“That’s David Bachman, the third son of Mr. Bachman himself,” Roger whispered in Lana’s ear. “Not doing too badly for himself. The other is Ken Andrews, the #1 manager at the firm. So, you know, practically God of New York real estate.”
Now that sort of info piqued Lana’s interest. Nothing wrong with getting to know a man like that. Which one was it, though? It had to be the tall man in the gold vest. Tall men were more confident, more successful. Everyone knew that. Even Lana. Especially Lana. She had to deal with men’s insecurities all day long.
The shorter man was the first to extend his hand. Lana had her eyes so intensely focused on the tall gentleman that she almost missed the handshake. “Oh!” she said, shedding the funk from her arms. “Sorry. Pleasure to meet you.”
The man’s firm handshake surprised her. Short. Quick. Confident. Arrogantly confidant. This was a man who had sold billions of dollars’ worth of real estate in his time. “Ken Andrews,” he unexpectedly said.
Well, there was a twist Lana was not expecting.
Ken Andrews did not look the typical real estate mogul, let alone the head manager of New York’s #1 real estate agency. A man only makes it to that level if he’s substantially proved himself at lower levels. “Very nice to meet you, Mr. Andrews,” Lana said. Her eyes remained locked on his, dark and powerful. Yet not so dark that they were sinister. Lots of underhanded pricks like that in the real estate world. No, something glistened in those wide eyes lined with only the slickest brows a man could boast. Ken was not the tallest man in the room, but he rivaled Lana even in her heels, and that was enough to allow a mutual attraction to occur. Plus, how could she look away from that goatee carefully groomed along his jaw and upper lip? So trendy! Lana liked her men in two flavors: hot and hairy, or young and bare. Come on, girl, you didn’t come here to flirt with these guys. She had come here to change her life.
“You’re surprised,” Ken observed, standing back again. His stature never slumped or broadcasted anything but the greatest demeanor. All right. I’m on board. This guy is successful. “Don’t give me that look, Ms. Losers. You know what it’s like to buck trends in this industry. Also, I’m taller than Tom Cruise.”
She laughed.
Why oh why did she laugh? Roger glanced at her. David Bachman looked greatly amused at the situation unfolding before him. Ken? His smile was so suave that Lana wondered if the room had heated up. Yup. Furnace blasting between my legs. That’s nice. What the hell was wrong with her? She had only met this man for two seconds and was already wondering what it would be like to sit on his face?
Whoa. Lana needed to regroup. She also really needed that hard drink.
“You’re quite the talk around here, Ms. Losers.” Even the way Ken said her name was deliberately perfect. Not many got it right. They said it literally. L-o-s-e-r. With an S. So there was more than one loser in the room… which was always a riot when she and the rest of her family went out to functions that called for them to be formally heralded. So few realized that it was pronounced Low-siers. Even fewer realized her first name was pronounced Lay-na and not Lah-na. Apparently her parents did not care how their oldest child was introduced around the world. “We were shocked to see a newcomer do so well. It’s not often the industry sees a ringer like you.”
He didn’t say that the most shocking thing was that she was a woman, but it was heavily implied. So much for that attraction. Short men. Always so passive-aggressive. Ken wouldn’t out-right say that she was a beautiful anomaly, but he would make sure she felt it deep in her bones.
Or maybe somewhere else.
“If you two have time,” Roger interrupted, “We would love to meet up for dinner sometime this week. There is a lot to discuss, I’m sure you know.”
Ken turned his attention to him. Even though he had to look up to meet Roger’s eyes, he did not falter. My God. He’s one of the most alpha men in this room. Lana looked around. That said a lot. A lot! “Indeed. We’ll see if we can cram a dinner into our schedule. I’m sure you understand that we’re some of the most popular people here, whether to our benefit or not.”