Chapter 9 - Shadows in the Vineyard
I didn't blink. I didn't let a flicker of doubt cross my face in front of the dozens of watching eyes, but beneath the silk of my dress, my skin turned to ice.
"If he did," I said softly, looking Leo directly in his bloodshot eyes, "then he is twice the strategist you will ever be. Now get out of my way before I have the hotel security escort you to the gutter."
Leo stepped back, looking stunned and utterly defeated, as Julian stepped up beside me, offering his arm once more.
We danced. Under the cascading crystal light, Julian pulled me flush against his chest. His hand was possessive on my waist, his thumb tracing the dip of my lower back. He moved with an effortless, predatory grace, turning us across the parquet floor while the elite of San Francisco watched in stunned silence.
"What did he say to you?" Julian murmured, his lips brushing the crown of my head.
"He said you knew about them," I answered, looking up into his fathomless gray eyes. "He said you waited for them to betray me so you could swoop in and claim the rail spur."
Julian didn't look away. His grip on my waist tightened, pulling me half an inch closer until our chests moved in unison.
"I knew Leo was seeing someone behind your back," Julian confessed, his voice dangerously low, stripped of all executive polish. "My investigators found the apartment in Pacific Heights three weeks ago. But I didn't know it was Chloe until yesterday afternoon."
"Why didn't you tell me?" I demanded, the sting of betrayal flaring hot in my chest.
"Because if I walked into your townhouse and told you your fiancé was cheating on you, you would have thought I was lying to break the engagement and take the land," Julian whispered, his gaze dropping to my lips. "You had to see it with your own eyes, June. You had to see him for what he was."
"And the marriage?" I challenged, my pulse racing against my throat. "Was that just part of the acquisition?"
Julian spun me beneath his arm, pulling me back against his chest with a sudden, breathless intensity.
"The land was an acquisition," he murmured, his breath hot against my cheek. "You... were an obsession I’ve held since you stood up to your grandfather at eighteen and told him his shipping routes were thirty years out of date."
May you like
My breath caught in my throat. Before I could process the heat flooding my veins, the music stopped, and a chorus of polite applause echoed through the hall.
***
