Chapter 27
Chapter
Twenty-Seven
CHLOE
We walk into the banquet room, and my breath catches.
I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this.
The room is done in an ice theme. There are ice sculptures of different hockey equipment, fake icicles hang from the ceiling, and what look to be ice-covered branches strategically placed throughout the room.
With the lights turned down low, it almost feels as if everything is glowing.
“What do you think?” Brantley asks.
“That I never could have planned something on this level.”
He chuckles and shakes his head. “Neither can I. That’s why I hire out.”
“Are you happy with it?” I ask.
“Yeah, I am. I’m glad I nixed the light show on the ceiling. I think that would have been a little too much.”
“Light show on the ceiling?” I marvel.
“The planner wanted to have some sort of projector on the ceiling that had snowflakes.”
“That’s…insane. You should have done it,” I tell him.
“Of course I should have. Missed opportunity.” He kisses me softly. “Come on, let’s go grab a drink before people really start to arrive.”
He places his hand on my lower back and leads me across the room to a bar.
“Dirty martini for her, and an old-fashioned for me, please,” he tells the bartender.
While we wait for our drinks, he turns toward me. “I don’t know if I told you or not tonight but you look beautiful.”
When I came down the stairs at home tonight, I watched as his breath caught and his eyes widened. I never knew that someone could make you feel so sexy, so desired, without speaking.
“You told me, but I won’t get sick of hearing it. You look amazing tonight too, by the way. You wear this tux well.”
“Thank you.”
“You know where it would look better, though?”
“Where?”
“On our bedroom floor.”
His eyes darken. “Don’t tease me when we have to stay here. That’s just rude.”
“It’s called building the suspense. Apparently it’s supposed to make the orgasms that much stronger.”
The bartender makes a sound in the back of her throat as she sets our drinks down.
“Have a good night,” she squeaks.
“Way to go, already traumatizing the help,” he teases, making me laugh.
We move from the bar to a little two-person standing table off to the side.
“Okay, tell me what we need to do tonight?” I ask, changing subjects.
All humor leaves Brantley’s face.
“I need more sponsors for the team. Louis is an asshole, but after talking to my accountant, he is right. Having sponsors to offset the cost will help me be able to keep using my funds to keep the team going in the event of something catastrophic happening. We want good ones, though. We got Mr. Graceland and their IPAs on board, but that’s not enough.
I didn’t want to have to bring anyone else in, but I need to do what’s best for the team. ”
“Dumb question, IPA as in the type of beer?”
“Yes.” He smiles.
“Okay, cool. Do you have anyone in mind that will be here tonight that you really want to win over?” I ask.
“There is this company that produces hockey gear. They have this new neck guard they are really promoting that will protect skaters from getting slashed in the neck by accident. Ideally, I would love for them to join, but even if they don’t, I’ll be buying the guards for the guys.”
“Smart.”
It really is. It’s not often that a player gets cut by a blade while playing, but when it does, it can be tragic. The last thing you want to see is someone bleeding out on the ice if you can help it.
“Anyone else?”
“There’s a sports drink company that will be here as well. I wouldn’t mind it if they joined. The one I really want, though, is Gregory Hamilton.”
“So for sure three, that sounds easy enough.”
“You say that now.” He smirks.
“You win over the husbands, and I’ll win over the wives. We got this.” I nudge his shoulder.
“What do you got?” Liv asks.
I turn and smile when I see her and Mason approaching.
“You look amazing,” I tell her as I give her a hug.
“So do you. I’m so happy you went with this dress and not the cream one,” she says, making me laugh.
“No shit, it would have been see-through for sure.”
“This place looks great,” Liv tells Brantley.
“I can’t take any credit for it, but thank you,” he says.
Soon Eli and Adrianna join us.
“Hey guys,” Eli says as Adrianna looks around.
“You good, Adrianna?” Liv asks after we’ve all exchanged pleasantries.
“Of course. Sorry, I was taking everything in,” she says, shaking her head.
“You mean we were scoping out the competition,” I tease, making everyone laugh.
Every year, Adrianna and now Eli put on a huge charity event. The last one had a garden theme and was absolutely gorgeous.
She rolls her eyes but smiles. “I can’t help it. That side of my brain never shuts off.”
“What theme are you thinking of doing next?” Liv asks.
“Fire,” she says with zero hesitation.
“It’s going to be amazing,” Eli boasts.
Brantley squeezes my hip. “There’s someone over there I would like to introduce you to.”
“Of course.” I look back at our friends. “I’m sure we will meet up with you guys later.”
“We will be here,” Liv says.
Brantley moves his hand to the small of my back and guides me across the room. I suck in a breath when I see who we are walking toward.
Clayton James and Beckett Hayes.
Best friends in real life and fantastic on the ice.
“Gentleman,” Brantley says as we approach.
Both men hold out their hands and shake Brantley’s.
“Thank you for inviting us,” Clayton says.
“Of course. This is my girlfriend, Chloe. She works in the marketing department,” he tells them.
The guys reach out and shake my hand.
“I think I’ve seen you around the arena,” Beckett says.
“Probably.” I smile at the woman at his side.
“This is my wife, Peyton, and that’s Grace, Clayton’s girlfriend,” Beckett tells me.
Clay winces. “Sorry, Shorty.”
Grace laughs and shakes her head. “I’m used to it.” She looks back at us. “He always forgets to introduce people and just thinks everyone knows everyone.”
“Hey, it happens to the best of us,” I tell her before looking at Peyton. “How long have you two been married?”
“Just shy of two years,” she tells me.
“That’s amazing. Congratulations. I’m sure it’s hard having both of them gone so often,” I tell the girls as Brantley pulls the guys into a conversation.
“It’s not bad. We have each other, and we’re busy with school,” Grace tells me.
“Oh, that’s right. You went to college together,” I say.
“We all did. That’s how we met,” Peyton adds.
“That’s so cool,” I tell them.
We chat a little bit longer, and I find myself relaxing. The girls are sweet, and it’s clear they have their shit together.
“Excuse me, will Mr. Gibson and Miss Spears make their way to the dance floor, please?” the band says.
“Excuse us,” Brantley tells the group.
“What’s going on?” I hiss with a smile on my face.
“Just go with it,” he says as he pulls me into his arms.
brANTLEY
Chloe places her hand on my chest and looks up at me with wide eyes.
“Brantley, I don’t know how to dance. Not like this.”
“It will be fine. Just follow my lead.”
The music starts, and we begin to move. After a few seconds, Chloe starts to relax and move more freely.
“Everyone is staring,” she murmurs.
That’s the point.
I wanted everyone here to know who she belongs to. Who I belong to. I wanted to make a statement. Usually I try to avoid this kind of attention, but doing this felt right. Everyone watches on from the sidelines as we dance, and when the next song starts up, people start to fill the dance floor.
“I love you.”
She looks up at me and smiles. “I love you too. Now come on, I could use another drink.”
We head to the bar and get our drinks.
“Brantley Gibson, you’re a hard man to track down,” a woman’s voice says from behind me.
Chloe and I turn and see a woman with blond hair approaching us.
“I’m sorry, do I know you?”
She holds out her hand. “I’m Alicia Crawford. A mutual friend of ours invited me.”
“Louis,” I say as I quickly shake her hand before letting go and stepping back.
“Yes.” She smiles as she eyes me.
“Let me introduce you to my girlfriend, Chloe.”
Her smile slips for a second before she turns toward the woman at my side. “It’s lovely to meet you.”
“Likewise. So since you know Louis, I’m assuming you own a company?”
Alicia’s smile becomes brittle. “I’m the heir to a luxury suit company.”
“How interesting,” Chloe says.
I bite the inside of my cheek to stop myself from laughing. It’s clear that Chloe finds it anything but, and honestly, I don’t blame her. I don’t know why Louis thinks teaming up with a suit brand would be smart when all the guys buy their own suits for before games and travel.
“Oh, Brantley, we’re being waved over there.” Chloe shoots Alicia a smile. “Excuse us.”
“That was brutal,” Chloe mutters, making me laugh once we are safely away from the woman.
“Tell me about it.”
“Do you think Louis is sabotaging your team? It seems he doesn’t understand what you stand for,” she says.
“Trust me, I feel the same way.” I spot the sports drink owner, Adain Rodgers. “Over there. Hydrate Me owner.”
We change direction and head toward the man.
“Adain,” I say as we approach.
The man looks at me and frowns for a second before his face clears. “Brantley Gibson?”
“Yes, it’s nice to meet you,” I say as I shake his hand. “This is my partner, Chloe.”
She reaches out and shakes his hand. “It’s lovely to meet you, and I have to tell you, I’m a big fan. I love your strawberry kiwi drink.”
His eyes light up. “Really? That’s one of our least bought flavors.”
“It reminds me of those drinks that came in pouches when we were kids, but healthy, of course.”
He laughs as he sticks his hands in his pockets. “You know, you’re not the first one to say that.”
Perfect. I knew Chloe would be good at this, but I didn’t know how good. She takes to networking like a fish in water. By the time we are done chatting with Adain, he’s promised to reach back out on Monday so we can discuss a contract.
“You’re amazing,” I murmur as I kiss her head.
“You’re not so bad yourself. Now let’s go get some neck guards,” she says as she nods toward the sports gear owner who just so happens to be standing with the Gracelands.
“Chloe!” Hannah Graceland calls out.
“It’s so great to see you,” Chloe tells her, hugging her as if they are childhood friends.
“Good to see you,” I tell Mr. Graceland, shaking his hand.
“I see you took my advice.” He winks.
“I did.”
“I’m glad. Now let me introduce you to Neil,” he says as he slaps my shoulder.
We turn and face the other man.
“It’s nice to meet you,” I tell him.
The guy is younger than I thought he would be for owning a business the size of his.
“It’s great to meet you. I’m a big fan,” Neil says as he eagerly shakes my hand. “I mean, I’m a huge fan of the Foxes.”
I chuckle. “I get it. When did you become a fan?”
“My entire life. I was born here in Boston before my parents moved into the city,” he says, referring to New York City.
“Hey, that’s great. I’m also a lifelong Foxes fan,” Chloe quips.
I quickly introduce the two, and I’ll give the man credit, his eyes stay on her face. It makes me like him more. I meant what I said. I don’t want sponsors but see the need for them. That means I won’t take one that doesn’t match my moral compass.
“I don’t think I asked, but what drew you to rooting for the Foxes, Chloe?” Mr. Graceland asks her.
Her cheeks turn red. “This is going to sound silly, but I loved that the fox was the same color as my hair. As soon as I saw it, I was hooked.”
“That’s not silly at all, dear. I personally root for a football team out of Seattle because they have a shade of green in their logo that I love,” Hannah tells her.
While the women chat, Mr. Graceland turns toward me. “Brantley, Neil was just telling me about this neck guard they just developed. You have to hear about it.”
Fucking perfect.
“Only if you have time. I don’t want to bore you,” Neil says quickly.
“Nonsense!” Mr. Graceland says.
“I actually would like to hear about it,” I tell him.
Neil lights up and begins to give me a detailed explanation of how the product works. Chloe looks over at me and winks with a smile on her face.
As I take a sip of my drink, I can’t help but smile.
This is going better than I could have imagined.
Not only have I already hooked the two companies that I want to join, but I’ve also got a beautiful woman on my arm.
The only thing that would make tonight better is if Chloe and I were already at home.
That will come soon enough, though. For now, we will play the game.