"Thanks. Things are better now," he said, pasting a smile on his round face, but Mia could see the resentment still lingering in his dark brown eyes.

"Well, I certainly don't want to keep you," she told him, glancing around as though trying to help him locate his date, although she had no idea who he was there with.

"You're really here by yourself?"

Mia smiled, chuckling to herself. "I really am. Is that a problem?"

"No," he said quickly. "No. Sorry. That's not what I meant. It's just..."

Unsure what to say when it was clear Harrison didn't know, either, Mia nodded. "Well, you know, it's for a good cause. I figured I didn't need a date."

Harrison smiled sadly. "Well, I guess I should go mingle. These things make me a little uncomfortable, but like you said, it's for a good cause."

"It was good to see you," Mia said in return, watching him as he departed.

Although she was trying to enjoy herself, a small voice in the back of her mind continued to whisper that it hoped the time would pass by quickly. Sitting at home with a good book sounded so much better than forcing a smile for the rest of the evening or having to endure any more sympathy from the people she'd once considered... What had she considered these people? They weren't exactly friends.

It's for a good cause, Mia reminded the voice.

That didn't help, but at least she had a sound argument.

Maybe she should've been worried that she was arguing with herself, but she really didn't care. For charity or not, Mia still had to worry about running into a man she had hoped to never have to see again. As it was, seeing the people he was close to was more than she could bear. She wanted to jump up and down and tell them that she was fine. Happy, even. But she knew it would be pointless. These people only saw what they wanted to.

By the time Alex found her, fifteen or twenty minutes had passed, along with at least three more couples who wanted to offer their sympathies regarding Mia's failed marriage. Johnathan wasn't with her, but she brought Mia another glass of champagne, which she kindly accepted. Mia wasn't much of a drinker, and three glasses without food was already making her a little light-headed. She didn't care about that, either. She was trying to keep a smile on her face, not wanting anyone to think that she feared running into Damien.

Which she didn't.

Okay, she did.

A little.

"This is nice," Alex said, standing by Mia's side and motioning toward the open dance floor. "Much nicer than the last black-tie event we went to."

"Oh, right." Mia snapped her fingers, trying to remember what event that had been. It hadn't been a charity function, she knew that much, but for the life of her, she couldn't remember what it was. Giving up, Mia asked, "You didn't like the farm theme?" She recalled the odd decor from that event. She had no idea who'd thought it was a good thing to go with an elaborate western theme, but they had.

"They had an actual pig there," Alex said incredulously, chuckling.

"I know. Tacky. But this is beautiful. It reminds me a little of my prom," Mia told her.

"Yeah? I guess I could see that."

Mia had no idea what Alex's prom had been like. In her head, she envisioned a room decorated with diamonds and gold. Alex came from money. Her parents were wealthy, so marrying into it hadn't been much of a change for her. One thing Mia loved about Alex was that her world wasn't centered on it. Aside from the fact that she did volunteer work at local hospitals, rather than being out in the real world trying to make a living, you wouldn't have known that her net worth - not including Johnathan's - was likely hovering around a billion. Maybe more.

Mia had never been intimidated by Alex or her money. Not the way she had been with Damien. Then again, Alex and Damien were polar opposites when it came to the way they presented themselves. The same with Johnathan. He was one of the highly sought after plastic surgeons in the area. Mia often teased him that he should've moved to Beverly Hills because he would've probably had his own television show. He would laugh, then tell her that wasn't what he was about. He wasn't lying, either. That wasn't what he was about. Johnathan spent a significant amount of time working with burn units at children's hospitals, offering his services for free or at a substantial discount.

Mia hadn't been left wanting as a child. Her mother was a well-respected pediatric surgeon, and her father had been a professor at the University of Texas. They'd been well off, but Mia had been raised with the understanding that one made one's own way in life, and one had to make an effort. Nothing was ever simply handed to her. And she respected her mother for instilling her with that value, especially after she'd been thrust into Damien's world.

Granted, not all of the people Mia had associated with over the last few years had been quite as ostentatious as the Somerhauses or nearly as generous as Alex and Johnathan. In fact, most of them were somewhere in the middle, putting forth the effort to be noticed while ensuring that they would get something out of it. Especially Damien.

Yes, Mia recognized that it didn't say much about her that she had been married to the man, or that she had continued to put up with his selfishness throughout the marriage. But she liked to think that she'd turned over a new leaf recently.

"Come on, let's sit," Alex said, nudging her arm.

Mia followed Alex to the table, placing her clutch on the white linen tablecloth that covered it before lowering herself into her chair, adjusting her gown as she did. Johnathan arrived a moment later, kissing Alex sweetly before convincing her to move so that he could take the seat farther from Mia, yet leaving two empty spaces between her and Alex. The change put Johnathan almost directly across the table from Mia. Glancing over at the seats between them, specifically the one closest to Alex, Mia realized there was a busty brunette fine-tuning her cleavage while eye fucking Johnathan as he spoke to Alex. That explained the reason he'd traded places. Mia only hoped Alex didn't claw the woman's eyes out before the last course was served.

It wasn't long before the tables began to fill. The conversation that had been muted due to the size of the room became louder as people began congregating in a much smaller area. When most of the other guests arrived at their table, Mia realized she didn't know any of them, which was another relief. They would be her only source of conversation for the next hour, so she considered herself lucky. If she didn't know them, then hopefully they wouldn't spur discussion of her divorce.

She also hoped she could carry on a conversation long enough to make it through the meal. Then, if the universe was working in her favor tonight, she could sneak out while everyone else enjoyed the rest of their evening.

Just as the waiters were delivering the first course, the chair directly to her right, as well as the one to her left, pulled back, and tuxedo-clad bodies came into view on either side of her. It wasn't until each man was sitting that Mia realized who they were.

The guys from the elevator.

Damn.

Mia turned her attention to the others at the table, hoping to look as though she was part of the conversation they were having. She laughed when Alex did, although she had no idea why Alex was laughing. Alex turned her head, her eyebrows darting down briefly in confusion. Mia simply smiled.

Unfortunately, the waiter didn't realize that Mia was purposely trying to avoid the newest members to their table, and he came to her right side, tapping her on the shoulder as he stood between her and Green Eyes. When she turned to look at him - the waiter, that is - Mia met the piercing gaze of the guy sitting next to her first before she focused her attention on the waiter looming at her side. The waiter motioned to a bottle of red wine in his hand, and Mia nodded. She sat back while he filled her glass, then poured some into the glass of the man sitting next to her.

When the waiter moved to her left side, offering wine to the golden-eyed stranger, she made the mistake of looking that direction. She then noticed that the newcomer was staring at her, a mischievous grin tilting the corners of his full, sexy lips.

Oh, God.

He had a dimple.

A freaking dimple.

In his left cheek.

It somehow softened the overly masculine structure of his handsome face, making him seem a little less ... intimidating. Just a little.

"Mr. Pierce," someone across the table said, which thankfully pulled her attention away from the golden eyes peering back at her.

She took a deep breath, trying to feed her starving lungs, because apparently she'd been holding her breath without realizing it. The universe was clearly out to get her. She couldn't think of any other reason she would've been seated between both of these men.

It could be worse, she thought. At least she wasn't sitting at Damien's table.

Mr. Pierce - better known as Green Eyes - began a conversation with a man two seats over, and Mia watched the exchange, unable to look away. She admired the way he spoke, eloquently answering the constant barrage of questions that was coming his way while pretending not to be bothered. Maybe he wasn't, or maybe he was merely a superb actor. Either way, she should've looked away, but she didn't. Not until he looked back at her, catching her in the act of admiring him. Only then did she glance away, pretending to be watching something across the room.

That didn't last long because the man with the golden eyes cleared his throat before saying, "It's nice to see you again." As he leaned closer to her, Mia got a whiff of his intoxicating scent.

"You, too," she lied. It wasn't nice to see him. Either of them. Quite the opposite, actually. Mia wanted nothing more than to put at least a ballroom between them because she was beginning to do things she'd sworn never to do again. At least not for a long, long time. Like entertaining the idea of reaching out to touch him to see if his chest was as hard as it appeared beneath that fancy tux.

But somehow, both of them had sparked a dry bed of kindling inside her, and she was hard-pressed to keep the flames from turning into a full-blown inferno. Which, in her opinion, was utterly ridiculous. It was ludicrous to find one of them attractive. But both of them... That was just too much.

"Tarik Marx," the guy said softly, holding his hand out toward her. "And you are?"

"Sorry," she said, placing her wineglass on the table and returning the gesture. When his big, warm hand engulfed hers, Mia tried not to focus on the strange tingling sensation that erupted in the tips of her fingers. "Mia Cantrell. Nice to meet you." She hoped she sounded polite and not incredibly eager to hear him speak in that dark, rich voice for a little while longer. She thought she heard the hint of an accent, but she couldn't place it.

Before Tarik said anything more, the man on her other side leaned in, his gruff voice greeting her as well. "It's nice to meet you, Mia."

"You, too, Mr. Pierce," Mia said quickly, jerking her head toward him, hoping she sounded as though she knew who he was. Truth was, she hadn't a clue.

It must've worked, because he merely smiled, not bothering to tell Mia to call him by his first name, or even what it was, which only made sense. He was one of those guys. The type who got off on being addressed formally, not caring to make any personal interactions with people he wouldn't likely see again. Damien was like that, which had always driven her crazy.

A crooked smile tipped the edge of his impressive mouth, one sleek, dark eyebrow lifting casually as his eyes locked on hers for one heartbeat, then another. She was the one to finally break the stranglehold he had on her with his eyes. Looking across the table, she swallowed hard and ran her damp palms over the napkin in her lap, hoping neither of them noticed. Only then did she offer him her hand.

After she shook Mr. Pierce's hand, the heavyset guy across the table picked up the conversation again, and the waiters began serving the food. Mia pretended to eat, spending more time moving her food around her plate than actually eating. She wasn't really hungry, and the buzz she'd garnered from the champagne was making it difficult to focus. However, she did find herself feeling a little better.

She heard bits and pieces of all the conversations going on around her. The woman on Tarik's other side - the one who'd been eye-fucking Johnathan earlier - seemed enthralled with him, talking nonstop while the hefty guy on the other side of the table kept Mr. Pierce's attention. Although she could pretty much repeat the conversations verbatim, Mia wasn't included in any of them, which was fine by her. She didn't mind sitting there by herself; it was easier, actually.

Dinner consisted of four courses plus dessert, and by the time everything had been served, she was full. Mostly because she'd practically scarfed down the decadent chocolate mousse that had been offered and two more glasses of wine. Once the plates were cleared and coffee was poured, the lights dimmed, and the guests of honor took the stage. Before the last person was finished talking, Mia considered sneaking away from the table under the guise that she had to use the restroom.

Honestly, she didn't want to be sitting there when the lights came back up. She did not want to have to engage in conversation with either of the strangers from the elevator if at all possible. As it was, her obvious attraction to each of them was beginning to be a thorn in her side.

Mainly because she wasn't supposed to be drawn to anyone. She wasn't supposed to find them even remotely attractive, yet she did.

No, she'd sworn off men altogether. Especially men like them. Men who had money and affluence. Men who wore those damn expensive suits like they were their second skin.

It had to be the alcohol. That was all there was to it, because instead of getting to her feet and running as fast as she could, Mia found herself once again looking into the emerald eyes of the sexy man at her side.

"Care to dance?" Mr. Pierce asked.

Mia heard the question, but she didn't respond. She was having a hard enough time swallowing, much less speaking.

"I'll take that as a yes," he said with a rumbling chuckle as he got to his feet. When he held his hand out to help her up, Mia slid her fingers into his. The electric spark that ignited from the contact went straight to every erogenous zone in her entire body.

Rather than taking that as a sign to go, Mia allowed the handsome man to lead her to the dance floor, where other couples were beginning to assemble. There was a nervous flutter that started tap-dancing in her stomach, and it only intensified when Mia found herself pulled flush against Mr. Pierce. Her senses were instantly heightened, and she noticed the warmth of his hand as it caressed her low back, the smoothness of his large fingers as he took her hand with his free one, the delicious scent of his cologne, the rock-hard plane of his upper body against hers.

Ugghh. She was in so much trouble here.

Even with her four-and-a-half-inch heels, he was quite a bit taller than her. With her shoes, Mia topped out at five foot eight, and he had at least another five or six inches on her, which required her to crane her neck to look at him. Without speaking, Mia danced through one song, but she did everything in her power to keep from looking up at him. When the song ended, she was about to pull away, but then another song began, and Mr. Pierce kept her close.

She momentarily stopped as she heard the music begin. "I know this song," she said, looking up at him and meeting his eyes.

"'Gravity' by A Perfect Circle," he said at the same time she did, a sexy smile pulling up the corners of his mouth.

She knew the song was an odd choice for the event, but something about it pulled her in, kept her eyes locked with his. The beat was somewhat faster than the last song, but their bodies continued to move slowly, sensuously, as though they were one. As the bass thumped, her heartbeat kept a timely beat, her pulse ratcheted up by the way the stranger held her gaze, drawing her in.

And it was then that Mia knew she had to get away from him.

It was that or she was going to give in to the dark side.

Chapter Nine.

PHOENIX'S NIGHT HAD gone from mediocre to downright perfection as soon as he'd taken his seat at the table for dinner. Seated directly beside Mia Cantrell, likely the most beautiful, intriguing woman he'd ever laid eyes on but hadn't had the pleasure of talking to, Phoenix had found himself mesmerized by her nearness. He knew he had Tarik to thank for the seating arrangement, but he hadn't had a chance to speak with him since they had assumed their seats at her side.

When Phoenix hadn't been talking to Samuel Evergreen, he'd been stealing glances at Mia, desperately searching for something to say, something to spark some sort of conversation, but she'd continued to evade him although they'd been separated by mere inches.

Admittedly, he had no idea what it was about her that drew him in, but it was something. Something that had gripped him once again in the elevator on his way to the event and hadn't let go, even now as he held her in his arms, moving slowly around the crowded dance floor.

Unfortunately, his euphoria was short-lived when the song they'd both been intrigued by stopped.

"Thank you for the dance," Mia said softly, pulling away from him and taking a step back.

"My pleasure," he said, reaching for her hand again. "I'll escort you back to your seat."

Surprisingly, she didn't argue as she slid her soft hand into his palm. He tucked her arm beneath his, cradling her hand in both of his, which forced her to walk right beside him. As he weaved through the crowd, leading her back to their table, he knew his night was about to take an abrupt turn and not for the better. He could feel it by the way she carried herself, Mia was going to bolt as soon as the opportunity presented itself.

Phoenix was powerless to prevent it.

For now.

He was still shocked that she'd agreed to the dance in the first place. She'd managed to strategically avoid him throughout dinner although he'd been sitting less than a foot from her. Thanks to Samuel and his constant stream of questions, Phoenix hadn't had a chance to talk to anyone else at the table. The coincidence - although Tarik had had a major hand in making the change - of sitting directly beside Mia had been wasted on some technology bigwig who wanted to talk about start-ups. At least he hadn't wanted to talk hockey.

Then again, at least Phoenix hadn't been practically manhandled by a big-breasted brunette who wanted to maul him the way Tarik had. It had served him right, considering Tarik would've had plenty of opportunities to talk to Mia. It couldn't have gone better if Phoenix had planned it.

As soon as the lights came up, Phoenix had expected Mia to haul ass, only to be pleased to find she hadn't. His offer to dance had easily slipped right off the end of his tongue, an attempt to spend a few minutes in her company. He didn't regret it. Whatever it was about this woman, he was captivated by it, intrigued beyond measure.

They stepped over to the table to find several people were still there, including a couple who'd been sitting across the table. Phoenix assumed the man was the infamous Alex, but his original assumption that the man was Mia's date had vanished at Tarik's admission in the limo. He hadn't been able to disguise the relief he'd felt in knowing she didn't have a date.

Releasing her hand as they approached the table, Phoenix turned to face Mia, only to receive another polite thank you. He didn't even get a chance to say anything before she managed to make herself scarce, disappearing into the crowd and leaving him standing there, staring after her.

He had no idea where she had vanished to, but now that people were slowly getting up from the tables, he knew it would be damn near impossible to catch her.

"Alex," the man who'd been sitting across the table said, "I'd like you to meet Samuel Evergreen. Samuel, my wife, Alexandra Henry."

Well, wasn't that fucking awesome, Phoenix thought with a smile.

From the instant Phoenix had stepped out of his building earlier, watching as the well-dressed man had kissed Mia on the cheek before helping her into his limo, Phoenix had been accosted by a strange disappointment. Sure, at first he'd figured the guy was her date - the one she'd been talking to in the coffee shop - but there had been a small kernel of hope remaining, exacerbated because of Tarik's information and for the simple fact that she hadn't had anyone sitting beside her at the table.

And now...

Well, a flood of relief overcame him as Phoenix turned back to look in the direction Mia had gone, lending a partial ear to the conversation taking place beside him. Alex certainly wasn't Mia's boyfriend. Alex wasn't a boy at all. That was good to know.

Very good to know.

Granted, it would be a hell of a lot better if he could locate Mia, but she was currently ... well, she was currently MIA.

He smiled at his own joke.