Page 111 of Rival to the Billionaire

It was remnant of the typical, old, impulsive Ryder.

He'd thought it was funny afterwards; I'd nearly had a heart attack. But it worked. Chastity had backed off…and apparently sought to bed another businessman.

"It won't end well for her, though," Carmina adds. "I hear she's trying to worm her way back into Baxter Inc's good graces, but so far they're having none of it. I'm hoping that her future father-in-law is going to come by tonight and tell her where to get off."

I nod in agreement, not wanting to hear any more of Chastity's story. I'd heard enough. And my attention—as well as my eyes—are looking elsewhere.

Ryder, where are you?

I scan the room and spot the bar. Maybe he's got something at the bar…or something.

Swallowing down my boredom, I excuse myself and make my way through the crowd, catching a glimpse of Alton on his way out. Takes me a few seconds to realize he's not alone. If you’re able to overlook his linebacker-like shoulders, it becomes clear that he’s holding the hand of a little girl with dark brown hair who looks about four.

Takes me less time to realize the little girl looks just like him.

This must be Shelby, his daughter.

I stop in my tracks and raise a hand to wave. He waves back, heading my way as I grin.

"Making a quick escape?" I ask, when he nears.

"What can I say? I have a child to put to bed. She begged me to take her to this thing, and as soon as we get here, she starts wishing for a bedtime story."

The little girl with brown curls pulls her hand out of his, hurries up to me, and holds her arms out. "Hi!" she says, grinning. "I'm Shelby."

I bend down and accept the hug I get. "Hello, Shelby," I say, smiling. "It's nice to meet you."

"I heard that a lot today," she says, giggling.

"Probably because you're a nice person to meet," I laugh. "Alton tells me you're the cutest little girl he's ever seen."

"Are you sure?" She raises a brow, and I can't help but laugh.

"I'm sure," I tell her. "You're the cutest little girl in this entire room."

She beams at me and giggles again. Looking up at Alton, she stops and grins. "Daddy, she's funny."

"You're the funny one," he adds, smirking at her. "Dragging Daddy here only to beg him for a bedtime story."

"I didn't beg," she says, sticking her tongue out at him. "I asked sweetly."

"Sure, you did." He flashes her smile that is supremely rare on the CFO's face. He glances up at me. "Enough about us. How about you? Enjoying the party, Jen?"

"Depends on your definition of 'enjoy'."

"I know. You'd think the people in this room were curing cancer the way they behave," he says, shaking his head.

I grin. "Haven't you heard? There's nothing more important to native Seattleites than keeping the price of coffee down."

"Well, with the amount of time they spend stuck on the price of their coffee, they could have already cured cancer and a couple of other diseases by now."

"You'd really want this crowd in charge of curing cancer?"

"Hm. Point taken. Anyway, I need to get home to take care of some work." He exhales, his blue eyes looking stern again underneath his crown of perfectly coiffed hair. “Derek started this new internship program that I now have to worry about, and currently, I’ve got one of the interns becoming a bug up my ass."

"Lena?" I ask, giving him a look.

"Uh, yes, actually. Lena Cho." His light brown eyebrows furrow. "How'd you know?"

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