enough on his plate to warrant having a drink or two.

But he felt like an asshole for leaving Jules and Noelle in the penthouse, and no amount of alcohol could prevent his thoughts from returning to his girls upstairs.

“Okay. I’m back.” Sara sent him a toothy grin as she slid onto the bar stool at his side. Her floral perfume settled in a cloud around him, something he remembered from the last time they’d met like this. She was one of their primary investors, but more than that, she was an old family friend. The daughter of another wealthy family in the New York area, she and Mitch were on equal footing when it came to wealth and inheritances.

She was also Mitchell Senior’s number-one pick as the ideal daughter-in-law.

“What do you say to another shot?” She laughed, waving down the bartender. “I mean, we don’t have anywhere to be, right? And hell, if we get too drunk to go home, it’s not like you don’t have a thousand rooms at your disposal.” She winked, and Mitch could see through to the real meaning of her words. Sara was not quiet about the fact that she wanted Mitch. She probably would be thrilled if their parents encouraged an arranged marriage for them. Even if the very idea of it made his skin crawl.

Sure, Sara was gorgeous. She was the definition of a fun-loving, single professional. With bursting cleavage and a sexy pout, she always found a reason to touch him. Like she was just waiting for him to make his move.

Hell, a month ago, he’d been considering what life might be like with Sara. She seemed like a safe enough choice. Looks and business and success all rolled into one. Except the spark wasn’t there. Not that he necessarily needed it…probably.

But now that Jules and Noelle were in his life? He didn’t want to consider Sara as anything more than the business acquaintance she was. And Sara didn’t know it, but her flirtations were only making the knot in his stomach worse.

Over Sara’s shoulder, Mitch could see part of the entrance to the bar, which looked out over the western edge of the lobby. He kept glancing there, though he didn’t know why. Maybe planning his escape route at the earliest possible juncture. The bartender arrived with their shots, and Sara lifted hers, urging him to do the same.

Tequila. Ugh. Didn’t matter how expensive it was, who did shots of tequila past the age of twenty-one? Evidently, Sara did.

“Come on. Here’s to more successful ventures. Including ones we haven’t officially started yet.” Her grin glinted mischievously as she reached over and caressed the side of his face.

He clinked his shot glass against hers, forcing a smile and resisting the urge to swat her hand away, even as he tilted his head to put some distance between them. As he tossed it back, he swore he caught a glimpse of Jules out of the corner of his eye. But that was impossible. She was upstairs with the baby. Once he’d downed the amber liquid, he searched the bar again. Just to be sure.

No Jules.

He was imagining things. Probably because he was feeling guilty and eager to get back up there and help her. He should have canceled this meeting. Insisted on having it during regular hours in his office. This felt wrong in a way he couldn’t articulate. Mitch needed to steer it back to business and wrap it up quickly.

“Did you have a chance to look over the latest projections for the new properties?” he asked her, pushing his now empty glass to the side.

“No. I thought we could discuss them.” She gestured to the bartender for another round, but Mitch shook his head before he could refill his glass.

Frowning, he pressed his hands down on the bar. “Since you don’t appear to be ready to talk numbers, perhaps we should reschedule for another time when we can meet in one of our offices.”

“Mitch. You need to lighten up.” Sara brushed up against him. “Some of my girlfriends and I wanted to go grab dinner before we go to a new club later. What do you say? You should come. We can keep talking business.” The air quotes she made around “talking business” made his stomach pitch to his feet and warning bells sound in his head.

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