Later that night, he scheduled a piano lesson with a local teacher.

* * *

“Wish me luck,” Sophie said as she pushed back from the table after a fantastic sushi lunch with Holden and her good friend Jenna.

Holden stood first and cupped her shoulders. “I know you can do this. Everything is going to go great with Clyde. Just tell him to keep his grandson’s paws off my ex-wife,” Holden said with a wink.

“If only you’d kept your hands on me I wouldn’t be worrying about my biggest donor to the community center trying to pawn me off on his grandson,” she said and squeezed his arm. Holden swatted her rear with a light touch.

“Like that? Is that what you want?”

“No. Put some gusto into it,” Jenna said in her husky, sexy, Australian-accented voice.

Sophie waved them both off. She wasn’t sore, per se, from her spanking two nights ago, but she was keeping this patch of bodily real estate for Ryan’s possessive hands only. Actually, all of her body. True, they’d made no such promises. But after the time they’d spent together, the things they’d done, the messages they’d exchanged… Well, there was no way in hell she wanted to even dabble with anyone else.

“No gusto please,” she joked then glanced at her watch. “I’m off. Enjoy your green tea ice cream.”

“We will,” Jenna said eyeing the dessert dishes the waiter had just brought to the two of them. “Just remind Clyde how important the community center is in and of itself. And that building the new additions is not dependent on you dating or not dating his grandson.”

“Absolutely.” She gave a big thumbs-up. She knew what to do. She certainly knew how to handle herself in front of old, rich men, in front of young, rich men, and in front of nerdy, rich men. She’d handled herself just fine when she ran InCode. She’d made pitches. She’d stood up in front of groups of people. She’d asked for funding. And she’d presented on the strength of her vision.

That was what she would do with Clyde. Besides, she didn’t feel her romantic life, one way or the other, needed to be a part of her conversations with him. If she were a man, surely no one would expect her to date someone’s daughter.

She hopped into her Aston Martin and headed to Clyde’s office. He greeted her with a handshake that lasted too long, then a kiss on the cheek that left too much whiskery scratch on her skin. She wished he wasn’t so touchy, but she reminded herself the man hadn’t crossed any lines. He was simply more affectionate than she would have liked. No crime in that. Just a wee bit of discomfort.

In his office, she reviewed the final plans for the Beethoven concert benefit as well as the community center. When she was through, Clyde smacked his palm in approval on his grand oak desk. “I am delighted to be able to help fund this. It is so great to have a place for young people to be able to go and stay off of the streets and out of trouble,” he said, and she couldn’t deny that she loved his giving heart and his spirit. He reminded her in some ways of John, and his mission to help make the city safer and better. They each had their own style of going about it, but the goal was the same.

A better Las Vegas.

Clyde stroked his chin. “Say, do you know who’s here today?” There was a glint in his gray eyes.

Sophie cringed inside, then she plastered on her best smile. “I can’t even begin to guess.”

Soon he was escorting her to an office where a young, blond man was bent over his laptop.

“Taylor, my boy. I have someone I want you to meet,” Clyde said, and the young man looked up. He was handsome, sported a nice smile, and boasted straight white teeth that could only be courtesy of the best orthodontia money could buy. “This is Sophie, our city’s leading philanthropist, who is spearheading plans for the community center fundraiser.”

“That’s so great. I’m one hundred percent behind that.” He pushed back from the desk in his rolling chair, walked over to her, and extended a hand.

He had a strong grip, and Sophie catalogued that as a good thing. “Pleasure to meet you, Taylor. Clyde raves about his favorite grandson, and I promise I won’t tell the others he likes you best.”

Taylor laughed. “Excellent. I won’t tell the other fundraisers that you’re his favorite then, too,” he said with a we’ve got a secret wink.

“We’re in cahoots then,” she said, with a cheery smile for the fresh-faced law school graduate. “How are you finding the transition from law school to the corporate world?”

“My grandfather works me hard. The other day, for instance, he only let me take a one-hour lunch to play the cards at the MGM instead of the two hours he gives the senior partners.”

“I’m so cruel,” Clyde said with a hearty laugh.

After another minute of casual chatter, she said goodbye, and Clyde saw her to the lobby.

“That went quite well didn’t it?” he said, a huge grin on his face.

“He is lovely indeed,” Sophie said. Also six years younger than me, and I’m not a cradler-robber.

“Perhaps the two of you could attend the concert together,” he said, then snapped his fingers. “Wait. I have a better idea. Why don’t you go out before? Have a nice dinner. On me.”

She wanted to put her foot down, but she also didn’t want to offend this man who she needed in her court by turning down his grandson. Nor did she want to lie to him. She wanted to live a life free of lies, and free of trickery. She also wanted to operate on her own terms, not conform to the expectations of the men she worked with, whether they were back in the tech world or the titans of industry with fat wallets now.

“Oh, Clyde you are such a darling,” she said, stalling for time.

“What do you think about that?” he said, undeterred.

“Why are you so eager to set him up? He’s a handsome, smart, sweet man. Seems he could easily find a date on his own.”

Clyde lowered his voice. “I want to leave him the firm. And I want to know he’s with a woman who’s not going to try to take all my money,” he said in a you-get-my-drift voice.

Oh, she got it. She definitely got it. Because she had money, she wouldn’t need his. Clyde assumed she was the type of woman who’d sign a pre-nup. Well, maybe she was that type of woman. But still…the notion of why she was his top choice made her feel greasy.

“Also, you’re the most delightful young woman I know,” he added, as if that reason suddenly would hold water. “The two of you could be a wonderful match.”

Sophie had other ideas about what made a good match. Besides, who said she was looking for something serious? She was quite content with her life as it was, thank you very much. If she wanted anything right now, it was passion. It was sparks and fire.

It was Ryan Sloan, and the way he commanded her pleasure.

Oh God, just his name in her head sent heat flaring in her body.

Which meant it was time to nip this thing with Clyde in the bud. She’d run a multi-million dollar company for several years, and she hadn’t gotten to that position by letting the men she worked with try to set her up.

She touched Clyde on the shoulder with her fingertips. “Clyde, you know I adore you. And I could humor you right now simply to stay in your good graces, but I want to be totally honest. Your grandson is lovely. However, I’ve started seeing someone, and it’s going quite well so far. So I’m not really on the market at the moment.”

He frowned. “Is it serious?”

“Clyde,” she said softly. “It’s not a matter of whether it’s serious. It’s a matter of choice. I’m choosing to see someone right now, and likely I’ll be bringing him to the benefit. I hope this won’t affect your support of the center, but it’s important to me to be honest with you.”

Clyde took a deep breath and nodded, as if he were processing this news. She mentally crossed her fingers, praying she hadn’t messed up by being frank. She held her breath, hoping he wouldn’t snatch away his funding.