Passion Play

Rose looked away. Examining the room gave her a moment to catch her breath. The round tables were covered with elegant white cloths and circled a makeshift dance floor. The lighting was muted but the balloons and the dance music—courtesy of a disc jockey—made the occasion more festive. At the lead table, Foster assisted Kayla to her seat. Tyler and Xavier did the same for Iris and Lily. Donovan held her chair. Chivalry was alive.

“Thank you.” Rose took her chair, forcing her attention from Donovan’s mesmerizing gaze.

Conversation topics were light during the salad course: the weather, the workweek, interesting plans for the weekend. Servers brought their entrées, an unexpectedly delicious dinner of spicy chicken, smashed potatoes and asparagus.

Rose realized that as the two families—the Andersons and Beharies—grew more comfortable with each other, the conversation became more animated. Laughter flowed around the table. She enjoyed the banter between Foster, Kayla, Xavier, Tyler and Donovan. It reflected the wealth of love and trust they shared, and their unbreakable bond. Their closeness was similar to the relationship she had with her sisters.

Dessert was a sinfully rich, double-layered fudge walnut brownie. Rose sliced a portion of the pastry. The tastes of the confectioner’s sugar, fudge and cocoa burst on her tongue and radiated within her mouth.

“You look as though you’ve just accepted an indecent proposal.” Donovan’s low voice was rich with humor.

Rose felt a blush rising into her cheeks. She sneaked a quick peek at him, seated on her right. “I was just...enjoying the pastry.”

“Aren’t you going to try your dessert, dear?” Kayla questioned Lily, who sat between Donovan and Xavier.

“No, thank you. I’m full.” Lily’s expression belied her denial. “Dinner was wonderful.”

“Ah, but it wouldn’t be complete without dessert.” Kayla smiled encouragingly.

“I couldn’t.” Lily shook her head. Her expression was full of regret.

Rose looked away in rising irritation. Lily was on another one of her diets. Why did her sister insist on starving herself when she had a figure women would kill for?

“Do you want to share mine?” Xavier’s voice was low.

Still, Rose heard his invitation to Lily. She looked toward them with surprise.

“Yes, thank you.” Lily grinned.

Xavier didn’t return Lily’s smile. Instead, with somber intensity, he cut the brownie in half. He put one half on his napkin and offered the plate with the other half to Lily.

Between bites of brownie, Rose exchanged an Isn’t-This-Interesting look with Iris, who was seated on her left. Unfortunately, Lily seemed clueless to the fact that Xavier was flirting with her.

“That’s my cue.” Foster clamped his large hand on Tyler’s broad shoulder as he stood from the table. “Wish me luck.”

“Good luck, but you don’t need it.” Tyler watched his father cross the floor, then mount the stairs to the stage in front of the ballroom.

Rose leaned toward to Donovan. “What did I miss? What was his cue?”

Donovan shifted closer to her. “Finishing his dessert was Foster’s cue to take the stage and address our associates.”

Rose wasn’t sure what Donovan had just said. It had something to do with Foster and dessert. Donovan’s nearness had muddled his message. His scent—sandalwood and musk—distracted her. Or maybe it was his strong, striking features that made it hard for her to decipher the words coming out of his firm, well-shaped lips. Either way, Foster had begun his speech before Rose could focus.

“Thank you for coming.” Foster looked confident and comfortable behind the microphone. “We’re here tonight to celebrate Anderson Adventures’ historic launch of our latest gaming product, Osiris’ Journey.” He laughed as the room erupted into shouts and cheers. Associates rose to give each other a standing ovation for their accomplishment.

Rose stood along with everyone else at the lead executive table. Swept up by the excitement of the people around her, she shouted and applauded with everyone else.

Still smiling, Foster raised his arms to reclaim their attention. “Osiris’ Journey is undeniably our most successful game launch in company history. That’s really saying something, because we’ve had some impressive launches.”

Foster paused again as the company’s associates acknowledged their past successes with raucous cheering. “Tonight, I want to celebrate my son, Tyler, our vice president of product development.” Foot stamping joined the cheers this time. “As well as Iris Beharie, our marketing consultant.” The shouts and applause that followed Foster’s announcement filled Rose’s heart with pride. “And all of you for your excellent work. We never take you for granted. Thank you.” Foster took a moment to applaud his associates. “Now let’s dance!”

Foster grinned as he left the stage. The disc jockey turned up the volume on her sound system. The makeshift dance floor filled quickly. Rose was impressed by the event Anderson Adventures had arranged for their associates. A movement from the corner of her eye caught her attention. She turned to find Xavier leading Lily onto the dance floor. Her eyes widened.

She stilled at the look of pleasure that swept across Kayla’s face. Xavier’s mother must be hopeful that her son was recovering from his disappointing relationship. Kayla’s expression shifted to affection as she accepted Foster’s invitation to dance. Beside Rose, Iris and Tyler excused themselves to find a spot on the rapidly filling floor.

She and Donovan were the only ones left at the table. Rose stiffened. She was afraid to look at him. If she did, would he ask her to dance? Did she want to dance—with him? The music was so inviting. What could one dance hurt? Still, maybe it would be better if they just sat here and talked.

“Have you made up your mind?” Donovan’s voice was so close. She thought she’d felt his breath against her skin where the scooped back of her black dress bared her shoulders.