Chance (The One More Night Series) Read Free Page A

knowing nothing about him lessen the impact of the act?  Or would it heighten it?
    Given my attraction to him, I didn’t know.
    I looked around the room again.  It was a moment before I found him near the end of the bar, not far from where I picked up my drinks.  He was talking to a middle-aged couple as they prepared to leave the ballroom, but I knew why he was there.  It was the end of the night.  The party was over.  He’d placed himself there so he wouldn’t miss me on my way out.  He was determined to make this happen.  I had to wonder how often he did this.  Was this something he sought out in each city he visited?  As Brooke would put it, was he some kind of chronic manwhore?
    What was the line he’d used on me?   You can feel it, can’t you?  It’s probably as confusing to you as it is to me.  And as surprising.  But it’s there, isn’t it?
    Had that been a line?  Had he felt the same kind of overwhelming attraction that I’d felt?  He’d seemed sincere when he’d said it, and with his looks and charm, I doubted that he even needed a line to pick up women.  Looking the way he did, he likely could walk into any bar and leave with the woman of his choice.  So, was it a line just to get me into his bed, or was there something more?  I wasn’t sure.
    But what I did know was that there was a stirring within me that I couldn’t deny.  And that frustrated me.
    For once, why can’t I let go and just live? I wondered.   Why shouldn’t I sleep with him?  He’s gorgeous.  And he was sweet.  He swept in and lifted me off my feet before everything went to hell with that woman’s dress.  Why should I deny myself of him?  Why do I always hold myself back?
    I considered that for a moment.  And I knew the answer.  She was right there in my ear, telling me that I better not go through with this.
    But this time, as I moved toward the bar, I decided to ignore my mother.
     
     
     

 
     
     
     
     
    CHAPTER THREE
     
    With the ballroom nearly empty, the cleaning staff would soon arrive to put the room back into order. 
    I noticed other female servers with their masks off and knew that was a sign that they’d been given permission to remove them.  Grateful to lose mine, I slipped it over my head and shook out my hair so it fell free behind my back in a shimmering cascade of black.  As I crossed to the bar, I noticed that Chance had turned toward me and was watching me as I raked my fingers through my hair. 
    When our eyes met, I felt the weight of his stare slam against me as hard as it had earlier, and I blushed with anticipation of what might come.  But when his lips parted and he looked away, I suddenly wasn’t sure how to read him.  Now that he’d seen my face—all of it, with no mask—he’d either completely lost interest in me because I wasn’t his type after all, or his interest had peaked, and he was considering how to go forward with this.  I wasn’t sure which one it was.  If I could see the look in his eyes—which I couldn’t at this distance—I’d have my answer. 
    But I can’t see them, so we’ll see if he leaves.
    I turned away from him.  To save each of us from any awkwardness, I wanted to give him the opportunity to leave for his penthouse if he wanted to, so I went straight to the center of the bar.  I’d planned on saying goodbye to Steve before leaving anyway.  I wanted to thank him again for working his butt off for me and for the rest of the servers tonight.  He and his bar staff had gone above and beyond.
    I placed my tray and mask on the bar, and Steve looked up at me with a smile.  The first words out of his mouth confirmed why Chance might have looked away from me.
    “So, that’s what you look like,” Steve said.
    For someone who had never been comfortable in her own skin—for a whole host of reasons that I’d rather leave in my past because the damage already had been done—all I could do was shrug.  “For better or worse, I