Page 1 of Untamed Billionaire
Chapter 1
“Savage!” Jocelyn Forsythe hissed. “A disgusting savage!” While saying it a second time, she added a horrified shudder to emphasize her revulsion.
“Who are you talking about, Mother?” Chloe Forsythe asked. But Chloe knew. Oh yes, she knew exactly who her mother thought was savage. And her mother was right. Marco Hudson. He was definitely savage. Not to mention raw and powerful and…Chloe couldn’t stop her eyes from moving towards the man. Tall and powerfully built, the man was more than a head taller than everyone else in attendance. His savage persona was enhanced by the dark beard covering a granite hard jawline and…blue eyes. Those eyes were a surprise, she thought. But the rest of him…the rumors about him were true. The man was powerful, both physically as well as just as a presence.
He was still standing across the room by the front door and Chloe had ensured that she kept her distance from him.
For now, at least. Later, however, Chloe had plans for Mr. Hudson. Big plans!
“That…male!” her mother groaned, adding a glare across the room at the unsuspecting man. Just as suddenly, Jocelyn Forsythe’s lovely, surgically perfected features brightened into a socialite smile, one of those fake expressions that everyone in Charleston society had perfected, as one of her mother’s friends passed by.
“You look lovely, Evelyn!” Jocelyn called out, then waited, her bright, artificial smile remaining on her features as she tilted her head towards Chloe. Her mother barely waited until her friend was out of hearing distance before she whispered, “That dress looks so garish on her!” A moment later, Jocelyn smoothed a hand down over her own blue dress. A dress which had been featured on the cover of one of the premier fashion magazines, which meant that everyone in the room knew that it was at the height of fashion. And extremely expensive.
Chloe didn’t roll her eyes. Neither her mother’s vanity nor her cattiness towards her friend was a surprise. Jocelyn Forsythe’s personality revolved around both traits and the woman sharpened those skills at every opportunity.
A moment later, Chloe sensed her mother’s gaze turn towards her own dress and braced herself for the inevitable critique. Jocelyn didn’t reserve her spiteful judgement for her friends and acquaintances. Nope! Her daughter was always an easy target for a motherly “critique”. Chloe felt her mother’s gaze slide down over her figure, heard the expected sigh and braced herself for the harsh words.
“Darling, you’ve really got to lose those last five pounds. That dress looks best on someone slender!” She then sighed, shaking her head, and walked away, unconcerned that she’d left behind a wound that never seemed to have time to heal over before the next slash of her mother’s vicious assessment.
Chloe bowed her head, pausing for the waves of shame and pain to ease. She should be used to her mother’s harsh “honesty” by now. Every moment of Chloe’s life had been judged and deemed a failure in her mother’s eyes. She was too fat, too slow, too pale, too tan, too…whatever. Her mother found fault with everything Chloe did or said. No matter how much Chloe tried to tell herself that her mother’s words were a sign of Jocelyn’s own insecurities, those critiques had the power to slide right to the bone. For long moments after Jocelyn walked away, Chloe couldn’t leave.
Not yet, anyway.
Breathing in slowly, then letting the air flow out through her nose, she lifted her head once more and…stared right into piercing, blue, harshly masculine eyes! Marco Hudson was…savage. Yes, that was such an apt word for the man. He was still standing across the room from her, but she could feel the power of his presence. There was something so…raw about the man. So magnetically powerful!
Shaking herself mentally, she reminded herself that she’d have a bit of convincing to do before the man agreed to her plan. She was just about to move towards him when the dinner bell rang. There were twenty guests in attendance tonight, plus her family which made up twenty-four people. En masse, all of them moved towards the dining room. Everyone except Marco Hudson. He stood there, staring at Chloe. She tried to break the spell and remember the reason for her invitation to him tonight. She had a plan! She needed to charm him, to tease and flirt with him and…good grief, she didn’t know how to flirt! She didn’t even know how to tease! This plan was doomed and…!
Chloe calmed herself, lifting her chin. She could do this! She was smart and capable, despite her mother’s constant criticisms to the opposite. Yes, she could do this!
Plus, she had to protect Marco. Her mother would slash the man to bits without Chloe’s guidance during dinner. He would be humiliated and Chloe couldn’t let that happen! It would ruin her plan!
So instead of fleeing towards the dining room to find her place, she walked over to the man, feigning a confidence she didn’t feel.
“Good evening, Mr. Hudson. I don’t believe we’ve met. I’m…”
“Chloe Forsythe,” he interrupted, extending his hand.
Marco had seen the woman as soon as he’d stepped into the house an hour ago. She was lovely, with dark, nearly black hair piled onto her head in some intricate twist that he supposed was designed to make her look older. But the beauty of her features wouldn’t be diminished by the harsh hairstyle. She was…beautiful. Strikingly lovely!
He took her hand, brought the trembling fingers to his lips and kissed the top of her hand. “It is a pleasure to finally meet you. I’ve heard a great deal about you since your arrival to Charleston.”
There was a slight tremor in her soft, full lower lip, but she forced a smile. “I heard that you’re setting up a headquarters here. Your business was previously based in Boston?” she asked, taking his arm and leading him towards the dining room. It was never good to be the last person to enter. Her mother scowled at anyone who delayed her precious meals, and often used that person for verbal target practice. Chloe would not allow this man to be humiliated by her mother’s verbal barbs.
“That’s correct.”
“And you run an import business?” she asked, genuinely intrigued.
“You’ve done your homework,” he replied. He leaned his head down in a conspiratorial fashion. “Are you the one who sent me the invitation to this event?”
She blushed, confirming his suspicions. Chloe didn’t tell him that she’d had to special order a batch of invitations and rearrange a perfectly choreographed seating arrangement, all behind her mother’s back, in order to include him in this dinner party. “Yes,” she replied, her chin lifting a notch. “And if you wouldn’t mind, I’d like to speak with you after dinner.”
“I’m intrigued,” Marco replied, then put a hand over hers where it rested on his elbow. “Will you give me a hint as to the topic of this secret conversation?”
Another blush and Marco couldn’t deny that he was more than a little intrigued. The woman’s shy moments were in stark contrast to her brilliant aura of confidence. He wondered what she would do when he kissed her. And yes, he knew that he was going to kiss Chloe Forsythe. He probably shouldn’t dirty her with his street-rat hands. But she was just too intriguing, too beautiful and delicate to ignore. It wasn’t just her delicate beauty though. There was a strength hidden underneath that lovely facade. It seemed to shine out through those blue eyes of hers, pulling him closer, making him want to know everything about this mysterious woman.
“I made sure that we would be seated next to each other,” she replied, not answering his question. The woman gestured towards one of the chairs which was in the middle of the long, elegant table. Marco looked around, taking in the others who were all laughing and talking as they found their assigned seats. Marco pulled out the chair next to his, the one with Chloe’s name on the ornate nameplate and waited for her to sit down before taking his own seat.
The woman gestured to the napkin that had been folded in some weird style, centered on the plate. Was the adorable woman silently explaining all the etiquette for a formal dinner party? He almost laughed, but decided to go along with her assumption that he didn’t know what to do.
