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One
The vultures were circling
Celia Taylor stood back, wineglass in hand, and surveyed the crowded ballroom The fund-raiser was supposed to be more pleasure than business, but business was uppermost on the minds of her competition
Across the rooroup of people He looked relaxed, see his extraordinarily handsoeous
It should be a cried, he looked every inch the kind of ned and sold There was an aura of confidence and power around him, and above all, Celia loved a man as sure of himself
Given the long, searching glances they’d exchanged over the last feeeks, she’d be a fool not to entertain the idea of seeing where things could lead
If he wasn’t a prospective client
A client she wanted to land very much
She wanted the account—her boss and the agency was counting on her—but she drew the line at sleeping with a et what she wanted
Celia turned away froht of Evan Reese before she beca him
They’d performed a delicate dance around each other ever since he’d fired his last advertising agency
He knew she wanted him—in the professional sense of course Hell, he probably knew she wanted hi to dwell on that Maybe later tonight when she could afford to indulge in a little fantasy
The proble coency, it becaencies circled like sharks It was a dog-eat-dog world, and in reality, she should be over there, shoving herself down his throat like the rest of her competition, but she couldn’t help but believe Evan Reese was secretly amused by the attention He took a different hand She was sure of it
“Celia, glad you made it Have you spoken to Reese yet?”
Celia turned to see her boss, Brock Maddox, standing a foot away He wasn’t drinking He didn’t even look particularly thrilled to be here
Her eyebrow rose “A tux Why, Brock, you look positively decadent However are you keeping the ladies at bay?”
He grunted in response, his lips curling in distaste “Cut it out, Celia I brought Elle along”
Celia looked beyond his shoulder to see his pretty assistant standing a few feet away When Elle looked her way, Celia smiled and waved
“You look beautiful,” Celia mouthed
Elle smiled and ducked her head self-consciously but not before Celia saw the faint blush that colored her cheeks
Brock gestured i over here while Evan Reese is over there?” Brock scanned the room and his expression hardened “I should have known the old bastard would be here”
Celia followed his gaze to see Athos Koteas holding court within hearing distance of Evan Though she wouldn’t admit it to Brock, it made her extre so relentlessly on Evan Reese Koteas owned Golden Gate Promotions, and not only had Koteas lured away a few of Maddox’s top clients in recent ainst Maddox It was dirty pool, but it in no way surprised Celia Koteas was ruthless, and he’d do anything to win
“Well, yes,” CeliaEvan over”
“Any reason you aren’t?”
She laid her hand on his forearm She kne important this account was to Brock—to everyone at Maddox Communications “I need you to trust me, Brock I’ve studied Evan Reese extensively He knows I’m interested He’ll come to me eventually I’m sure of it”
“Are you fifty million dollars sure, Celia? Maddox is small, and this kind of deal means our employees keep their jobs whereas if we continue to lose clients and accounts, I can’t uarantees”
“I know I’ a lot,” she said in a low voice “But I can’t walk over there and pull out the seductive wiles” She gestured toward the wo any bones as to how far they’d go to sign him “It’s what he expects, and you of all people know I can’t do it I can land this account on theideas , Brock I’ve spent every waking o for it”
Brock studied her for a longhat looked like respect She loved working for hi And he was the only person she’d presented her side of what had happened in New York in her last advertising job
“I never expected you to land the account on anything less than your brilliance, Celia,” Brock said softly
“I hope I never gave you any other impression”
“I know I appreciate your confidence more than you knoon’t let you down I won’t let Maddox Communications down”
Brock ran a hand through his hair and glanced once more across the rooency was everything to him But in the last few months new lines had appeared around his eyes More than anything Celia wanted to be able to hand this account to hi to think the worst
She glanced up to see Evan threading his way through the throng of people “Don’t look now, but he’s headed our way Maybe you should take Elle and go dance or so”
As quickly as he’d approached, Brock turned and melted back into the crowd
Celia sipped at her wine and practiced nonchalance as she literally felt Evan close in It was impossible to rees whenever he was anywhere near
And his smell Even amid the hustle and bustle of the crowded room, the mix of so many feh Masculine and ly sexy It made no sense to her, but she was attuned to his every nuance, and that had nothing to do with all the studying up she’d done on him and his company
“Celia,” he murmured
She turned with a welco?”
“I think you know I’m not”
She raised one eyebrow and stared at hilass “Do I?”
Evan snagged a flute fro waiter and turned his attention fully on her It was all she could do not to gasp under his heated scrutiny It was as if he undressed her right then and there in front of a roomful of people Her blood simmered and pooled low in her belly He had beautiful eyes, and they were currently devouring her, delving beneath the own she’d chosen Hedress iaze
“Tell , Celia Why aren’t you over with the rest of the piranhas convincing ht to the top?”
Her lips curved upward into a smile “Because you already are at the top?”