Page 94 of The Price of Scandal

“Always negotiating,” she sighed.

“This is something special, Emily.”

“Neither one of us has time for special,” she reminded me.

“We’re idiots if we don’t make time,” I warned.

“Oh, hey there, Emily,” a voice sing-songed.

“Shit,” Emily hissed.

Luna and Cam, in pajamas holding what appeared to be mimosas, sat in a tricked-out golf cart. They were grinning maniacally.

“Uh, hey, guys,” Emily said lamely. “Everyone knows Derek, right?”

“Hi, Derek,” the girls purred.

“Ladies,” I said, refusing to allow Emily to escape my grasp.

“Fancy running into you here, Emily,” Luna said with a wicked grin. “Cam and I were just talking, and we’re calling an emergency DQB tomorrow.”

“Be there,” Cam insisted.

Emily winced. “Yeah, that should be fine.”

“Great! Toodles!” Luna said, whipping the wheel of the golf cart and spinning around.

“Your friends certainly know how to make an entrance. What’s a DQB?”

“Drag Queen Brunch.”

30

Emily

This was a mistake, I thought as I watched Luna and Cam tool off in the golf cart. But, at the very least, it was one that I was intentionally making. This wasn’t an accidental misstep. This was an on-purpose disaster. And I planned to enjoy every moment of it, I decided, as Derek laced his fingers through mine.

I was taking an early morning stroll through Bluewater with the man who had delivered so many orgasms to me last night I’d lost count in a fog of boneless satiation.

The board would be furious. My mother would be appalled. My friends would demand details. And I just wasn’t nearly as worried about all of it as I should be.

“How did our little ‘not-so-faking it for the cameras’ charade play last night?” I asked him. Not keen on exposing myself to the sharp troll talons, I’d yet to look at my phone. I also didn’t want to deal with my mother’s morning-after debriefing. If there was a god, the woman was still dead asleep and would wake up with a raging hangover that would render her unable to call me.

He freed his phone from his pocket again and thumbed over the screen while we walked.

I liked him like this. Casual gym clothes, messy hair, irresistible stubble. Yes, there was shower sex in my immediate future.

“Very flattering,” he mused, squinting at the screen.

He turned the phone to me.

Emily Stanton steps out with babysitter date

Billionaire babysitter Derek Price

Stanton and Price stun at gala

The photos were flattering. My hair and dress made quite the statement. I looked badass. And Derek in his tux and broody good looks was the perfect complement.