Chapter 47
CHAPTER 47
SIMON
“D ude, I don’t know how they did this, but wow.” Benny let out a low whistle as he looked around the room. “Abigail did a damn good job with this. It’s no wonder her dad trusts her with their New York branch. The woman definitely has the magic touch.”
“Agreed.” Seated at a table with the guys and some other members of the Fit Gal team, I looked around the grand ballroom and I had to give it to her and Jeffrey. They had pulled off a fucking miracle with the time they’d had available to them. “If she wasn’t one of the most honest people I’ve ever met, I would think they’d somehow cheated for sure.”
Benny chuckled. “If George had been putting on this event, he definitely would’ve had to, but I think this is all just Abi.”
“I know it is.” As difficult as it was to believe, I raked my hands through my hair and glanced at my friend. He had a black mask over the top half of his face, but I could see the awe reflected in his eyes. “Karen and I are in trouble, aren’t we?”
“Absolutely.” He didn’t even sound sorry about it, his lips hooking into a smirk under the edge of his mask. “This is definitely going to be a photo finish. I don’t envy Fit Gal for having to decide who the winner is. Both events seem to be the best in their own ways.”
I nodded, getting what he was saying. There was no clear winner here. At least, not to me.
Over the years, I’d had to organize a few fundraisers like this for the firm, and given the time constraints, I hadn’t expected the other team to have managed to pull together something this big or this fancy. If I hadn’t known when they’d started planning, I would have thought this had been months in the making.
Frankly, I didn’t even know how they’d managed to secure this ballroom as a venue. It was as opulent as they got, adorned with gold detailing, intricate chandeliers, and luxurious drapery. Grand balconies all around the upper levels were empty tonight, but they would provide a view over a surprisingly lively scene below if I went up to one of them right now.
Guests engaged in conversation at candle-lit tables, everyone with a mask of sorts on their faces to provide just a touch of mystery. That had to have been Abi’s idea. I wonder how Jeffrey made out with their budget for this.
No doubt he’d had a couple of cardiac events during their short planning process, but in my opinion, the end result had been worth it. If even I was marveling, I knew Karen and I really were potentially in trouble—despite how well our event had gone.
Impressed and suddenly a little less confident about our win, I leaned back in my chair and noticed a lot of heads turning toward the massive staircase. I glanced toward it myself, curious about what was drawing all the attention.
As soon as my gaze landed on the sweeping staircase that provided entry to the ballroom, I knew why people were staring. Jeffrey and Abigail were walking down the stairs, and the air literally left my chest when I saw her. Descending into the ballroom on Jeffrey’s arm, she was beautiful in an elegant red dress that clung to her curves and accentuated her toned, hourglass figure.
Her face was partially hidden behind a lacy, red and black mask, but there was no mistaking that it was her. As my gaze swept across the length of her body, it was like I could suddenly feel my blood coursing through my veins, my insides lighting up into an inferno of desire.
I couldn’t take my eyes off her. It wasn’t even just a purely sexual desire, though that was definitely present too. It was so much more than that—enough that I should probably consider consulting a therapist, but then I might have to learn to fight these feelings and I didn’t really want to. This was a desire to claim. To possess.
I wanted her . All of her. On my arm instead of his. And I wouldn’t apologize for it.
It was like the world fell away in that moment, and as my eyes bulged and my jaw clenched, I looked at her and I knew that I’d leave it all for her. I’d walk away from everything, from my parents and the company, if that was what it took to have her.
Abigail wasn’t only gorgeous. She was stunning, no doubt, but to me, she also seemed like a beacon of strength and hope, of love, and light, and the future itself. She had somehow become the only thing that really mattered and it had never been more clear to me that I needed her in my life.
She was my person. That one person among the billions in the world who really got me. Who knew all of me—including the bad parts. She knew the anger that lived deep inside me, stemming from years of high level daddy issues I would never admit to having, but that was what it came down to. She knew my fear of inadequacy and the extent of the grief I’d struggled with every day since we’d lost my brother way too soon.
Yet she still saw the good. She saw how hard I tried and she often gave voice to thoughts I wasn’t even conscious of having. Abi saw me. In ways no one else did. She grounded me and she made me feel whole again, which was something I hadn’t felt much after my brother’s death.
When she disappeared behind the curtain, my heart thudded in my chest, my gaze now glued to the spot on the stage where I knew she’d be reappearing in just a few seconds. The emcee they’d secured for the evening, a socialite and influencer I recognized as one of London’s friends, did a brief welcoming speech and then finally swept a hand toward the curtain.
“Ladies and gentlemen, please allow me introduce to you, on behalf of Fit Gal, our hosts, Abigail Walker and Jeffrey Hanson.”
Near deafening applause rang out when they appeared from around the curtain, several people whistling and cheering as well. Abi was still on his arm, but I hadn’t even looked at Jeffrey once. I could only stare at her as she made her way across the stage without faltering. She stepped up behind the podium, gracefully wrapping her fingers around the sides of it and sending the audience a dazzling smile.
“Thank you, everyone,” she said softly but confidently, a raw honesty in her voice as her gaze swept across the crowd. “Wow, you know I wasn’t expecting so many of you to accept our invitation this evening.”
Chuckles and laughter met her statement and she smiled again. “For a little while, Jeff and I weren’t sure how many of you would be able to attend on such short notice, but I cannot thank you enough for showing up for this tremendous cause. It really is one that deserves our fullest support and we’re positively overwhelmed by the generosity of every single one of you.”
When more applause rang out, she lifted her head away from the mic for a moment, seeming to take it all in before she slid the mic out of its cradle and brought it closer to her mouth. Abi had always hated public speaking, but she’d definitely acquired a knack for it. She didn’t seem nervous at all.
In fact, looking at up her there, so confident and relaxed, she was a complete natural. Everything in me felt like it was reaching for her, and it was torture watching Jeffrey stand by her side instead of being there myself.
“As all of you know, the proceeds of this evening will be going toward the Cancer Foundation. Fit Gal is a huge supporter of medical research and helping people all over the world get back to their healthiest selves, and we’re honored to have you all here tonight to join us in our support of the Foundation.”
She gave the audience another smile before handing over the mic to a decidedly less confident Jeffrey. He took it, swiping his tongue across his lips and glancing at her. She gave him an encouraging nod and I saw him inhale deeply as their eyes locked.
Jealousy slammed into me when I realized they seemed to have hit it off while working together. At least enough that her being by his side gave him the courage to speak. Logically, I knew it was ridiculous to think that something could be going on between them, but it still felt like the Hulk was trying to smack a hole right through my insides.
“Thank you for coming,” he said clearly and succinctly, not nearly as charming as she had been. “We hope you enjoy yourselves this evening. Dinner will be served shortly. It’s chicken.”
As if the microphone had been burning a hole in his hand, he shoved it back toward her and she gently slid it back into its cradle. He offered her his arm and they turned together, leaving the stage with the emcee.
A live instrumental band on a raised stage in the opposite corner started playing again, as they had been when we’d arrived, and all around me, people resumed their conversations. From snippets I caught of what they were saying, Abigail was the belle of the ball and most of the guests were as impressed as Benny and I were about what she and Jeff had achieved here.
“I’ll be back soon,” I muttered to Benny and Josh, seated on either side of me. Then I shoved my chair back, looking toward the stage so I knew which way Abigail was going.
“Tell her we said hi,” Benny called.
“Ask her what kind of chicken,” Josh said.
I took off, weaving my way around tables, waiters, and other guests to catch up to her.
She and Jeffrey were talking to the emcee, but just before I reached them, she grabbed his hand and jerked her head to the side. “Sorry to have to cut this short, but I need you for something real quick, Jeff.”
With that, she pulled him into a side room and I groaned, frustration and aggravation rolling through me. I was pretty sure she’d done that just to avoid having to talk to me, and after the way we’d left things earlier, I couldn’t even say that I blamed her.
But if she thought she was going to get rid of me that easily, she had another thing coming. I wouldn’t give up. I was going to talk to her. Tonight. Before something happened that would make things even worse between us.