Beauty (Fated Encounters) (3 page)

“Thank you,” Tessa whispered
reverently.

Drake shifted impatiently in his
seat. “We’re throwing a charity event.”

Nico blinked. “Excuse me?”

Scowling, Drake gave a brief
explanation, and his expression darkened as Nico let out a booming laugh.
“Seriously? You’re hosting a ball? I don’t even know what to say to that.”

“For around five hundred people.
Think you can handle that?”

A speculative gleam filled Nico’s
eyes as he sobered. “Hmm...cart blanche?”

Drake considered for a moment
before countering with, “To be approved before the menu is finalized.”

Nico rubbed his chin with his
fingers as he thought about the idea. “When?”

“March.”

Tessa gawked at the casual way
Drake and Nico spoke of the catering for the event. It would have taken her countless
hours of cajoling and pleading to get a chef of Nico Devine’s caliber to cater
an event such as the one they were planning on, but Drake had done it in a
matter of seconds. She’d been too shocked to say anything until his words
finally registered. “March? You can’t be serious! We can’t possibly put an
event like this together for five hundred people in less than three months!”

Drake’s intense gaze turned
toward her. “Why not?”

Her mouth opened and closed
repeatedly as she tried to figure out what to say. There were tons of reasons
why they couldn’t pull something like this together in so little time, but the
way he’d convinced Nico to cater the food made Tessa rethink all her
objections. Drake Vidal was a man with power, and that power could apparently
move mountains. “I guess it’s possible,” she amended with no small amount of
hesitation, “but it’s going to take up a lot of your time if you’re planning to
supervise everything. It’s going to mean a lot of extra meetings—”

He held her gaze as he said, “I
can do that.”

Nico slowly grinned as he looked
back and forth between the two of them. “This is going to be fun. I’ll be in
touch to set up the tasting.”

“Do that.” Drake snapped, not
liking the amusement in his friend’s voice. “Nico?”

“Yeah?”

“Go cook.”

Nico laughed. He stood up just as
the waiter returned carrying a takeout bag. He said his goodbyes, and Drake
paid the bill after the waiter handed it to him in a discreet, black leather
folder. She tried to protest, but he had quelled her with a sharp look. Her
head was spinning with the rapid progress that had been made, so she just
thanked him, earning a curt nod in return.

Before Tessa knew it, she found
herself standing outside of the restaurant with Drake. She pulled the collar of
her coat closer in defense of the biting wind, but he didn’t seem to notice.
Was the man even human?

“The first thing on your list was
the venue. I want to see several options. Set that up, then contact me so we
can coordinate.”

The imperious tone of his set her
teeth on edge, but she reminded herself that she was damn lucky he’d agreed to
her plan. “Fine.”

He led her to a waiting taxi at
the curb and opened the back door of the vehicle for her. Before she could get
in, he said her name, making her turn back. Her breath caught at how close he
stood to her, his intense blue gaze pinning her in place. “For the next three months,
your time belongs to me.”

She knew it was true for the
event they were planning, but she couldn’t help but think his words held more
meaning than that. It was the way he said it. A command...and a warning.

This time it wasn’t the cold that
made her shiver.

“Does anyone ever say no to you?”

“No.” Drake said the word and
smiled for the first time since she had met him. His impassive expression had
made him dark and dangerously appealing, but his smile made him...simply
irresistible. Her heart fluttered in her chest, and her knees went weak. She
now knew exactly why Drake Vidal never lacked for female attention despite his
horrible reputation.

Good lord, the man was absolutely
gorgeous.

She got in the cab and let Drake
close the door. Unable to help herself she looked at him through the window and
saw him watching her as the cab pulled into traffic.

“Where to, lady?”

Tessa was lightheaded and
realized she’d been holding her breath. She sat back and gave the driver the
address of her office, then braced herself as the vehicle began to weave
through traffic.

What the hell had she just gotten
herself into?

Worry warred with elation in
Tessa’s mind. She’d managed to convince him to throw the event, saving her
father’s job in the process, but how in the world was she suppose to work with
him over the next few months?

Sure, he was intimidating and
arrogant as hell, however he’d listened to what she had to say. It had been a
Hail Mary, and it had surprisingly worked. Throwing this event for Drake would
be a burden on her time since she wouldn’t be earning a fee, but the publicity
of having her company in charge would make up for that tenfold. Honestly, she’d
never thought he would agree, but she was very glad he had.

Perhaps working with him wouldn’t
be so hard after all.

***

CHAPTER THREE

The man was absolutely impossible.

Okay, maybe that was a little
harsh, Tessa told herself. Still, a little more than a two weeks into planning
the charity masquerade gala with Drake, and she wanted to pull her hair out. So
far, they’d visited six different potential locations for the gala, and none of
them had met Drake’s high standards.

Tessa had arranged for them to be
shown around the locations, and she had watched with a mixture of amusement and
veiled exasperation as the event coordinators at each place fawned over Drake. It
didn’t help that he was as handsome as the devil, with a disposition to match.

He’d declared the hotels she had
taken him to were unsuitable as they were too ordinary, even though they were
the best in the city. To her surprise, after the last four excursions he had arranged
for them to have dinner at other restaurants he said he was considering as
potential catering options despite his verbal accord with Nico Devine.

She’d been busting her ass making
time for all of the appointments with Drake, plus trying to fit in the work
that accompanied all the other events she was working on with her partner,
Jamie Brighton. Her father had been released from the hospital, and he’d vetoed
the idea of a nurse, demanding that Tessa stop by to see him instead. She’d
definitely been burning the candle at both ends, but it couldn’t be helped.
Because of what she was doing, her father was now out on medical leave instead
of fired from the job he loved.

Drake had done that, because of
the bargain they’d struck.

Tessa found herself baffled by
Drake the more time she spent with him. When they were alone, she thought he
was interesting, even charming at times. He had a dry wit that appealed to her
skewed sense of humor, and he held a wealth of knowledge that made conversations
with him always insightful. But true to his reputation, Drake was still abrupt
with others. She’d even witnessed him being downright rude to people and ignore
those he thought were beneath his notice. Still, she couldn’t seem to reconcile
the man she was beginning to see glimpses of with who he was in public.

And her attraction to him seemed
to be growing.

Nothing could ever come of it
anyways, Tessa told herself. He was a client. A hot, sexy client that made her
pulse race every time she was around him. Hell, thoughts of him had even
invaded her dreams so she hadn’t gotten a good night’s sleep since she’d met
him. Well, thoughts of him and the overall panic of getting the charity
masquerade gala planned in time.

It was obvious Drake had no clue
how much time and effort went in to throwing an event of this caliber, but then
again, he wasn’t supposed to know. It was her job to make sure all the details
were put together perfectly. He was just the checkbook with the final say on
everything.

Making sure those details were
taken care of was damned difficult when the man wouldn’t even pick a location
to hold the event. So far, the only thing Drake had signed off on were the invitations
she’d selected. He hadn’t wanted to use email, choosing cream-colored paper invitations
with black calligraphy script instead, and now all she needed was the address,
time and date.

The town car pulled up in front
of the address she had given to Drake’s driver, Gus. The stone structure looked
old from the outside, fitting in with the other stately buildings that graced
that block of Michigan Avenue. They were in the heart of the downtown loop, and
Tessa knew in her heart that this was the perfect location. Now, she just had
to convince Drake of that.

Lucky number seven, she hoped.

Turning in her seat, she looked
at him. “Do me a favor. Keep an open mind on this one.”

Drake’s eyebrow rose. “I always
keep an open mind.”

She made a humming sound in her
throat that seemed to amuse him enough to make him give her a hint of a smile,
then his driver opened the back door and he got out. Drake held out his hand and
helped her from the car. Her hand tingled where she touched his, and she
quickly pulled hers back as soon as she was standing.

He’s not for you, she reminded
herself.

As they entered the building, a
man was waiting for them in the main foyer. He greeted them with a bright
smile. “Ms. Campbell, Mr. Vidal. It’s a pleasure to meet you. My name is Gerald
Demmings. I’m so pleased you’re considering hosting an event in our ballroom.”

Drake shook his hand, then took
his time looking around as Tessa said, “Thank you for fitting us into your
schedule on such short notice.”

“Not a problem at all,” Gerald
said with a smile.

“This is part of the art school?”
Drake asked, interrupting Tessa and Gerald’s conversation.

“Yes, sir. We are very proud of
our facility here. With the art museum right across the street, this is a prime
location. Please, if you would just follow me, I’ll show you to upstairs.”

“The entrance is a little small,”
Drake murmured to Tessa as they walked up the bold red, carpeted staircase that
led upstairs.

“Open mind, Vidal,” Tessa
reminded him.

“I can do that.”

“Sure you can,” she said, her
voice dripping with sarcasm.

He gave a little grunt as they
reached the small landing separating the single staircase below from the two
sets that led upstairs. Once they reached the second floor, Tessa kept her eyes
on Drake, watching for his reaction.

The room was absolutely
beautiful, made up of red and cream fabrics with gold accents. The circular
staircase they came up was positioned in the center of the room, with a small
railing partitioning it off and a large chandelier hanging overhead. The back
half of the room was a wide open space with enough room for the numerous tables
they would need to seat all the guests, but there were a few round tables in
place to give a hint at what the room would look like when it was fully
dressed.

Up above, there was a third floor
of balconies that could be used for additional seating. The gold embellished balconies
gave the venue a unique, almost gothic look, but Tessa thought the best feature
was the dance floor at the front of the room. Made of black and white tile, the
dance floor gave the room an elegant feel to it, like a setting from the 1920s.

Tessa ignored Gerald as he
launched into a long winded explanation of the history of the building, and
gave a satisfied sigh as she saw the gleam of approval in Drake’s gaze. “You
like it.”

“Do I?”

She nodded. “You do. I can tell.”

Drake knew he was a master at
hiding his emotions, but somehow over the last few weeks, Tessa had learned how
to read his moods. It was unusual, but he’d gotten used to it the more time he
spent with her. Actually, he liked that she was able to read him since he
wasn’t very good at expressing himself.

Not with words, anyways.

He seemed to be torturing himself
by spending time with her, but he couldn’t seem to help it. Tessa touched a
part of his soul that he didn’t even know he had. It was an uncomfortable
feeling since he wasn’t used to it. He didn’t fully understand why she had this
effect on him, but seeing her smiling up at him now was like looking at the
sun, and he basked in her warmth.

“I do like it,” he confirmed,
then announced, “We want to book it.”

Gerald had been cut off
mid-speech, but he recovered with a beaming grin and hurried over to a table
where he picked up a small tablet. “Excellent! I know you said you needed the
space soon, and we’re already filling up all the way in to the fall—”

“For March.”

Gerald’s face paled as he gaped
at them. “March? This March?”

Tessa shot a knowing glance at
Drake, then took pity on Gerald as she took the sputtering man’s arm and led
him over to one of the tables. She pushed him down in the chair and took a seat
next to him. “I’m sorry. I know this is very short notice, but our timetable is
pretty fixed.”

Drake scowled as he watch the two
of them. He didn’t like Tessa apologizing to the man, and he really didn’t like
how close she was sitting to him. Gerald was the academic type in his tweed
jacket and khaki pants. It irked him to think that was the type of man who
appealed to her. Someone far different than himself. That thought had him
snapping, “If you can’t manage a date for a Saturday in March, then we’ll find
somewhere else that will accommodate us.”

Gerald popped up out of his seat
like his pants were on fire. “No! I mean, please, don’t do that. Just...give me
a minute.”

He held his tablet to his chest
as he pulled his cell phone out of his pocket and raced from the room. Tessa
frowned up at Drake when they were alone.

“What?”

“You know what. Did you have to
growl at that poor man?”

“I didn’t growl.”

“Sure you did,” she countered as
she stood. Tessa tried to hold her frown, but it gave way to a sigh of
resignation. “You just can’t help it, can you?”

“I have no clue what you’re
talking about.”

“Just...try not to scare the
man.”

He shot her a smile she
considered quite placating. “I can do that.”

Giving up, Tessa changed the
subject. “Isn’t this place great? I knew you were going to like this one.”

“How did you know?” Drake asked,
genuinely curious.

She shot him an impish grin.
“Because of the black and white tile, of course.”

“Is that a shot at the decor at
my office?”

She rolled her eyes. “A little
color wouldn’t kill you, you know.”

“Black and white is classic...and
it’s easier to match with everything.”

“It is, but it’s...”

“Boring?”

“Yes, exactly.” Laughing, Tessa
forgot herself and gripped his arm in a friendly gesture as she made a point to
glance at the white shirt he wore under his black coat, then down to his black
pants. “Someday we are going to get some color on you.”

I’d like to get on you...

Drake cleared his throat as he
fought back the inappropriate thoughts running through his head. Christ, simply
feeling her hand on his arm made him want to pull her to him and kiss her. He
wanted to throw her down on one of the table tops and take her until he rid
himself of the need he’d developed for her.

At first, Drake simply wanted to
sleep with her, but he’d actually grown to like her, and somewhere along the
way, they had actually started to become friends. He enjoyed the way she joked
around with him and made him feel like they had a special connection. It was as
if Tessa could see beyond the rough exterior he presented to the world to the
real him, and he’d come to depend on that in the short amount of time they’d
known one another.

“Great news!” Gerald announced as
he hurried back toward them. “The third Saturday of March has just opened up.”

Tessa pulled her phone out and
scrolled to the calendar function. The 21st of March would give her a little
more time to plan rather than having it at the beginning of the month. She
tilted her head back and promptly forgot how to breathe. Drake was leaning down
to see the screen of her phone, and was so close her lips almost brushed
against his. “Does...ah, does that work for you?”

Their eyes met and held.

After a long pause, Drake
murmured, “Yes, that works.”

Forcing herself to look away,
Tessa mentally cursed. The temptation had been so strong to raise up on her
toes and press her mouth against his. She’d wanted it more than anything in
that brief moment she’d felt his sweet breath against her lips, but she’d
luckily caught herself seconds before she had made a complete and utter fool of
herself.

Focus on the work.

A disturbing thought broke
through Tessa’s elation at booking the perfect venue. Images of a weeping bride
whose wedding was destroyed flickered through her mind, making her stomach
clench. “How exactly did this date suddenly become available? You didn’t just
cancel someone’s wedding, did you?”

Gerald vigorously shook his head.
“No, nothing like that. One of the board members was planning to surprise his
wife with an anniversary party, but he was more than happy to move it to a
different date.”

Relief had Tessa nudging Drake’s
arm. “We should invite that couple to the charity event.”

“Why?”

“Because it’s the nice thing to
do?” She let out a small sigh. “Never mind, I’ll take care of it.”

Gerald showed them back to his
office to sign the necessary paperwork. She requested copies of all of the
documentation so she would have access to them while she coordinated with
Gerald over the next few months. A half an hour later, Drake led Tessa out of
the building, back to his town car.

As the car pulled in to traffic,
Drake said, “There’s another restaurant I wanted to check out that is on my
list of potential caterers. We’ll go there for dinner.”

“Not that I don’t love trying out
all these new places, but didn’t you tell Nico you were going to have him cater
the event? He sent me an email earlier and said that he set up the tasting with
you for next Thursday.”

“He did, but I like having
options.”

Tessa nodded, and lowered her
head so he wouldn’t see her look of censure. It didn’t surprise her that Drake
was the type of man who liked having options in all things...including women.
It was what made him so dangerous and so very wrong for her.

She knew all about men who liked
keeping their options open from experience, and she still had the scars on her
heart to prove it. She’d been struggling with her new business when she’d met Andrew
Schuller, a charismatic lawyer who had just passed the bar. They’d been living
together for a few months when she’d come home early from an event and
discovered him in their bed with an associate of the firm he had just been
hired at. He’d calmly explained he’d outgrown Tessa, and that people would
expect more from a lawyer’s girlfriend than someone who just threw parties for
a living.