Enraptured Read Online Free PDF Page B

them.
    She looked up at Blaine’s determined stare. Is this what he
really wanted? Did he hope people would see them as a couple and associate them
as being together? She frowned. Surely it’d be the downfall of his celebrated
career if others got wind of who he was really with?
    Evidently he didn’t care.
    “You want to talk about it?” he asked, his head bent and his
voice brushing over her ear.
    She ignored the instant raise of goose bumps. “What do you
mean?”
    “That exchange between you and Calvin…not to mention his
wife.”
    She shrugged, keeping her tone light, casual. “Calvin was a
client.”
    The tightening of Blaine’s hands confirmed his possessiveness.
It also reconfirmed her decision to part ways with him before things got even
more serious.
    As though perceiving her thoughts, he visibly relaxed, his
touch gentling. “Go on.”
    She shrugged. “And Sharlene was someone I knew in high
school.”
    “A friend?”
    Her short burst of laughter held no trace of humor. “Hardly.
She was more an enemy who made my life miserable in every way.”
    The song came to an end.
    They stilled. Neither moved as another ballad swept over
them.
    Blaine’s hands tightened fractionally as he stared down at
her. “She felt threatened by you.” Before she could disabuse him of that absurd
idea, he added, “Life has a funny way of evening scores.”
    “I know.” She sighed. “I can’t believe I’m saying this, but
I almost feel sorry for her being married to that…pig.”
    “He’s that bad?”
    She nodded, her mouth drying at his intense look. “Worse.”
    His face tightened. “Then I’ll be certain he knows never to
go near you again.”
    She pulled back and shook her head. “I can take care of
myself.”
    “Is it really so bad to have someone want to look out for
you?”
    Yearning once again pulled at her defenses. She gritted her
teeth, refusing to give in to his arrangement that would be unattainable
long-term. Besides, she’d fought hard for her independence and she wasn’t about
to hand those reins over to someone else.
    About to put her thoughts into words, a well-coiffed matron
with sky-high heels and heavy earrings mounted the stage nearby and took hold
of the microphone. “First of all, I want to thank you one and all for coming
tonight and making this annual awareness fundraiser a resounding success.” As a
polite round of applause dimmed, she added with a beaming smile, “But I’m sure
you are all hungry. Please take your designated seats and let our guest
speakers entertain you.”
    Blaine took her hand and guided her through the throng of
people to the intimate round table close to the stage.
    “I’m the keynote speaker,” he informed her at seeing her
arched brow.
    After he pulled out her chair then seated himself, she leaned
in close and said in an undertone, “Then perhaps I should have asked what this
charity fundraiser is all about?”
    He nodded toward the stage. “You’re about to find out.”
    A young woman with long, mouse-brown hair and an even more
timid demeanor stepped up onto stage. Although her voice shook, it was loud and
clear just how bad her youth had been as she recounted her days spent
terrorized by schoolyard bullies.
    The first course arrived, some kind of consommé in a
delicate chalk-white bowl. Brandy didn’t touch it. All her attention was
centered on the young woman whose past sounded so similar to her own.
    She was half-aware of Blaine’s considering stare on her, but
this once she was unmindful of his regard. The woman’s speech was poignant and
sad. Worse, it brought back memories like a reopened wound, fresh and painful.
And more than a little confronting.
    When the woman on stage finished off by conceding as a teen
she’d attempted to take her own life, Brandy’s throat clogged, her vision
misting over. The woman might be timid, but she had the heart of a lion. Not
only had she faced her fears, she spoke about them in the hopes others would