Bride By Design. Leigh Michaels
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suggested…He seemed to think we needed privacy…Get the wedding over with...
It must have sounded to David as though she was willing to associate with him only because Henry had issued orders. What an insufferable prig I must sound like.
The limo had pulled up under the hotel’s canopied front entrance, and the driver came around the car to open the door. The sudden light inside the car made Eve want to fling up a hand to protect her eyes—or perhaps to keep David from looking even more closely at her.
The driver walked around to the rear of the car to get the luggage. David made no move to get out. “You’re afraid,” he said. “That’s why you wanted to rush the wedding, isn’t it, Eve? Because you’ve given your word and now you can’t back out, no matter how much you might want to—so you’d just as soon not find out what you really think of me till after it’s too late for regrets.”
Eve bit her lip. “That’s awfully harsh.”
“But it’s true. That’s why you’re so eager to get away.”
“No,” she said slowly. “I’m not. Spending the evening together was Henry’s idea, yes. But I’d like to have dinner, David.”
Did he believe her? She wouldn’t blame him if he didn’t, for she was a little startled herself, not only by what she’d said but by the realization that she meant it.
He looked at her for a long moment, then slid out of the car. A moment later she felt the car rock just a little as the suitcases were lifted out of the trunk, and she heard the hearty voice of the Englin’s doorman welcoming David.
Eve closed her eyes. Now what?
Before she could make up her mind what to do, David reappeared, leaning into the car. “The doorman’s sending my luggage up to the room, and I can register later. Are we having dinner here or somewhere else?”
She was too startled to reply.
Behind him, the doorman suggested, “The Captain’s Table has a lovely steak on the menu tonight, I understand.”
“Sounds good to me. Eve?”
She scrambled out of the car and glanced at the uniformed driver. “That will be all, thank you.” She saw David’s eyebrow quirk upward and added coolly, “There’s no sense in keeping the car waiting for an hour or two when I can easily take a cab home later. So you needn’t worry that I’ll accuse you of expecting a simple dinner together at your hotel to turn into anything more.”
“I didn’t say a word.”
“You didn’t have to,” Eve muttered. “You have the most sarcastic eyebrows I’ve ever encountered.”
It was, she realized, the first time she had ever seen him smile. The flecks of gold in his eyes seemed to turn to sparks, and a dimple appeared at one corner of his mouth. The effect on Eve was something like reaching for a coat hanger only to find it wired into the electrical system. Which was utterly silly, of course, when all the man had done was grin at her.
The maître d’ greeted Eve by name and showed them to a small table in a cozy corner. Eve slid onto the upholstered bench which curved around the table and made a quick survey of the room.
“Who are you looking for?” David asked.
“Nobody in particular. Customers or acquaintances. There are usually half a dozen of them in here, but tonight I don’t see any. And since we’re in an inconspicuous corner maybe we’ll be left alone.” She picked up her menu so she didn’t have to look at him. “I don’t quite know what to say, David. I must have come across like—”
“An alligator,” David said agreeably. “Forget it. Let’s start from scratch. Hi, nice to see you again, tell me about the wedding.”
“I thought you already knew all about it. Seeing that it was your idea to have one—” She stopped and bit her lip. “Sorry. I’m doing it again, aren’t I?”
The wine steward approached, carrying a bottle. “Good evening, Miss Birmingham. And sir. The general manager of the hotel asked me to bring you one of our best wines, with her compliments.”
“I ought to have known we couldn’t sneak in here without being seen,” Eve said. “But I didn’t even spot her.”
“She called down from her office,” the wine steward said. “I believe the doorman keeps her informed about the comings and goings of her guests.” He expertly popped the cork and presented it to David.
Eve held her breath, but David was obviously no stranger to the ritual. As the wine steward withdrew, she fixed her gaze on the deep red liquid in her glass. Once more she had underestimated him.
“That was thoughtful of her,” David said. “Does she do this for all your dates?”
“Of course not. And it’s not just thoughtful, it’s also good business. The wedding’s going to be here, in one of the smaller ballrooms upstairs. What shall we drink to?”
“I suppose To us isn’t quite what you have in mind, so how about ‘Here’s to keeping Henry happy’?”
“Up to a point, I can agree with that.” Eve raised her glass, but she couldn’t quite meet David’s eyes. Instead her gaze focused on his hand. Long, tanned fingers, the nails short and square-cut so they wouldn’t get in his way as he worked with tiny gems and minuscule bits of metal. There was a small scar on one knuckle; it looked as if long ago a tool had slipped and gouged him. His hand curved around the glass, holding it gently, but she could see the strength in his fingers. The stemmed crystal glass he held wasn’t particularly delicate, but she knew he could smash it in his fist as easily as he’d crush a grape.
Beside her, a woman’s sultry soprano said, “My goodness, if it isn’t little Eve. And who is this, my dear? A new face, surely.”
Eve recognized the voice. Of all the people they could have run into in the Captain’s Table, it would have to be Estella Morgan. She forced a smile as she turned to face a hard-faced woman in her late fifties, who stood beside the table with one hand raised as if to hold her mink stole in place—as well as to display the inch-wide band of diamonds that surrounded her wrist. “Mrs. Morgan, I’d like to present David Elliot, who’s joining Birmingham on State.”
Mrs. Morgan’s interest had obviously faded. “In sales, I suppose?” she said dismissively.
Irritation stabbed through Eve. “Without our sales staff,” she said crisply, “we’d find it hard to keep our doors open. But as a matter of fact, David is the most gifted young jewelry designer in the nation. He’ll be working directly with Henry and eventually taking over.”
Mrs. Morgan’s expression warmed. “A designer?” she purred. “Working with Henry? I wonder if he’ll turn over my new project to you.”
“Perhaps,” David agreed. “I hope that wouldn’t disturb you. Henry would of course still be in charge.”
“Well, as long as Henry’s supervising…” The woman’s gaze slid across Eve’s bare left hand and raised limpidly to meet David’s. “It might actually be better to have you do the project. It’s to be a family heirloom for my daughter, you understand. Not that there’s anything wrong with Henry’s style, but a younger man might be more in touch with what a girl in her twenties likes.”
Honestly, Eve fumed. She couldn’t be any more obvious if she hit him with a brick.
“My first task, however,” David said pleasantly, “will be a wedding ring.” He reached for Eve’s hand and raised it to his lips, kissing her ring finger.
Mrs. Morgan’s lip curled. “What a good catch for you, Eve. Just how did the two of you happen to meet?”
Eve could feel a cavern opening under her toes. She wasn’t ready for that kind of question—at least not when asked in that particularly insinuating tone—and