Page 26 of A Wallflower Demands Satisfaction

When he finally reached their table, he shook hands vigorously with Greenborough before they moved on to introductions.Bratten rubbed his hands together in anticipation.

“Mister Owens-Kline, I hear you’re looking for a few high-return investments.”Bratten believed in throwing his cards into the mix as soon as possible to get things moving.

“I never do business before pleasure, and with the Greenboroughs, I love to see them dance.Are you married, Mister Bratten?”

He was mildly flummoxed at the sudden, odd turn in conversation.“Well, I never…I…”

“You’re either married or you’re not.Which is it, Mr.Bratten?”

“Um, no, actually…”

“That’s too bad.I’m not either, but I love watching the Greenboroughs dance.”With that, the musicians struck up the chords of a popular waltz, and the formerly lethargic Mister Greenborough took his wife’s hand and led her to the small dance floor near their table at the front of the restaurant.

The music started at a slow, swaying rhythm, but within seconds, the waltz had segued into a fast tempo.On the dance floor just steps away from them, Bratten witnessed one of the most erotic dance performances he’d ever seen.It was mesmerizing, and he couldn’t look away.Their version of the waltz was a dreamy twining of arms and legs that eventually led to a crescendo of sound and movement just before the abrupt end of the music.

He’d been totally pulled into their performance but reluctantly turned back to his other table partner.Owens-Kline was staring directly into his eyes.“Do you have some figures and deeds to show me?”

“Of course.When Bratten reached into his portfolio at his feet to retrieve the false deeds and numbers, his hand grasped at nothing but empty space.He immediately leaned across the table with a closed fist, in an attempt to threaten the man on the other side.

Owens-Kline took his fist as if it were a child’s toy and deftly snapped it backward, breaking Bratten’s wrist.When he roared in pain and leapt to his feet, several men who had been sitting in the restaurant came to his side and forcefully escorted him toward the exit.

As they began to lead him away and he was leveling murderous stares at his former dinner partners, Owens-Kline warned in a low, barely audible tone.“The next time you run a confidence game in London, try not to use your, um, skills on individuals who are friends of the queen.”

“Dickie—.”Missus Greenborough raced over and embraced her brother.“We did it, didn’t we?”

“We always do.And where are my nieces and nephews tonight?”

“They’re ‘helping’ Uncle CB at the clinic,” Will filled in.

“God help him,” Olivia added.

“We might as well drink that shamefully expensive bottle of wine, don’t you think?”her brother suggested.

“If you insist.”Will beat them back to the table and began filling their glass wine balusters.

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