can be a curse?” he countered.
“You tell me. Being a handsome executive ever put a cramp in your business dealings? When Autumn announced that you were coming to the party, half the women in the office got out their man-catching nets,” she quipped.
Bo let out a hearty laugh. “No, as a matter-of-fact our CEO J.J. gets objectified, while I get to do my work in peace.”
Bo had been delightfully comfortable in the backdrop the last few years while J.J. was fawned over by the media. Now women had been taking notice of him in a big way. Teri-Lyn told him it wasn’t that they were noticing him more because of the subtle makeover, but that he was now more aware of their reaction to him.
“You don’t fool me for a minute. You fit right in with the handsome, rough-and-tumble Blakes. Funny, you didn’t strike me the brutish type. I would have put my money on a stern talking to and I got the fight of the century.” Summer bit her lip.
“What type of guy do you think I am exactly?” He folded his arms over his chest.
“A good one.” She gently put her hands on his arms and made him lower them back down. “Don’t do that. You’re going to wrinkle your nice tuxedo. I hope you know that you just scored major points with Autumn.”
He flashed her a devilish smile. “What about you?”
“You’re forgiven for the Brussels sprout that almost claimed my life.”
“That’s a start.”
“You want to get out of here?” She looked around. “I’ve done my obligatory seventy-eight minutes of face time, and Autumn has things under control.”
Bo scanned the room for Autumn. She was holding court in a crowd of people wearing media badges. Kendrick was working the room.
“What do you have in mind?”
“Now we go to the real party in my private office. You can tell your security detail I’m not kidnapping you.” She winked.
“How did you know?”
“Sam from Regency dropped by to give us a courtesy notification that a Blake Enterprises executive would be attending the party and they wanted to insert a few people in posed as party goers. I was very impressed.”
Bo nodded. “You should consider using them. I can personally attest to their dedication to protection, discretion, and professionalism.”
“I liked that I couldn’t pick them out of the crowd until that guy tried to turn Dante into a pretzel.” She laughed.
“I’m all yours. Where are we off to?” He held out his arm for her to grasp.
“Just one thing. We’re going to have to get you out of that tux.”
“Will this involve a walk of shame later on in the evening?”
“Follow me.” She grinned.
* * *
Summer thought the party was going exceptionally well, especially after Dante had his arrogant ass handed to him. Not that she couldn’t have handled him herself, she thought it was sweet of Bo to come to their defense. She’d been dealing with men like that for the longest time, and Dante’s attempts to make her feel grateful that he’d decided to work with them fell flat.
Being around Bo felt familiar and comforting. She didn’t have to keep her guard up for anything nefarious because he was a stand-up guy. He looked downright sinful in his tuxedo, his good looks magnified by the elegant clothing, and his clean-shaven face was even more handsome now that he wasn’t hiding it behind a beard.
She took Bo’s hand and headed for her sanctuary: a game room designed specifically for her. This was her quiet place where she enjoyed testing her skills so she could stay a step ahead of the competition.
“Welcome to my world.” She hit a button and two panels opened up on the wall to reveal a massive big screen television and a console that rose up from the floor.
Bo whistled. “Holy cow.”
“Every game currently in our catalog and in the conception stage is loaded into this console.” She pulled her hair back into a makeshift bun and took off her shoes. “Do you play games?”
“I prefer to be
“You tell me. Being a handsome executive ever put a cramp in your business dealings? When Autumn announced that you were coming to the party, half the women in the office got out their man-catching nets,” she quipped.
Bo let out a hearty laugh. “No, as a matter-of-fact our CEO J.J. gets objectified, while I get to do my work in peace.”
Bo had been delightfully comfortable in the backdrop the last few years while J.J. was fawned over by the media. Now women had been taking notice of him in a big way. Teri-Lyn told him it wasn’t that they were noticing him more because of the subtle makeover, but that he was now more aware of their reaction to him.
“You don’t fool me for a minute. You fit right in with the handsome, rough-and-tumble Blakes. Funny, you didn’t strike me the brutish type. I would have put my money on a stern talking to and I got the fight of the century.” Summer bit her lip.
“What type of guy do you think I am exactly?” He folded his arms over his chest.
“A good one.” She gently put her hands on his arms and made him lower them back down. “Don’t do that. You’re going to wrinkle your nice tuxedo. I hope you know that you just scored major points with Autumn.”
He flashed her a devilish smile. “What about you?”
“You’re forgiven for the Brussels sprout that almost claimed my life.”
“That’s a start.”
“You want to get out of here?” She looked around. “I’ve done my obligatory seventy-eight minutes of face time, and Autumn has things under control.”
Bo scanned the room for Autumn. She was holding court in a crowd of people wearing media badges. Kendrick was working the room.
“What do you have in mind?”
“Now we go to the real party in my private office. You can tell your security detail I’m not kidnapping you.” She winked.
“How did you know?”
“Sam from Regency dropped by to give us a courtesy notification that a Blake Enterprises executive would be attending the party and they wanted to insert a few people in posed as party goers. I was very impressed.”
Bo nodded. “You should consider using them. I can personally attest to their dedication to protection, discretion, and professionalism.”
“I liked that I couldn’t pick them out of the crowd until that guy tried to turn Dante into a pretzel.” She laughed.
“I’m all yours. Where are we off to?” He held out his arm for her to grasp.
“Just one thing. We’re going to have to get you out of that tux.”
“Will this involve a walk of shame later on in the evening?”
“Follow me.” She grinned.
* * *
Summer thought the party was going exceptionally well, especially after Dante had his arrogant ass handed to him. Not that she couldn’t have handled him herself, she thought it was sweet of Bo to come to their defense. She’d been dealing with men like that for the longest time, and Dante’s attempts to make her feel grateful that he’d decided to work with them fell flat.
Being around Bo felt familiar and comforting. She didn’t have to keep her guard up for anything nefarious because he was a stand-up guy. He looked downright sinful in his tuxedo, his good looks magnified by the elegant clothing, and his clean-shaven face was even more handsome now that he wasn’t hiding it behind a beard.
She took Bo’s hand and headed for her sanctuary: a game room designed specifically for her. This was her quiet place where she enjoyed testing her skills so she could stay a step ahead of the competition.
“Welcome to my world.” She hit a button and two panels opened up on the wall to reveal a massive big screen television and a console that rose up from the floor.
Bo whistled. “Holy cow.”
“Every game currently in our catalog and in the conception stage is loaded into this console.” She pulled her hair back into a makeshift bun and took off her shoes. “Do you play games?”
“I prefer to be
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