“Gotta let everyone know you’re mine, babe.” He made to lean in, but I took a step back quickly.
“Hey! No PDA, remember? This is a Lords’ event. Everyone from the office is here.”
A smile played on his lips. “I publicly announced you’re my girlfriend, and I don’t even deserve a kiss?”
“You got plenty of kisses before we got here. And you’ll get plenty more when we leave.”
Jace now looked at me with a dangerous glint in his eyes. I was saved by Dad joining us.
“Brooke, you look lovely. Can I steal Jace?”
“He’s all yours.”
Chapter Twenty-Seven
Brooke
It was endearing to watch Jace introduce me to everyone with pride in his voice. We were not joined at the hip the entire evening, but even when we weren’t together, Jace stopped by to bring me a fresh drink, or just to ask me if I was having fun.
“Why did I ever think it was a good idea to come here?” he murmured.
“Because it’s the year’s biggest event?”
“Yeah, but I’ll be gone for two weeks. I’d rather spend this evening alone with you.”
I sucked in a breath, speechless.
“I can’t wait to get home with you,” he went on. He pushed a strand of hair behind my ear, and by the way his hand lingered at the back of my head, his fingertips gentle on my scalp, I knew we were not going to sleep much tonight. But I was all for sexy, night-long goodbyes.
I did a fair amount of networking with the sponsors. It was the first time I’d meet some in person, and I was determined to make a good impression. In my experience, there was no better way to build trust than face-to-face. It was just how human nature worked.
As one of the main sponsors, Carl Hill was also attending, and I spent some time chatting with him.
As the event wound down, the reporters left, along with some of the guests, including Dad. It became harder to avoid certain people’s eye rolls—such as Veronica’s and Sheila’s. Tina, on the other hand, had genuine smiles for me, even remarking, “You two look sweet together,” which I took as a sign that it hadn’t been foolish to walk in on Jace’s arm.
When I went to the dessert buffet to replenish my plate, Levi approached me.
“Enjoying the evening?” he asked dryly. I’d caught him glancing at me a few times as if he was preparing himself to pounce, but he hadn’t had the chance to speak to me until now.
“It’s a nice event.”
I needed to be smart about this. I was certain he wanted to pick a fight, and I wanted to avoid a scene at all costs. He hadn’t been happy about the fact that more and more sponsors were steering clear of him and that Carl Hill had gone for Jace.
“I saw you schmoozing up to sponsors. Trying to secure some more contracts for your boyfriend?”
“Levi, if you have any complaints and concerns, we can talk about them when you come back from the away games.”
“I want to talk now. How about that?”
I looked him straight in the eyes, realizing I couldn’t avoid this. Before I could reply, though, Jace walked up to me.
“Everything all right?” he asked.
“Sure. Levi was just about to tell me—”
“That she shouldn’t get comfortable in her position just because she’s sleeping with you.”
I froze. He’d spoken loud enough for those close to us to hear. Several people had turned to look at us.