Burned Deep (Burned 1)

Thus, I kept to the periphery as I made sure the dinner service went off without a hitch. Finally, I consulted with the DJ, who’d take over from this point.

Sometimes I hung around to watch the dancing, because brides and their families typically asked me to celebrate with them, and tonight was no exception. But I was exhausted, having pulled off this particular wedding in such a short, frenzied period—an emotional time, what with the tension gripping everyone over the impending Mrs. Aldridge’s delicate condition and concern that the news would ignite a scandal for the high-society Delfinos.

Not to mention all the drama created by the inclement weather and the men I’d encountered this evening. I’d be out like a light when I got home. Looked forward to a sound night’s sleep, instead of waking up ten times to run through my mental checklists.

I’d also caught Kyle stealing glances my way, and I really hated the idea of turning him down again. Clearly, he was a good guy. Much more on par with where my interests should lie—rather than with the magnetic stranger, so intriguing and darkly gorgeous. Primed to come to my rescue—

I shook my head. I definitely shouldn’t think about him.

After delivering congratulations and good-byes, I went downstairs to the lobby of the main lodge, a log structure that belonged in the mountains of Aspen, but which stunned visitors as it sat nestled in this artistic canyon. The two-story windows highlighted an inspirational landscape that left one speechless the first, tenth, and one-hundredth time they admired the view. Even more so tonight, as they showcased a spectacular display of purple-and-gold lightning veins rippling across the clouds.

I passed through the tall double doors and was greeted by a valet.

“Another happily ever after, Miss DeMille?”

“What a lovely way to put it, Alex. And yes, I think the newlyweds have a very pleasant future ahead of them.”

Envy seeped through my veins, but I ignored the sensation. It happened on occasion. Was to be expected, I surmised. I was twenty-six years old, with very few friends—really just a handful of people who knew me from the weddings I worked with them. I dated every now and then, but trying to build my rep as the “It” event planner in the Southwest kept me busy.

I had a very specific goal in mind, a career I was devoted to, one I was completely immersed in and was already plotting to take to the next level. That hadn’t exactly panned out for me yet, but I remained diligent. So much so, I’d developed an eagle eye for details, could anticipate needs before expressed, was thoroughly aware of my surroundings so that very few wayward scenarios took me by surprise.

But he did.

chapter 2

I sensed his presence a breath too late, so that he was standing next to me before I had the chance to sidestep him. Put a few feet between us. My body tensed.

“Did I startle you?” he asked.

“Yes,” I admitted. It was both unnerving and enticing that he noticed so much about me. It wasn’t something I was accustomed to.

“My apologies.” His voice was that warm timbre that ribboned through me.

I turned to face him, the devilish stranger. The dark, mesmerizing man who had the potential to haunt my mind and plague my fantasies from this day forward. I used the word plague because I didn’t need anyone specific hovering in the back of my brain when I conjured erotic images to enhance a quick go-round with my very straightforward, get-the-job-done vibrator.

I kept my fantasy men nameless and faceless—though that defense mechanism was probably shot to hell now that I’d gotten a glimpse of the ultimate fantasy man.

> I didn’t even delve into identities when I had the rare one-night stand—a term I used very loosely. Typically, it was someone I met at a hotel where I held an event, someone I’d never see again, would never run into at the grocery store. Men who were more than happy to indulge in spontaneous, impersonal sex. Mostly me bent over a desk or pressed up against a wall in their room. Always over within a concise amount of time. Then I shoved my thong and skirt into place and reached for the doorknob before they lobbed a “Maybe the next time I’m in town…?” my way.

Not appealing to everyone, but it worked fine for me. When you’d slipped into the role of loner because you’d spent so much time avoiding screaming parents, true intimacy was a foreign concept. I’d discovered it was best to limit physical contact. The less you knew of it, the less you craved it.

“Looks like you got caught in the rain,” the sexy stranger said, a hint of amusement in his tone.

“Occupational hazard.”

“That and getting hit on by groomsmen?”

I sighed. “That was all a bit bizarre.”

“I hope the jerk who grabbed you didn’t leave a bruise.”

“It stung a little, but I’m okay.”

His jaw clenched, as though hearing I’d been hurt angered him. His irises actually darkened. “I should have taught that guy a lesson about keeping his hands to himself.”

The sharp intonation to his voice, the slightly gritty inflection, made the hairs on the nape of my neck stand on end.

“Think you made your point loud and clear,” I said. “He got the picture.”