Stripped by Lauren Dane

woman like Lara Warner.”
    Dahlia held her stomach, nausea holding her hostage as her world crashed around her head.
    â€œHey, Dahlia! Nice to see you tonight,” one of the bouncers called to her as he walked in the front doors.
    The discussion in William’s office halted and she pushed the door open to see both brothers looking toward her guiltily.
    Nash started to speak but she held up her hand as she stalked to William’s desk.
    Rage warred with shame as she took a long look at her former boss. “You can go fuck yourself, you goddamn snob. I quit.” With that she turned on her heel and ran past Nash, shoving at him as he tried to grab her.
    She heard him shouting her name moments later, but she ran to her car and drove the hell away from The Liege and the man she thought loved her.
    Smacking the steering wheel with her hand she gnashed her teeth. Who the hell did Nash think he was, anyway? Lara had a point? She’d fallen prey to his charms and forgotten herself. That she’d actually thought he loved her made her feel like an utter fool, but, damn it, what made him and that prick brother of his better than her? She worked hard! Made her own way in the world.
    Her phone rang. She tossed it down when she saw it was him.
    Finally arriving home, she’d started to pull into the lot but saw Nash’s GTO. Reversing her car, she headed to Roseanne’s.
    Roseanne took one look at her face and pulled her into the apartment and gave her a hug. “Honey, what is it?”
    Her phone rang so many times she turned it off and told Roseanne the whole story.
    Roseanne made a face. “What the fuck? I don’t understand. Look, Dahlia, I don’t know a lot of things but I do know Nash Emery is in love with you. William is an asshole, yes. But Nash? Honey, his face lights up every time you walk into a room. I don’t buy the idea of some secret hate about your lack of a pedigree.”
    The tears came then, and Roseanne held her tight until they passed. “Oh, God, I’m in love with him. He always avoided talking about taking me to meet his mother. He’s ashamed of me. He’d say he wished I could come with him to London or Milan but never, ever that he wished his mother could meet me. I should have listened to my inner voice about it.”
    â€œSweetie, I think you should let him explain. If it’s not what you want to hear, what have you lost? But what if you misunderstood? You said you only heard William talking. Are you going to write this off so easily?”
    â€œI don’t know what to do!” True, it had been just William. But what about that comment about Lara’s being right? And what about his being ashamed of her? The possibilities struck her frozen, unable to think about anything.
    â€œWhat do you have to lose?”
    â€œMy heart. My dignity.”
    â€œGirl, you already lost your heart and what the fuck is dignity when you’re sleeping on a garage-sale couch in my living room when a man like Nash just might truly love you?” Roseanne rolled her eyes. “I’m going to work. If you want to stay, the bed in my spare room is made up. I love you no matter what.”
    Roseanne walked out and Dahlia put her head in her hands.
    * * *
    Nash had thought of nothing but Dahlia the whole plane trip back from New York. It was high time his family accepted that he was in love and with this woman for good. He also wanted to push through the last of Dahlia’s emotional walls and tell her he loved her straight out. He’d shown her, he’d said it in a hundred other ways but he wanted to tell her.
    Knowing his mother would be the biggest battle, he decided to go to William first. He’d dropped his bags off at home and gone to The Dollhouse.
    When he’d confessed the depth of his feelings for Dahlia, William’s attitude had gone from amusement to concern that Nash may have been the target of a gold digger. He