"I doubt that."
But Sophie had never been on the receiving end of Darcy's scheming. She had watched while she tried to ruin Jake's life in one way after the other, but watching and experiencing were two different things.
For the first time in her life, Brianna was dreading the ball.
CHAPTER 8
Forty-eight hours later, she wondered if her dread had been pointless. She stood in the country club's ballroom surveying the final scene, two hours before the start of the ball. Somehow, everything had come together—with dozens of phone calls on her part and hours of labor by Ken and Cable supervising the college and high school students.
She hated to admit it, but the room did look like the ice palace Darcy had been aiming for. They'd gotten the white lights just in time, and they glowed through the garland and icicles hanging from the ceiling. White and silver candles glowed on blue-clothed tabletops, sparkling off silver and crystal. A tiny stage had been set up next to the dance floor. Darcy had commissioned from a local printer a giant poster of all the children Brook Hollow had lost to illness or accident since the first ball. That poster backed the stage, flanked by a display listing all the local charities they'd collected for and the good that had been done. In the center was another poster on an easel, describing the new foundation fashioned after Make-a-Wish. The money they would raise tonight would help form a base for fulfilling needs and desires of the area's sickest kids. Brianna never would have expected Darcy to display that much compassion.
On the opposite wall they had created a collage of town photos, including tree-lighting ceremonies on the square, people dancing at the balls, kids who'd been honored or memorialized or aided, the snow sculpture contest they used to hold—all the images of the season. Around and between the photos were handmade ornaments Darcy had had the elementary kids make in class. The only sign of the “inner Darcy,” as Brianna had begun to think of her, was the absence of Macgregors and McKennas on the wall. Brie hadn't realized it until it was too late, and had managed to find only one shot of Jake lighting last year's tree that could be used.
"It looks good."
Brie turned and smiled at Cable, who wiped his sleeve across his forehead.
"Thanks to you.” She caught a drip from his temple. “You're sweating."
"Hot in the kitchen. We were helping move giant pots of water. God knows how they do it when we're not here."
Brie knew perfectly well the kitchen staff could handle the pots. They were three-quarters women or gay, and they wanted to watch Cable show off his strength.
"Who's we, anyway?” she asked, figuring he meant Jake, who had managed to be roped into helping almost every committee.
"Me and Ken."
She laughed. “No way."
"Sure. He's stronger than he looks."
Brie didn't want to talk about Ken. He'd stopped making excuses to see her, but gave her puppy-dog looks whenever she saw him.
She looked at her watch, then at the nearly empty room. One staff member was folding extra napkins at a table, and the A/V guy from the high school was hooking up the microphone and projector.
"I think everything's good here. I need to go home to get ready."
"I'm with you. We driving together?"
"If you want to."
"Of course. I'll get you at seven-thirty."
They parted with a kiss at the door and drove home separately, Brie feeling like they'd reached a new comfort level in their relationship. Casual contact, general assumptions, but not yet taking each other for granted. She knew that after the ball they'd go home, make love, and wake late tomorrow to indulge in coffee and donuts in bed, cuddling with the Sunday paper until noon. It sounded so good, she almost wished she could skip the ball.
* * * *
Brie wore a long coat when Cable picked her up, and only smiled coyly when he asked to look at her. She'd slicked her hair into a high ponytail up on top of her head, with long curls cascading out of it and wrapping around her neck. He thought the combination of neat and untidy was just her style.
Her makeup was heavier than usual, which meant they wouldn't kiss much tonight, but she looked so beautiful he didn't care. As he helped her up into the truck, he caught a whiff of perfume and noticed that she'd painted her toenails to match the gold shimmer of her strappy shoes. Not very practical, but enticing. Like the bow on a package you couldn't wait to tear open.
It was mild for December, so he hadn't bothered with a top coat over his tux. He'd chosen a less traditional style, with a stand-up satin-edged collar on the jacket and button-collared shirt instead of a tie. The shoes were, as always, a hair too tight, and he hoped Brie didn't want to dance much.
When he got into the driver's side, she slid a hand down his arm.
"Nice. Very nice.” She fingered the collar, then stroked her fingertips across the back of his neck. “Very expensive, I imagine."
"They were having a special."
"I like it."
A few minutes later they pulled up to the valet circle at the club, right behind Jake and Kira. They greeted them and walked in together, both Cable and Jake whistling when the women removed their coats and handed them over to be checked.
Kira beamed. “First time I could get into this since Joey was born, and the last time until after this one's born.” She slid a hand down the flaming red gown. Jake couldn't seem to get the goofy grin off his face as he tucked Kira into his side.
"I well remember what this dress did for us."
"Ignore them,” Brianna said, slipping her hand over Cable's elbow. “They won't stop reminiscing all night. It'll be, ‘this is where I saw you’ and ‘remember when Kleinfelter announced his endorsement of you?’ and ‘ooooh, let's go check out the desk where Joey was conceived.’”
Cable raised his eyebrows, but neither Kira nor Jake seemed to mind Brianna's revelations.
"Why don't we go check out that desk?” Kira said, looking up at Jake with sparkling eyes. They moved off down the hall, and Cable turned his full attention to Brie.
"You look like a Greek goddess.” He nudged her away from him so he could look again. The white dress she wore kind of gathered at her neck, then draped and clung in folds past her breasts, around her waist, and down to the floor. The whole thing hung from a gold collar around her neck. Her arms were bare except for a snake-like cuff around her right upper arm.
"Maybe we should go ‘check out that desk,'” he murmured, tugging her back into his arms. “You wore that just to turn me on."
"Of course I did.” She nuzzled his jaw. “There's no other reason to go to all this trouble."
He chuckled. “Making me the envy of all the other men here works pretty well, too."
"Most of the men,” said a voice behind them. They turned to see Sophie in an emerald-green slip dress, and her husband Parker looking like he was born to wear a tuxedo.
"She may look hot,” Sophie continued, “but my man's got eyes only for me. Don't you, honey?” The last three words had a hard edge, but Cable could see she was teasing. The threat was unnecessary. Parker did only have eyes for Sophie.
As they entered the ballroom together, pausing to hand their tickets to the attendant, Cable felt like part of the family. He wondered what it would take to make that a permanent feeling.
* * * *
Brianna made the rounds, talking to school board members and parents, sipping champagne and accepting compliments on her dress and on the decorations. She gave Darcy credit for her ideas, but also made clear that she and Ken and Cable had done all the grunt work.
Sometimes Cable wandered the crowd with her, sometimes they got separated, but she could always sense where he was, whether it was two feet or an entire room away.
She also sensed when Darcy walked in.
Of course, that wasn't a psychic connection. That was the sound of evil entering a room.
Okay, that wasn't fair. It was true, though, that part of the room went silent, and then murmurs broke out. The re
st of the room turned to see who had come in. Darcy stood at the entrance, posing and basking in the attention.
Brianna couldn't see what was such a big deal. Yes, her dark blue dress was cut to her navel and the slit up the side went high up her hip. But that wasn't much worse than many of the other gowns in the room, including Sophie's, which looked like underwear.
Then several people looked at Brianna, and she raised her eyebrows. She hadn't thought anyone knew about the competition over Cable. But that wasn't it; they weren't looking at him to see his reaction. She glanced over where he'd been talking to Steve Dvorak, and he was looking at her instead of Darcy. That was gratifying.
She looked back at Darcy to try to figure out the big deal. Her dress was draped semi-toga style, gathered on one shoulder, and she had a silver cuff similar to Brie's on her left upper arm. Her hair was piled up on her head and cascaded down her back. Brie knew she'd gotten extensions to get it to fall so far. She couldn't judge her, though, since she had gotten them herself.
Overall, her look was similar to Brie's, only darker. She'd tanned, or used a sunless tanner, and dusted her skin with fine silver glitter. She complemented the decorations perfectly, which Brie was sure was her intent. But she looked like a negative of Brie, which she knew was not.
After a few seconds, everyone went back to what they'd been doing and Darcy walked further into the room. Brie started to turn back to the fellow teacher she'd been chatting with when she realized someone else had come in with Darcy. She almost choked on her champagne.
Ken was Darcy's date?
He trailed behind her as she began working the room. His navy tuxedo was just a shade darker than Darcy's dress, and he looked pretty good in it. His hair was smooth—no comb-over—and the lack of glasses somehow made him seem more confident and mature. The only drawback was the eager puppy look he wore.
When had he switched his attentions to Darcy? He wasn't her type at all. He had no power or presence—there was no attention factor. Brianna could only assume Darcy had a use for Ken.
"It could just be that he arrived at the same time, and is hanging with her because he's on her committee."
Brie leaned back into Cable, who'd walked up behind her. “I don't think so."
They watched a moment as Darcy moved from one group to another, snapping her fingers at Ken.
"No, maybe not."
"So, Addison, you planning on running for town council?” The former Mayor Kleinfelter, who'd held the post so long everyone still called him Mayor, clapped Cable on the shoulder, pulling their attention from Darcy.
"No, sir, at least not for a few years."
"What about you, Ms. Macgregor?"
"Me?” Brie didn't know what surprised her more, that old-school Kleinfelter actually looked serious when he asked her that, or that he called her Ms. “I hadn't thought about it, sir."
"You'd be an asset, an asset. Both of you consider it. We can always use rational minds in local government.” He excused himself and moved off to jaw with a golf buddy as a bell rang near the small stage, and everyone turned to see Darcy at the podium.
"I'd like to welcome everyone to the Annual Benefit Ball. If you would be seated, dinner is about to be served."
Cable and Brie found Kira and Jake, Sophie and Parker, and the sisters’ parents, Elyse and Duncan, and commandeered a table.
"What happened to the ball organizer?” Kira murmured to Brianna, who shrugged.
"Darcy seems to have some kind of evil plan going this evening,” she muttered back. “But I have no idea what it is.” She lifted her chin toward the main table, where Ken held Darcy's chair as she gracefully sat.
Kira looked back at Brie with wide eyes. “What the hell?"
"Don't ask me."
"Jake, I'm so sorry your parents couldn't make it this year,” Elyse said. “I've grown used to having them back."
"Me, too, but they've missed their friends in France. They'll be home tomorrow, in time for all the Christmas traditions."
Brianna realized she hadn't talked to Cable about those traditions. Things had been going so well, she just kind of assumed he'd be joining them. And that was rude, as well as a setup for disappointment if he had other plans. She knew he wasn't going anywhere until the weekend before New Year's, but still. He might be making similar and opposing assumptions.
When they got on the dance floor a short time later, she asked.
"Whatever you want, baby.” He rested his forehead on hers. “I got the impression you expected me at your parents', but if you don't, that's fine."
"No, I do, but I was afraid I was taking you for granted."
"Nope.” He raised his head enough to replace his forehead with his lips, and they swayed on the dance floor for a few minutes. Brianna closed her eyes, soaking in the sweet music, the contentment of having her family around her at the holidays, the growing tension between her and Cable that promised her the night she'd been anticipating.
Kira and Jake danced closer, and Kira leaned close to her sister. “The office is available,” she murmured. Brie looked at her, not getting it at first. Then Kira winked, and Brie realized she was flushed.
"You didn't!"
"We did."
"Well, then, we for sure aren't.” She grimaced. Kira laughed.
"That's not the only place to be alone around here, you know.” She winked again and they moved off.
Brie shook her head and looked up at Cable, who didn't look as amused as she did. In fact, he looked hungry. She shivered.
"Yeah?"
"Ohhh, yeah.” He wrapped his arms around her back and tucked her against his chest. His lips brushed her ear, then down her neck. “Isn't there a broom closet somewhere?"
"Not ... not a broom closet. There's, ooohhhhh.” He bit down on her earlobe. “There's a private meeting room. Behind the kitchen. Go down ... down that hall. It has a small black sign on it that sayssssss ... Meeting."
"You go ahead. I'll meet you there."
Brie forced her eyes open. “Really?"
Cable nodded.
"Okay.” She grinned. “Five minutes."
"Five minutes."
Her body felt charged as she walked off the dance floor and started down the hall. She paused at the corner and looked back over her shoulder. Cable was talking to a fifth-grade teacher, looking completely nonchalant with his hands in his pockets. She stifled a grin, but as she started to turn, Darcy caught her eye. The other woman was standing alone near the podium, glaring at her. There was a whole ballroom and a couple hundred people between them, but Brie felt singed.
Putting it out of her mind, she continued down the hall and around the corner of the kitchen until she saw the meeting room door. She checked up and down the brightly lit corridor before turning the doorknob and slipping inside.
The lights were off, and she paused with her hand on the switch, wanting to make sure no one else was using the room before she flipped them on. There was silence except for the music, faint this far away.
When she clicked the switch, two table lamps came on, as well as an upward-facing floor lamp in one corner. The warm light gleamed on the paneled walls and leather armchairs. Between the chairs was a newer, trendier, microfiber couch. One of those cushy ones with the stain protection.
Brie smiled and turned to check the door. There was a solid latch above the knob. She tested the lock, and the door didn't even wiggle in its frame. Excellent. She unlocked it, turned off one of the table lamps, and arranged herself on the couch, her body revving in anticipation.
This was going to be perfect.
* * * *
Cable excused himself from the group of teachers that had gathered and pretended to go off in search of the bathroom. He wondered what Brie had in mind in that “meeting” room. A quickie on the table? Something more leisurely on the floor behind the chairs—or balanced across them? Maybe something rougher, up against the wall. Yeah, that would be good. She'd arch her back so her breasts were high, wrap her
legs around his waist, and work him good while that filmy dress cascaded around them. He could see the passion on her face, the redness of her wet, swollen mouth, the flush across her chest when he pulled the neck of her dress down to suck her nipple. His cock throbbed and he picked up his pace when he reached the hall.
Only to slam on the brakes as Darcy materialized in front of him.
"Cable, I've been wanting to thank you."
Not now. He looked past her and thought he saw someone disappear around the corner. “For what, Darcy?"
"For all your work on the committee. I understand the decorations would have been a disaster without you."
He tried not to look disgusted. “It was Brianna, actually, who saved the day when you were out of touch.” He barely looked at her. “But I was glad to do my part. Excuse me, but—"
She had the nerve to grab his lapel when he started to pass her, spinning him so he was back to facing the ballroom and she was somehow standing an inch away from his erection.
Not that it lasted once he saw the look in her eyes. This was a woman in full seduction mode. She relaxed her hand on his jacket and smoothed it across his chest, her hips shifting even nearer. Her mouth parted, the dark lipstick on her lips gleaming.
"I thought we should dance,” she murmured. Her head tilted a little. She licked her lips.
And Cable remained unmoved. He saw a few people watching them and checked his impulse to toss her away.
"I don't have time to dance right now, Darcy. I need to find the restroom."
Excitement flared in her eyes. “I'll join you."
Ew. He felt his forehead tightening at the variety of images that offer generated. One of the men watching them nudged the guy next to him. Cable tried to look disinterested instead of disgusted.
"I don't think that's a good idea,” he told her.
"I can wait while you do what you need to do.” She brushed her thigh against his and drew her shoulders back, trying to draw his attention to her rather spectacular chest.
"Still not a good idea.” He lifted his hand to hers and tried to pull it away. She evaded him and placed it on the back of his neck.
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