enough on Facebook to pick up on that much. “You’re right,” she lied. “I guess I was just stressing out.”
“It happens to all of us,” Fredrik said. “Now get out there and sell some art. Daddy needs a bonus.”
“Yes, sir,” Rori said, and headed back out into the war zone.
Chapter 60
Mike had just finished moving around the perimeter of the exhibit, catching reaction shots of the patrons when he felt some arms slip around him from behind. His body tensed, somehow knowing immediately that it wasn’t Rori behind him. It was someone else—someone taller and closer to a size 2. He glanced backward and spotted Chloe.
He tried to pull away without success. “What are you doing?”
“Trying to win a bet,” Chloe said, her hands gliding around his hips toward his front pockets. “And while we’re on the subject, don’t listen to Kerrie. She bet that you and Rori go separate ways and Rori gets engaged to the asshole.”
Mike glanced over at Rori and Anton. “Whatever. He might be a nice guy.”
“He’s an asshole,” Chloe said, her tone not allowing for debate. “Trust me. People low on the service ladder see true colors. I asked around and he’s a Grade-A asshole.”
Mike felt his temper flare at the thought of Rori being with someone like that, until he realized it wasn’t any of his business and she probably didn’t even care. She wanted a father for her children. A man with money and a commitment to family. Nowhere in her qualifications was there any mention of kindness.
“This is a key,” Chloe said just before her right hand dipped into his front pocket. “It goes to the storage room in the alcove before the bathrooms. And don’t move just yet. Let her see where my hand is first.”
Mike didn’t have to ask who Chloe was talking about, although he did doubt that Rori would happen to look their way. She’d been avoiding looking at him all night, so Mike moved on to the next most obvious question.
“Why do I need a key?”
“To help me win the bet.”
“And what’s the bet?”
“Depends on who you ask. We like to keep things lively around here, so we make bets at every event. Tonight’s bet is on whether you and Rori will get it on before you get on planes going opposite directions.”
Mike felt a wave of loss wash over him and tried to shrug it off. “Well, I could have answered that one for you. No. We won’t.”
He felt Chloe nod against his shoulder. “See, that’s what Kerrie put her money on, so do us both a favor and don’t listen to her if she comes strolling your way. Her motives aren’t pure. Neither are Fredrik’s. He bet on the two of you hooking up tomorrow night.”
Mike couldn’t help but chuckle. “And your motives are pure?”
“Hey, I’m trying to get you laid tonight. You’re welcome, by the way.”
Mike turned to face her as he pulled her hands from his pockets and held them in his own. “By simulating a hand job in my pants in the middle of her art exhibition? Your tactics could use some work.”
Chloe’s eyes were confident as she smirked at him. “I’ll find her trigger, and then she’ll be over here like a jealous gun. In the meantime, listen. Once you open the door to the storage room, if you go all the way to the back and turn to the left there is a shelf that is totally at the perfect height to set her down and go to town—”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Mike said, stepping back in reflex. “Are you saying—”
“Hell yeah, I am. And, for the record, I’m speaking from experience. That shelf isn’t reinforced to take a couple hundred pounds of pressure on accident. But if you don’t want to wallbang then use the padding blankets and freshly cleaned linens are on the shelf to your immediate right. Use those for padding because the ground in there is ridiculously cold and hard—wait, don’t move away,” she said, grabbing him as he tried to close his ears to the imagery she was putting into his mind. She didn’t let him put any distance between them. If anything Chloe came closer. “The look on your face right now is priceless. You’d suck a poker.”
“I need you to stop talking,” Mike said, unable to look at her. “I know you mean well, Chloe, but it’s not going to happen. And even if Rori and I were going to get together, there’s no