by Jaci Burton
The caterers had come in while Carolina had been upstairs getting ready. Hors d'oeuvres were set up, waiters and waitresses were milling about, and champagne was flowing.
She'd spent so much time immersing herself in work, that this was a nice interlude. Relaxing with her family and getting caught up on what everyone had been doing was a nice way to push work out of the way for a while.
And spending time with Drew wasn't a bad thing, either, though her talk with Evelyn earlier was worrisome.
She wasn't getting involved with Drew. She knew--and she was certain he felt the same way--that this was just fun and games. Just sex, and nothing more. They shared a mutual attraction that was going to burn itself out in a short period of time. Drew was the kind of guy who had a different woman every month. She'd read about him, had kept tabs on him over the years. He never had a serious relationship, and it seemed as if there were always reports about a new woman in his life, and never anything serious.
He didn't do relationships, which suited her just fine, because she didn't either. She focused solely on her career, and so did he. In that respect, they were perfect for each other.
She was already practicing in her head what she'd say to him after Christmas. He'd be on board. In fact, he likely had the same speech. After all, he was probably used to breaking up with women. He'd appreciate her practicality.
She turned and caught sight of a dark shape at the top of the stairs. Her breath caught as she recognized Drew, in a black suit that was most definitely not off-the-rack. It was cut too sharply, fit him too perfectly. His white shirt was crisp and tailored, the red tie a classic accompaniment for the season.
She inhaled and held her breath as he descended, not at all used to seeing him like this.
And she thought he wasn't right for a suit? Dear God, he looked amazing, especially with the slight scruff across his jaw. A little sexy and daring to go with the classiness of the attire.
One of the waiters came by bearing a tray of champagne. As Drew came up beside her, he scooped up two glasses and handed one to her, then smiled.
"You look stunning," he said. "One of your designs?"
"Yes."
"The way it fits you is sinful."
"Thank you. It's supposed to be family-appropriate and conservative."
"Babe, nothing that hugs your body like that could ever be considered conservative."
She couldn't help but be pleased that he noticed. "Thank you. Again. And you look amazing."
"Thanks."
"Where did you get the suit?"
"I've had it for a while. Occasionally I have to play dress up, and the New York media can be tough. Plus, I dated a model once and she told me off-the-rack was shit and I needed to have a suit made for me."
Carolina laughed. "It's good that you can be taught about fashion."
"I pick up things here and there."
She could tell from the way he dressed. Even in casual clothes, he always looked good. "You'll make a fine model for my line."
"Good to know I won't embarrass you."
She took a sip of champagne. "Not with that body you won't."
"I see how it is. You're just using me for my model physique. You don't appreciate my brain or my superior hockey talents."
"I do appreciate how smart you are."
He laughed. "Come on, gorgeous. Introduce me to all the bigwigs here."
She loved that he was comfortable in his own skin, that he wasn't intimidated by the large crowd that had started to gather, including a doubled Secret Service team.
By nine p.m. the house was packed with people, many of whom Carolina knew, some she didn't. But her parents, of course, knew everyone in attendance, and Carolina had no problem introducing herself to those she didn't know. There were television personalities who'd finagled an invitation, as well as throngs of media willing to give up their Christmas Eve to be in attendance at the vice president's personal residence.
She'd long ago lost sight of Drew as she was called away for family photographs and then an interview about her new fashion line, which she was glad to do. Anything to bring attention to her work was a good thing, even though she was asked the typical questions.
"Miss Preston, with your family money, connections, and of course, now that your father is the vice president, do you think it will be difficult for your fashion line to be taken seriously?"
"Miss Preston, do you believe the fashion world will have a hard time believing someone of your background is all that serious about fashion, given that many will think you've bought your way into your own line?"
"Miss Preston, how much influence has the Preston name, money, and the vice president had on launching your line?"
She had to smile and grit her teeth through all the insulting questions, and explain that she went to college and majored in fashion design, that it was her dream to be a fashion designer long before her father ever became the vice president, and that she had worked for several designers as an apprentice, seamstress, and assistant designer before she ever decided to launch her own line, and that she may have the financial resources, but she believed she also had the talent to design. And that come Fashion Week, she hoped she'd be able to prove that.
What she wanted to tell them all was that she'd paid her dues, she'd worked hard, and she'd proven herself a capable designer. She also wanted to tell them all to shove it, but she had to be polite. The media could make or break a fashion designer, and being a rude bitch wouldn't gain her any favors.
When she finally managed to pull herself away, she found the nearest waiter and grabbed another glass of champagne. She headed down the hall into one of the private rooms off-limits to guests. After two rather large swallows and several deep breaths, she had managed to calm down, though not nearly enough.
"Wow, those were tough questions."
Drew.
She nodded. "Yes, but not the first time they've been asked, and probably not the last time, either."
"They were insulting."
"The media always feel they're entitled."
Drew nodded. "I get that a lot, especially after a loss. They shove a camera in your face after you've played what you think is the lousiest game of your life and then they ask you how you feel? How the hell do they think you're going to feel? You feel like shit. And then they either want you to talk about why your previously awesome game play has suddenly disappeared, or they want you to throw one of your teammates under the bus. It's a no-win scenario with the media. Even if you win and are on top of your game, they find something to criticize."
He led her over to one of the sofas and sat her down. She took another couple sips of champagne. "I have three strikes against me before I ever launch my line. One, I'm the daughter of the currently sitting vice president, which makes me high profile. Two, I'm a Preston, and I come from money, which will lead everyone to believe I staffed out the creation of this line to ghost designers and it will be anything but original. Three, because I worked for David Faber, everyone will be watching what I send down the runway to be sure I haven't stolen any of his designs. Which means I have to fight twice as hard to be taken half as seriously as other designers."
He swept his hand down her back. "It's a lot of pressure on you."
"Yes." She finished off the glass of champagne and laid it on the table in front of her.
"But you're smart, and I've seen your work. You're very talented. And because you've lived in the public eye so long, I think you handle the media very well."
She shifted her gaze to his. "Thank you for that. I appreciate your confidence in me."
Drew leaned back against the sofa. "When I was in college, I struggled. School was tough, the whole studying while playing a sport kicked my ass, and I wasn't the best player out there. I wanted to party with my friends who didn't have to work as hard as I did. For a while there, I wasn't sure that I could cut it. It was just too tough on me and I wanted to take the easy way out. But I got some really great advice from
a mentor who reminded me that I'd been playing hockey since I was a little kid, and it's what I'd always loved. And that if I wanted to give up and quit, that was my choice to make. I was smart enough that I could become a teacher or an accountant or I could do any damn thing I wanted. But he told me he knew I'd never be happy unless I was playing hockey. And if I wanted to play, I'd have to suck it up and work hard at it.
"He was right. So I sucked it up and studied hard and played hard and got better at both. And I proved to my coach and to my teachers that I could focus. Not that I was a scholar or anything, but I got the grades I needed to get, and my hockey play improved enough that I got drafted right out of college by the Travelers."
"That's amazing."
His lips curved. "Not really. I still wasn't all that great. I was a passable player, but not as good as a lot of guys my age. The Travelers sent me down to minor league hockey for a while, where I kept trying to prove myself. And the media rode my ass. The press kept saying I'd never be good enough to get called up."
"That must have been difficult for you."
He shrugged. "All it did was piss me off and make me work harder so I could prove them wrong."
Carolina touched his arm. "Which you did."
"Yeah, I did. I hated all those assholes that didn't believe in me. I was determined to show them just how good I could be. It took me two damn years, but the Travelers called me up, and I've been there ever since. And I'm good, Lina. I'm very good at my job."
She loved seeing the fire in his eyes, the confident way he spoke about playing hockey. "You know, in college, I always thought of you as the hot jock all the girls chased. I never thought of you as having any substance. I never thought of you as someone who struggled."
He shrugged. "We didn't really know all that much about each other back then. I thought of you as the rich girl who had it easy."
She laughed. "I struggled so much in college. I was chubby the first year, then after I slimmed down, I was socially awkward. I didn't know how to deal with all the attention I was getting. And I was trying to focus on my studies, which were so important to me. That drove me. And then, of course, I had that monster-size crush on you. You were such a distraction."
"Uh . . . sorry?"
"It's not your fault. Totally mine. But typical for the age. And that's in the past, anyway. The thing is, I understand what you're saying. About then, and about now. There are some things I can control, and other things I can't. I can't control what the media says and thinks. I can only control what I do. How I create my line. That's my performance. And I'm working my ass off to design it the best way I know how."
He rubbed her back. "That's all you can do, Lina. You can't be anything other than what and who you are. You can't apologize for being a Preston, for having money, or for your dad being the VP. All you can do is say, 'Hey, I'm Carolina Preston, I'm a fucking brilliant designer, and here's my stuff. Like it or kiss my ass.'"
She burst out laughing. "Well, I don't know that I want to go that far in my advertising, but I like the sound of it."
"Okay, so you can modify it some, but babe, there's a lot of shit you can't control. The media is one of them. Just do what you do best, which is make clothes. And try to tune out the rest of it."
She looked at him, struck by how gorgeous he was. Beyond that, she was amazed at how perceptive and deep he was. And she'd always relegated him to the dumb jock category.
How very wrong she'd been. "You're very smart. And you possess a lot of common sense."
He leveled a wry smile at her. "I like to think of it as self-preservation."
She laughed, then stood. "I guess we should stop hiding out in here before someone comes looking for us."
"Too bad. I was just thinking we could make out on the sofa."
"Terrible idea, especially if the person who comes looking for us is my mother."
"Or your brother."
"Yes."
They made their way back to the party, where, thankfully, the media had gotten their photos and sound bites and had taken their leave. Which meant everyone was free to enjoy the rest of the evening. Drew led Carolina over to the buffet, where they enjoyed crab-and lobster-stuffed pastries, along with so many other delicacies that Carolina was so full she could barely suck in her stomach by the time Drew had filled two plates for her.
"This dress is going to burst," she said.
"Bull. You've hardly nibbled."
"You're comparing me to yourself, and you burn off a lot more calories than I do."
"Just do some of that yoga stuff that you women like to do and have another plate."
She laughed. "Yoga stuff? Maybe I should go ice skating. Then I'll end up with a sculpted body like yours."
He leaned in closer. "If your body looked like my body, I wouldn't want to have sex with you."
She heated from the inside out. "You need to kill the sex talk in this crowded room. And stop standing so close to me."
She took a step to the side and Drew grinned at her. She shook her head and went off to find Evelyn, who was at the other end of the buffet line.
"I can't stop eating," Evelyn said.
Evelyn looked gorgeous in a red dress that flared out at the waist into a wide skirt. She had pulled her hair up into a fashionably messy knot, and had diamond drop earrings on.
"Love this dress," Carolina said.
"Thanks. I can't wait to wear the Carolina Preston line. I'm excited to see what you're going to put out there."
"I'm equal parts excited and dreading the show."
"Worried about the critics?"
"Of course."
Evelyn put her arm around her. "Nothing you can do about them. They're going to think whatever they think. I already know you have amazing talent. And I have a feeling that the critics are going to love you."
"I hope so."
"Gray and I will be up after Christmas so you can test-dummy him for whatever clothes you want him to wear."
"Great. I'm sure he's just so thrilled."
Evelyn giggled. "Beyond belief. But he's your brother and he loves you and he's happy to help out. Have you fitted Drew?"
"For some of the clothes, yes. Not for the underwear, which of course won't go down the runway, but I have an advertising campaign I want to run, and I can already imagine how I want to structure it."
"You do? Care to share?"
Her mind was whirling, because the idea had just hit her. "Actually, not just yet. I have to finish formulating it in my head."
"Your eyes are sparkling." Evelyn inched closer. "Is it dirty?"
Carolina laughed. "Not exactly. But it's definitely sexy."
"Will Drew go for it?"
"I have no idea. I certainly hope so." Now that the idea was in her head, she wanted to do the shoot right away. She wondered how soon after the holidays she could arrange it. She'd have to discuss it with Drew. And with his team. And Madison Square Garden. If it worked out like she was hoping, it could be profoundly sexy. And an incredible draw for her line.
Gray came over and slipped an arm around her shoulder. "You look like you're lost in thought."
"Oh, yeah. Thinking about work, actually."
He gave her a playful squeeze. "It's Christmas. Stop thinking about work for five freaking minutes, would you?"
"Do you stop thinking about work from February through November?"
He lifted his gaze to the ceiling. "Uh, not really."
"Then shut up."
"Shutting up. And filling my plate with more food."
"Good. And Evelyn says you're coming up for fittings?"
He grimaced. "Only if I have to."
"You promised. And you have to."
"You're not going to make me wear anything stupid, are you?"
"You mean like a clown suit? No. Nothing stupid like that."
He gave her a dubious look. "Carolina. What exactly are you putting me in?"
She squeezed his arm. "Clothes that will make you look fabulous, obvi
ously."
Evelyn slid her arm around Gray's side. "What? You don't trust your sister?"
"Not a bit."
Carolina laughed and moved off, finding her father and mother talking to an Oklahoma senator she knew well. She stopped and chatted with them for a few minutes, then excused herself, wandering around to make sure the guests were all taken care of. If there was one thing her mother had taught her, it was how to be a good hostess. And since her mother was occupied, it was up to her to see to the guests.
She mingled for about an hour, chatting up the guests and making sure to thank them for coming tonight. She crossed paths with Gray and Evelyn a few times, who were doing the same thing--playing good hosts.
But she hadn't seen Drew. She wondered if he was hiding out. Not that she'd blame him. Sometimes these parties could be excruciating, especially if you didn't know everyone.
She finally spotted him in a corner with their neighbor, Gil Nelson, and Senator Ed Langton, the three of them engrossed in some deep conversation. She had no idea what they could possibly be discussing, so she surreptitiously made her way in that direction, hoping to eavesdrop.
"You're out of your mind, Drew. St. Louis has the edge in the playoffs this year. Grant Cassidy, their quarterback, has the best stats in the NFL this year. He's taking them all the way."
Drew shook his head. "I think you're full of it, Senator. It's New York all the way this year."
Senator Langton let out a loud snort. "I don't know what's in that drink, son, but you're delusional."
"I'm afraid I'm going to have to agree with the senator, Drew. Cassidy has the talent at quarterback, and with Cole Riley at wide receiver, the two of them are unbeatable."
"I think you're both going to be disappointed when your team crashes and burns."
Sports. Of course. Carolina shook her head and started to wander off, but a few minutes later, a hand wrapped around her upper arm.
"Thought you'd escape, huh?"
She smiled at Drew. "Well, you were all tied up arguing about football."
"We're done. They don't know what they're talking about."
"And I suppose you do."
"You bet I do. New York will take it all this year."
