A Cinderella Seduction. Karen Booth

quickly became their focus.

       “Mindy! Over here!”

       “This way, Mindy!”

      Emma didn’t know what to do, so she hung back, letting the photographers focus on her sister. Mindy smiled effortlessly, turning her head just so, shaking her shiny red tresses with all the confidence in the world. She was such a pro. Emma felt like a kid standing on the edge of the pool with water wings.

      “Who’s with you tonight?” a photographer asked.

      Mindy cast her sights at Emma. Emma worried that Mindy might throw her under the bus and pretend she didn’t know her.

      “My youngest sister, Emma, of course.” She reached for her hand, and before Emma knew what was happening, a million flashbulbs went off as she stood next to Mindy. These strangers were taking her picture and saying her name.

       Emma! Emma!

      Mindy stepped back and left Emma at center stage. She smiled, willing her face to be relaxed and natural. She planted her hand on her hip in what she hoped was the appropriate place.

       Why are we just meeting you now, Emma?

      She hadn’t prepared for questions. “I’ve been living in France. Just came back to the States to help my sisters run Eden’s.”

       Who are you wearing?

      “Nora Bradford, of course. The gown is an Eden’s exclusive. It’ll be available in the store starting tomorrow.” She glanced down for an instant and knew that if she didn’t move, they’d miss the most dramatic part of the design. Hands on her hips, she turned in a circle, the skirt flying up and showing off her legs. She was nearly blinded by flashbulbs when she’d completed the three-sixty.

      “Let’s get out of here,” Mindy mumbled in her ear.

      “Did I make a mistake?” Emma asked nervously.

      “It was fine. You just can’t give them too much.”

      She and Mindy strolled the remaining length of the red carpet and stepped into a lavish room already packed with people. Emma’s eyes were still adjusting from the bright lights of the cameras to the moodier party atmosphere, but she could see enough to know that beauty was everywhere.

      Mindy tapped Emma on the shoulder. “Sam’s here.” She waved across the room, and sure enough, a tall and handsome man with jet-black hair waved back. “I’ll see you later.”

      “Wait,” Emma blurted. “Will I see you at our seats?”

      Mindy was distracted by her quickly approaching guy. “I’ll be with Sam. Not sure where I’ll see you. My driver will take you home. You have his number?”

      Emma nodded. Mindy’s driver had taken her all over the city before she had a driver of her own. “I do.”

      Just like that, Mindy was gone. Emma turned to the crowd, unsure what to do. She disliked being by herself. If Sophie had been able to come, Emma still would have been the person nobody knew, but at least she wouldn’t have been alone. In this big room filled with fabulous people, she felt insignificant. Like a speck of dust floating around everyone’s head, unnoticed.

      A waiter walked by with a tray topped with glasses of champagne. Emma snagged one and took a long sip. Then another. She scanned the room, and for an instant, she wondered if she’d already had too much to drink. Either that or an optical illusion was walking into the room. Her heart nearly stopped beating. It was Mr. Brit from her building. Sure, he’d been less than friendly in the elevator, but she was now officially intrigued. His accent alone had been enough to interest her, but was he somehow involved in fashion? Perhaps a wealthy investor? Hopefully, he wasn’t one of those men who habitually dated models.

      She studied him as inconspicuously as possible, sucking down the last of her champagne. Damn, he looked good in a tux. Ridiculously good. Like it had been sewn around his broad shoulders. His light brown hair was a bit of a tousled mess, but she liked that about him. It made him seem human. Everything else about him was a little too perfect—the five o’clock shadow, the kissable lips, the way he could see over the top of nearly everyone in the crowd. For a moment, she imagined herself combing her fingers through his bed-head hair and allowing her hands to get completely lost.

      But the best thing about Mr. Brit was that he seemed to be alone. Just like her. Did she have the nerve to approach him? They did have a slight rapport. There was at least a starting point for a conversation. And she still had the questions she’d cooked up in the elevator. She could likely hold her own for a good ten minutes.

      As if he sensed she was watching him, he turned his head. Their gazes connected. Emma would’ve looked away if he didn’t have her so locked in. His eyes were like a tractor beam designed to pull her across the room. And maybe that was precisely what she needed to do.

       Three

      If Daniel wasn’t mistaken, he hadn’t merely laid eyes on one of the most beautiful women he’d ever seen, she was coming his way. He never played coy, so he made eye contact again, but still his pulse raced. She was stunning—floating through the room as if her feet never touched the floor. Her dark hair was swept up and back from her face, accentuating her graceful neck. He hadn’t pondered kissing a woman in that region for months. Now it was all he could think about.

      “Hello.” She had an air of self-assurance that was simply breathtaking. This was a woman who was accustomed to taking what she wanted.

      “Hello yourself.”

      “We’ve got to stop meeting like this.”

      Taken by surprise, he couldn’t help but laugh. What a confident way to greet a stranger. “Clever.” He held out his hand. “I’m Daniel.” He stopped short of offering his last name. No one knew he was in New York scouting locations for Stone’s, and he intended to keep it that way. Luckily, few people in the States knew him by sight. In London, it would be a different matter.

      She slid her long, delicate fingers against his and shook his hand, sending ripples of warmth through him. “Emma.” She let go, leaving his palm tingling.

      “So, tell me, Emma, what brings you to an event like this?”

      She looked up at him from beneath a fringe of dark lashes that brought out the sheer sexiness of her brown eyes. “My job. I work for Eden’s.”

      A waiter walked by with champagne, which gave Daniel a moment to decide how best to proceed. This gorgeous woman who’d managed to find him was employed by the company his mother considered the enemy. “Can I interest you in a drink?”

      “Yes, please.”

      Daniel took two flutes and handed one to Emma. “To new friends?”

      Emma shook her head. “You can’t toast with a question. To new friends.” She clinked her glass with his.

      For the first time in three weeks, Daniel wasn’t so eager to get home to London. He also found himself dismissing his commitment to staying away from the fairer sex. “Hear, hear.” He took a sip, studying her rosy-pink lips as they curved around the glass. “What do you do for Eden’s?”

      “Number crunching, mostly.”

      The lights in the room flashed off and on. Emma looked up, then returned her sights to him. “I guess we have to find out seats?” The crowd began moving toward the double doors leading into the adjoining room.

      Something in Daniel’s gut told him he was an idiot if he let Emma get away. They were just getting started. “Did you come alone?”

      “I didn’t, but my date ditched me.”

      “Date?”

      “My sister. I mean my half sister. It’s complicated.”