Paired With His Fate

CHAPTER 2

Marcus strode into the hall and found an alcove to catch his breath. He'd done it. He'd left Adriana high and dry, just like she'd done to him. Twice.

He waited for the thrill of victory to burst forth. It didn't. Instead, an unsettling wave of guilt churned through his stomach. Revenge schemes and acting like a jerk didn't go down so well.

A couple strolled by and the man nodded to Marcus. "Great work on the fundraiser, Braun."

Immediately, he recognized Grant Stirling, a board member of the charity honoring Marcus tonight. "Glad to be on board."

Stirling and his wife moved on and it occurred to Marcus that people might wonder why he'd left his date pointedly alone in plain sight. Was that really the impression he wanted his friends and colleagues to have of him? Or the impression he wanted Adriana to have, for that matter?

He groaned. Exhibit A for why he'd called a matchmaker—he might have figured out how to create a billion dollar company, but his ability to forge relationships with actual people left a lot to be desired. He couldn't leave Adriana on that stage alone any more than he could fly.

Marcus was a nice guy at heart and somewhere out there a woman existed who could appreciate that. Once he got through this ill-conceived event with Adriana, he'd go into the next match courtesy of EA International with an open mind.

He reentered the ballroom, shaking hands with people as they stopped him, and it took far longer to return to the stage than he'd anticipated. His gaze strayed to where his date sat. Her flame red hair shone under the spotlight, and even the ugly dress she'd worn didn't diminish her luminescent beauty. She sipped a glass of champagne, clearly uncomfortable.

A weight dropped on his chest. Some nice guy he was.

Finally, he broke free of the crowd and rejoined her. Surprise lit her features, telling him she'd figured out his absence wasn't accidental.

"You've been gone a long time," she said without censure, her expression blank.

"You would have been well within your rights to leave." Why hadn't she? He'd vanished a full twenty-five minutes ago.

"That would have been rude."

The barb was sharp and well played. He chuckled and relaxed for the first time since he'd put this stupid plot into motion. "Touché. Would you like to dance?"

And that was an even dumber move. He started to take it back. His dancing skills were about on the same level as his social skills. But she nodded, her eyes bright with anticipation. They'd never gotten to dance at prom. He still wanted to see what all the fuss was about.

He took her hand and led her to the dance floor. It was so crowded, it hardly mattered whether he could dance or not.

"I didn't think you were coming back," she confessed as they clasped hands and began to sway. Her body brushed his and it was apparent she had interesting curves underneath the ill-fitting dress.

"I…got held up." The confession on the tip of his tongue didn't seem appropriate all at once.

"Oh." She bit her lip. "Because it seemed almost like you deliberately set this up to humiliate me for some reason. I'm glad that's not the case."

"For some reason?" Their history came back to him in a rush. "You mean because you have a guilty conscience from when you did the same thing to me?"

Confusion flitted across her features. "I apologized for not calling to cancel our date at the bistro. You said you weren't mad."

"You don't remember, do you? Prom? You didn't show," he prompted. Incredulity warred with anger. Not only had she not changed, she didn't even recall the incident that had fueled all his decisions since then.

"Prom? Marcus, that was a million years ago. You're right, I don't remember." A shadow flitted through her gaze and he'd bet she recalled it more clearly than she claimed.

"You were supposed to be my date. I asked you. You said okay, I'll meet you there. I told everyone the head cheerleader agreed to go to prom with me and then you didn't come."

He'd heard later that she and Tyler Ferguson, one of the star running backs on the football team, were at a hotel room party making out in the back bedroom while Marcus had been standing solo at the front entrance of prom, where everyone could witness his dateless status.

It had been the last straw in a long line of humiliations and he'd vowed then to show everyone what he was capable of.

She sighed and wouldn't meet his eyes. "Yeah, that sounds like me. I did a lot of really horrible things in high school. Rest assured, I've been paying for them ever since."

"How?" Was it ungentlemanly to want details of her comeuppance?

"I just have, okay? I'm sorry I did that to you. Can we just dance and relive my not-so-glory days some other time?"

"Sure." As apologies went, it wasn't the most sincere he'd ever heard. No matter. He'd already figured out they weren't a good match, then or now. Regardless of how Adriana's proximity had gotten his body's attention in a big way.

They danced without speaking and then sat through a painfully long dinner-speech combo.

As it concluded, Adriana mumbled, "Will you excuse me, please?" His eyebrows rose and she smiled slightly. "I'm just going to the Ladies Room. I will come back."

He nodded and stood as she left the stage.

When he saw her holding her phone to her ear as she exited the ballroom, he shook his head and went after her. If she was calling someone to come pick her up, it was unnecessary. He'd have the limo take her home if she'd arrived at the same conclusion he had—this date was pretty much over.

She disappeared around a corner in the opposite direction of the bathrooms.

"Shawn, calm down." Adriana's voice floated back to Marcus as she spoke. "What happened?" A brief pause. "I can't come by right now. I'm in the middle of something."

So maybe she wasn't planning to ditch him.

"Oh, sweetie, don't cry." Adriana's voice was laced with concern. "It'll be okay. Let me see what I can do."

Suddenly, she popped out from behind the corner and nearly ran into Marcus. Her expression closed in and she glared at him.

"How much of that did you overhear?" Adriana demanded.

And that's when he realized he'd been eavesdropping on a private conversation.

"Almost none of it," he lied. "Is everything okay?"

"No, everything is not okay." Her voice broke and with it, her entire demeanor crumpled. Tears welled up in her big hazel eyes and spilled down her face.