Need You Tonight by Roni Loren Page B

her, it hit her that though she was reeling, he didn’t seem at all surprised to see
her
there. “You knew it was me who was coming today.”
    He gave an enigmatic smile. “We have a lot to talk about.”
    She glanced down at her stack of brochures, suddenly remembering why she’d come there
     today.
Oh, God.
How in the hell was she supposed to pitch her children’s charity to a guy who’d licked
     olive oil and orange juice off her boobs? She wanted to put her face in her hands
     and die right there. That would be easier than suffering through this conversation.
     “I don’t even know where to start. This . . . I wasn’t expecting . . .”
    “Tessa,” he said, cutting off her rambling with a firm but kind voice. “Don’t be embarrassed.
     We’re both adults, and everything is fine. How about we get this business stuff done
     first? Then we can tackle anything else afterward.”
    She rolled her lips inward and nodded, doing her best to regain her composure. “Sounds
     good.”
    He leaned back in his chair and hooked an ankle over his knee, as if settling in to
     evaluate her, but he started talking before she could begin her speech. “First, let
     me explain a little about our event so you know what we’re looking at. Every year,
     Vandergriff Industries gathers the top restaurants in the city, not just the ones
     we own, to participate in a large, upscale wine and food event called Dine and Donate.
     Each restaurant who participates sends a team to man a booth that sells appetizers
     and cocktails to attendees. We try to have at least thirty restaurants participate
     so that people have a variety of cuisines to sample. We also book local bands to play
     throughout the day and then usually a well-known act to headline the night. All proceeds
     go to the selected charity for that year.”
    “Wow, sounds like a major undertaking,” she said, already imagining how much money
     something that large scale must bring in for the lucky charity.
    “It is,” he agreed. “And we’ve been very successful with it over the last few years,
     which is why so many charities solicit us now.”
    She wet her lips, nerves creeping back in as she pictured a line of worthy charities
     wrapping around the building, hoping to be the chosen one.
    “And we wish we could select them all, but the biggest impact comes from choosing
     the one each year where we can really make a significant difference.”
    “Right.”
    “So,” he said, leaning forward and putting his forearms on the desk, “tell me why
     being selected would make a significant difference to
your
charity.”
    His laser gaze pinned her to the spot, and it felt like her tongue dried out and shrunk
     to half its size. She fiddled with opening the brochure in front of her while trying
     to find her voice. “Well, I brought—”
    His hand landed over hers, stilling her nervous movements. “No, don’t read to me about
     it.
Tell
me, Tessa.”
    She looked up, her heart doing a discordant drumroll against her ribs. This was her
     chance,
Bluebonnet’s
only chance to survive right now. All those people and kids were counting on her.
     She couldn’t freeze up like a frightened mouse or screw this up because she happened
     to be intimidated by/attracted to/left speechless by this man. She nodded and he released
     her hand.
    “Bluebonnet Place is a charity focused on helping older children in foster care develop
     life and work skills so that when they age out of the system, they have a foundation
     to stand on. We assign them mentors who help them with college applications and with
     applying for financial aid. We assist them in getting jobs during high school to gain
     work experience and skills. And we provide a place where they can come after school
     if they need a break from their household or the group home or the streets.”
    Kade nodded, seeming as if he was listening with every ounce of his attention. It
     was both unnerving and confidence