Read Married by Midnight (The BAD BOY BILLIONAIRES Series, #12) for Free Online Page B

prince.
    Giving him a tiny smile and a nod of thanks she walked over to the chair he was offering and sank down.
    He followed her but instead of going to sit in his own chair on the opposite side of the desk he remained standing, hands shoved into the pockets of his smart black trousers, and he was staring at her.
    Golden glanced up then away.  Why was he looking at her like that, like she was some long-awaited toy he was itching to play with?  It made no sense.  Wasn’t he supposed to be hating her right now?
    Then suddenly he blinked, seeming to catch himself.  “I’m sorry,” he said with a rueful smile.  “Where are my manners?  You must be wondering why I called you here.”
    Golden wasn’t going to deny it.  The suspense was killing her.  She nodded.  “I am.”
    “I have something I’d like to show you.”  This time his smile was enigmatic.  He turned away and headed for his desk.
    And with every step Golden’s eyes were on him.  What in the world could he have to show her?  Outside of the fact that she’d worked at his runway show he didn’t know her from Adam.
    But apart from being curious Golden was staring at Reed Davidoff for other reasons.  Rather selfish reasons if she should admit it.  His tailored suit fit his body to perfection and when he turned she had the ideal opportunity to observe him freely.  Even a novice to fashion like her could tell that what he was wearing was worth more than she would ever hope to earn from months of work.
    But it wasn’t his clothes that held her attention.  It was the way he wore them and the way he moved, so lithe and fluid, his body lean and obviously muscled in all the right places.
    Golden could feel the warmth of a blush rising in her cheeks.  Dear Lord, she’d been staring at the man.  At his bum, no less.  She’d never in her whole life done anything like that.  What was happening to her?
    At that moment Reed Davidoff – who’d reached down to pull something from the bottom drawer of his desk – glanced up and she could see from the look in his eyes that he’d noticed her blush.  Fiddlesticks.
    To her relief he released her gaze and lifted an all-white box and rested it on the table.  Then slowly, almost like a magician bent on tantalizing his audience before an amazing revelation, he lifted the lid from the box.
    Golden held her breath.  What in the world could he have that was so special?
    And then, deliberately, he reached in and lifted out his prize.  In his hands was the gold slipper she’d run off and left behind on the runway.  A single left foot.
    “Recognize this?” he asked, his smile gone and his face suddenly serious.
    “Yes, Mr. Davidoff,” she said, shifting her bag on her lap.  “The slipper I...lost on the runway.”  Not knowing where he was going with this she dropped her gaze to her hands.  “I’m very sorry about what happened.  The slippers...they were too big and...I was supposed to be a dresser at the show, not a model.”  The last part came out in a rush.  Good Lord, this was so embarrassing.  She could feel the heat rising in her face and she knew she would be raspberry-red by now.  Burning with shame she stole a glance at the man who held the slipper, the flaming piece of evidence that would convict her. 
    Reed Davidoff was shaking his head but his smile was back.  In fact, it was more like a grin.  Thank heavens.
    “You may call me Reed,” he said, “and may I call you Golden?”
    “Of course.”  Quickly she nodded.  If he’d asked to call her bunny rabbit she would have said yes, she was so relieved.
    “There’s no need to feel bad, Golden.  What the heck were they thinking when they gave you those slippers?  Look at how tiny you are.”  And then he was staring at her again, making her want to squirm.  “So what do you do, Golden,” he asked, “when you’re not testing your modeling skills on the runway?”
    “I...I...nothing.”  The question had caught her