But red?
When they’d arrived, she’d been wearing a long black gown with a high neck and an open back. This dress was...damn. This was the hottest thing he’d ever seen. That dip in the back scooped dangerously low, and when she turned, he got an eyeful of a deep vee in the front as well. Classy, sexy and a hell of a shock to his entire system.
Hadn’t he just thought that he’d finally seen all sides of Josie?
She glanced around the open space and he couldn’t maintain the distance another minute. He made his way down the steps from the VIP area and crossed the tile floor.
“This is not the same woman who came with me,” he stated.
Josie spun around, a wide smile on her face. Her dress wasn’t the only thing red—she had her lips painted and it was all Reese could do t
o contain himself and not cover her mouth and mess that all up.
Damn, she was the sexiest thing he’d ever seen—and for the time being, fake or otherwise, she was his.
“I wanted to surprise you, so I had some things sent over so I could change here,” she told him. “And I figured if I was going to go all out, I might as well do it all.”
She gave a slow spin with her arms out wide. “What do you think? Can I pull off color?”
He took a step closer and reached for her hips. “I think I’m going to have to cut this night short and get you alone as soon as possible.”
That red smile widened. “You can’t mess me up, so keep those lips and hands to yourself. I have a dutiful hostess role to play as my fiancé is having a grand opening.”
“He’s a lucky bastard,” Reese murmured as he leaned in and grazed his lips up the side of her neck.
She shivered beneath his touch and his grip on her hips tightened.
“We still have time,” he whispered into her ear.
The waitstaff bustled around getting last-minute flutes of champagne and appetizers set out at various tables, but if they saw him and Josie in a passionate embrace, that would just make them look like more of a couple.
And right now, he didn’t care who saw him doing what. He wanted her alone and he wanted her now.
“Other than the fact I want to rip that dress off and show you how much I need you, you do look so damn amazing, Jo.”
She looped her arms around his neck. “I feel...good. I was worried once I got here I’d chicken out and keep on the black dress, but once I slid into this, it felt right.”
He took a step back before he made a complete fool of himself and took her hands in his. His thumb slid over her ring.
“And it matches perfectly,” he told her.
Her smile faltered a bit.
“What is it?” he asked.
Her eyes went from their joined hands back up to his face. “Have you seen the blog?” she asked. “It’s up now. I just scanned through it when I was in the back.”
“I haven’t seen it,” he told her. “Is something wrong with it?”
She pursed her lips for a moment before shaking her head. “No, nothing wrong. It just looks so real. Even I almost believe we’re engaged.”
Reese’s breath caught, but he quickly recovered. Taking her hand, he ushered her off to the side where nobody could overhear. He kept his hands firmly locked with hers because he wanted to get this out; he wanted her to listen to everything he had to say.
Mercy, this was the riskiest move he’d ever made and he didn’t care. If he let this moment, this woman, go without speaking his mind, then he’d regret it forever.
“You’re scaring me with that look in your eye,” she joked.
“What would you say to keeping the ring?” he asked.