"Because this place is full of assholes."
I met his gaze straight-on. "Yeah. Tell me about it."
"If you're calling me an asshole, I already told you, I don't care."
"Well maybe I do." I looked around. "And just for the record, I didn't come here for a hard time."
"Alright. Then what did you come here for?"
"What kind of question is that?" I gave the crowd a quick glance. "Why does anyone come here?"
His mouth tightened. "I can tell you why Derek was here."
"Oh, please," I said. "Like your reason's any different."
"Meaning?"
I made a point of looking him up and down. He'd changed clothes since I'd seen him last. He was wearing tailored slacks and a dark button-down shirt. The sleeves of his shirt were pushed up, revealing the hard muscles and colorful tattoos that snaked up his forearms.
He looked very rich. And very sexy. And more than a little bit dangerous.
I knew exactly why he was here, and it wasn't to chat it up with his least-favorite employee – meaning me, of course.
I gave him a thin smile. "What? You think I won't say it?"
"Say what?"
"Why you're here."
"No," he said. "I think you don't know why I'm here."
"Oh, please. You're here to get laid." I almost rolled my eyes. And if he did get laid, what would that be? The third time today?
He replied, "Is that so?"
"Sure. I mean, why else you would you be here?"
"I dunno," he said. "Why else would you be here?"
"What do you mean by that?" I demanded.
"I mean," he said, "that you shouldn't be too quick to assume, considering that you're in the same place."
The implication was obvious, and I didn't appreciate it one bit. "For your information," I said, "I came here for a drink and maybe to dance."
"What, you don't have drinks at home?"
God, what a total tool. "You know what I mean."
"And," he said, "I didn't see you dance."
I scoffed, "How would you know?"
His eyebrows lifted. "So, you have?"
I glanced away. "No. But I could've."
"Then why didn't you?"
"Well, it wasn't because I wasn't asked, if that's what you're thinking." I didn't even know why I was telling him this. It was hardly relevant.
Just like so many other things, it really was none of his business.
His gaze skimmed my sundress, and I saw of flicker something that wasn't loathing. "Trust me," he said. "That wasn't what I was thinking."
"What does that mean?"
"It means, I'm sure you had plenty of offers."
I gave a bitter laugh. "Oh yeah, loads. Including one that was a lot more interesting than I realized."
I mean, it wasn't every day some stranger offered to show you his privates.
Jaden gave me a look that I couldn’t quite decipher. "You'd better be talking about Derek."
My only reply was a tight shrug.
"Tell me," he said with the barest hint of a smile, "is there someone else that needs a talking to?"
It wasn't even a full smile, and yet, just like always, it made me go soft in the head. I heard myself ask, "About Derek, did he really say that?"
"You didn't hear?"
I shook my head. "I heard something about a horse, but…" Oh, shit. Now, I couldn’t help but cringe. "He wasn't implying that he's, uh…?"
"Hung like a horse?" Jaden gave a hard scoff. "Yeah, that was the gist of it."
I blew out a long, shaky breath. "But how could you hear, and I couldn't? I was standing a lot closer than you were."
"Not much closer," he said. "Besides, I knew it was coming."
"What do you mean?" I asked.
"You think you're the first girl he's said that to?"
"Oh." I gave it some thought. I'd been talking to the guy for only five minutes. If he moved that fast, no doubt he'd already been making the rounds. I bit my lip. "Let me guess. He's that guy."
Jaden's eyebrows furrowed. "What guy?"
"The local creep, the one who comes across as perfectly normal for five whole minutes before asking for your undies."
Damn it. Undies?
Why had I called them undies? And now, Jaden looked ready to laugh.
I murmured, "Never mind." With a shaky laugh, I added, "I'm pretty sure I don't want to know."
Somehow, in the last couple of minutes, most of my anger had evaporated. Jaden was a lot of things, but not a liar. If anything, he was too blunt, too honest, and too prone to say exactly what he was thinking.
In that way, maybe we were more alike than I wanted to admit.
With a sigh, I glanced toward the main exit. Storming out had seemed like such a wonderful idea just a few moments ago.
But now, it felt like an admission of defeat – that I couldn't have a reasonably normal evening without it going to crap. And what was I? Some kind of freak magnet?
I was still mulling all of this over when Jaden said, "So, why didn't you?'
"Why didn't I what?"
He flicked his head toward the dance floor. "That."
"You mean dance?"
"You said that's why you came."
I had said that, and it was mostly true. Still, the primary reason I'd come here was to forget about him. But I'd never admit it, so all I said was, "I dunno…"
"No." His voice grew softer. "Tell me." Again, he looked toward the dance floor. "Why aren't you out there?"
I gave it some thought. "Well, at first I didn't want to leave my drink and then, well, it was just the music, I guess."
"What, you don't like it?"
"Not really," I admitted.
"What do you like?"
I gazed up at him and tried not to notice that his eyes were so stupidly compelling. And, he looked genuinely curious.
I heard myself ask, "Why?"
He shrugged. "Because I'll make 'em play it."
Now, I had to laugh. "Oh, so you're the boss of them, too?"
"Sure, why not?"
I glanced around. My favorite music was country, especially classic country. Growing up, it had been the only thing we ever listened to, and I still had a strong fondness for it.
But here in the club, the techno beat was still going strong. Stalling, I took a nervous sip of my watery drink.
I could only imagine how well country music would go over in a place like this, where they'd been playing nothing but techno ever since I'd arrived.
Finally, I forced a laugh. "Oh, I'm sure they'd just love that."
"Who?"
I glanced around. "Everyone."
He smiled. "Fuck everyone."
I gave Jaden a good, long look. Rumor was, he did fuck everyone. In truth, I could see why. He looked embarrassingly fuckable.
Even now, when I was so frustrated, it was beyond easy to imagine how I might look at him if he were a just another stranger – and if I were a different kind of girl.
But he wasn't a stranger, and I wasn't his type.
I was his employee, and I liked to take things slow. And besides, I absolutely loathed him, well, most of the time, anyway.
Unfortunately, this wasn't one of those times.
It was stupid, really. Just a few minutes ago, I'd wanted to strangle him. Now, I didn't know what I wanted. I just knew that I was still gazing up at him, and that I didn't want to look away.
The strangest thing was, he wasn't looking away either. "So tell me," he said, "what's your favorite kind?"
"Of music? Why do you want to know?"
He leaned a fraction closer. "Because I'm gonna ask you to dance. And I want you to say yes."
Chapter 39
I stared up at him. "Why would you do that?"
"Do what?" He looked completely serious. "Ask you to dance?"
I gave a silent nod.
"Say yes," he said, "and I'll tell you."
"But that's bribery," I protested.
"Is that supposed to bother me?"
"Yes. Definitely."
He shrugged. "Sorry."
He didn't look sorry. He looked completely unrepentant and too darn sexy, which he no doubt knew.
He was up to something.
I just knew it.
After all, this was Jaden Bishop. He wouldn’t be asking anything just to be nice, and he sure as heck wasn't expressing some sort of interest in the likes of me.
I mean, we didn't even get along.
So, what was this? An employee-boss thing?
Stalling, I took another nervous sip of my drink, and then another. By now, the drink was mostly water, but I didn't care. I kept on sipping until it was completely gone.
As I did, Jaden just stood there, watching me with obvious amusement.
I asked, "What's so funny?"
"You."
I almost rolled my eyes. "I'm so glad I amuse you."
"Yeah. Me, too."
Was he joking? By now, I had no idea. I gave him the squinty-eye. "You're up to something, aren't you?"
"Who says I have to be up to something?"
"Me. That's who."
"So, are you gonna be answering any time soon?" He glanced toward the bar. "Or should I grab a beer while I wait?"
I lowered my empty glass and gazed up at him. How long would he wait? I was sorely tempted to find out, if only to torture him.
He did, after all, have it coming.
But then, inspiration struck, and I suddenly wanted to laugh. Forcing him to drink beer was no kind of punishment. No. What he deserved was something a whole lot worse – for him, anyway.
I felt a slow, evil smile cross my lips. "Country."
His eyebrows furrowed. "What?"
"You asked my favorite music. That's what it is. And that's what I wanted to dance to."
He frowned. "You're kidding."
Unlike him, I was still smiling. "Nope." I paused. "And not just regular country either, classic country."
The way I saw it, I couldn’t lose. Either he'd tell me to forget it. Or I'd have the distinct pleasure of watching him make a fool of himself by requesting music that the D.J. would never play in a million years.
Jaden studied my face. "You're bluffing."
I gave him a look that was all innocence. "I have no idea what you mean."
"Uh-huh."
I looked toward the D.J. He'd been spinning the techno stuff ever since I'd arrived, and the way it looked, he was seriously getting into it.
In front of him, the dance floor was absolutely packed with bodies gyrating to the fast and steady beat. Even the lights screamed techno as they flashed in multiple colors across the floor.
I looked back to Jaden and asked as sweetly as I could, "Is something wrong?"
A low scoff escaped his lips. "No. But there will be if you turn me down."
"What?"
"Wait here," he said before turning and striding away. I watched in momentary confusion until I realized where he was heading – straight toward the D.J.
Holy crap. He wasn't seriously going to do it. Was he?
But yes, he apparently was. I stared stupidly as he strode through the crowd of dancers and approached the raised platform where the D.J. was spinning the music.
Now that Jaden was actually doing it, I didn't know what exactly I was feeling. Guilty? No. He truly did have it coming. Still, I bit my lip as I watched the D.J. lean down to exchange a few words with my obnoxious boss.
The D.J. frowned and gave the dance floor a worried look. Even from here, it was easy to guess what he was thinking. You want me to play what?
But then, he gave a short, jerky nod. What the hell?
And now, Jaden was heading back in my direction. As he strode closer, I tried to tell myself that he was just messing with me. Probably he'd requested some popular new dance song and was going to laugh his ass off when I expected a musical change on my behalf.
And yet, my gaze strayed nervously to the crowd. Let's say Jaden wasn't messing with me. What then? What would everyone do? They didn't look like the rioting type, but they'd surely be displeased at the change of tempo.
Would anyone dance?
Or would it just be me and Jaden?
Heaven forbid.
Oh, stop it, I told myself. This was obviously just a joke. After all, I'd seen the look on his face when I'd told him my favorite type of music. He despised it, just like he despised me.
And now, I was irritated all over again. The plan had been to make him squirm, not the other way around.
And why was it, I wondered, that it always ended this way? With him getting the best of me no matter what?
It was so annoyingly unfair.
By the time Jaden reached my side, I was a nervous fidgety mess. Trying to ignore him, I snuck a quick glance at the bar, wondering if it was time to rethink that whole one-drink idea.
Jaden leaned closer to me and said, "Forget it."
I gave a little jump. "Forget what?"
"The drink," he said. "I'll buy you one after."
"After what?"
The question had barely left my lips when the music suddenly changed tempo, and I heard the first telltale strums of – oh, shit – classic country.
I gave a little gasp. Damn it. He'd actually done it.
The jackass had called my bluff.
Chapter 40
I gave the dance floor another long worried look. It was still packed, but now, no one was dancing. Mostly, they were exchanging confused looks with their partners or staring straight at the D.J., who announced in an overly hearty tone, "And this one's by special request."
When I looked back to Jaden, he flashed me a wicked grin. The way it looked, he was actually enjoying this.
The bastard.
Still grinning, he reached for my hand. "C'mon, they're playing our song."
I didn't move. The song was "I Fall to Pieces" by Patsy Cline. It was at least fifty years old, and yet, I'd heard it probably a thousand times while growing up.
Still, I'd never heard it like this, in a crowded club where the dance floor was emptying faster than a movie theatre during the closing credits. I paused. No, not the closing credits – a freaking bomb threat, because let's face it, some of the people looked just a little bit terrified.
I knew the feeling. But unlike them, I stood completely still, even when Jaden gave a light tug on my hand.
In a voice filled with mischief, he said, "You're not gonna back out on me, are you?"
I looked from him to the dance floor and back again. Maybe he wanted me to back out. Maybe that had been the plan all along. Maybe all he'd really wanted was the pleasure of saying, "Hey, I tried, but you were a giant chicken."
I felt my gaze narrow. If he thought that, he was in for a rude surprise.
With a wicked smile of my own, I replied, "I wouldn't dream of it." And then, I let him lead me toward the dance floor, even as I wondered just how far he'd take this.
Maybe he'd stop before we reached it. And then I'd have the pleasure of calling him a chicken.
No such luck.
With his hand still in mine, he led us straight to the center of the empty dance floor and pulled me slowly into his arms.
Damn it. He was officially calling my bluff.
Or maybe I was calling his.
Either way, there we were – one lone couple in a space so big, it could've held a hundred couples just like us. If Jaden was embarrassed, he didn't show it. Instead, he acted like all of this was perfectly normal – the empty dance floor, the music that didn't quite fit, and the fact that for once, we weren't arguing.
The song was slow but not sultry, at least not in the modern way. Rather, it was something else, something deeper than sex and more meaningful than the quick couplings that featured so prominently in newer music.
I loved the song. And, to my infinite annoyance, I also loved the way Jaden felt.
He was a lot taller than I was, and my body was stretched tight agains
t his hard physique as we moved in time with the music. Even more annoying, I liked the way he moved, smooth and easy, as if this weren't so incredibly awkward.
By now, surely everyone knew who exactly had requested this song. After all, Jaden and I were the only ones dancing, even now.
He was a good dancer and held me just the way I liked, not too firm and not too loose. Or rather it would've been just the way I liked, if only a tiny part of me weren't secretly wishing that he'd hold me just a little bit tighter.
Damn it.
All of this was so unfair. Even when he was doing things right, it made me feel all wrong. Desperate for a distraction, I suddenly recalled that he'd promised to tell me something if I accepted the dance.
But what was it?
Finally, through the muddled haze of my disjointed thoughts, I remembered. I pulled back and gave him a challenging look. "So….you said you'd tell me why."
"Why what?"
"Why you'd ask me to dance."
He gave me a knowing smile. "Do I need a reason?"
The smile caught me off guard, and I stupidly smiled back. "Well, you'd better have a reason," I teased, "because you promised to give me one."
"Did I?"
"Definitely. That was the deal, right?"
"Alright. Here's a reason." He paused. "I wanted to ask you something."
"But why didn't you ask me then?"
"Because I didn't want you running off."
"Why would I run off?"
"Wasn’t that what you were doing?" he said. "Heading for the exit?"
"Maybe," I admitted, "but not when you asked me to dance. By then, I'd already stopped."
"Yeah, but for how long?"
It was a good question, but I had no good answer. Storming off had sounded like the perfect plan until he'd distracted me by acting almost human.
Almost, but not quite.
And now, he was doing it again. Just what was he up to, anyway?
"So…?" I prompted. "What was the question?"
Suddenly, he wasn't smiling anymore. "You do this a lot?"
"Sorry, what?"
"That's the question." He repeated it, more deliberately this time. "Do you do this a lot?"
"Do what?"
"Come to clubs alone."
I stiffened. "No."
"But…?" he prompted.
"But nothing," I said. "I felt like going out, and I wouldn’t've come alone except that Cassidy's working."
One Bad Idea: A Billionaire Loathing-to-Love Romance Page 17