Acceptable Sacrifices by Tricia Owens

for him. Husky. He looked to be in his early fifties, with medium brown hair that was nearly long enough to be tied into a short ponytail. Gray dusted his temples, and his skin was weathered from squinting in the sun, but he was a handsome man with a bold nose, a square jaw dusted with a ragged goatee that showed silver, and deeply sunken dark green eyes. He smiled a lot, the sort of hearty careless grin of a man who cared more about having a good time than impressing people. He wore a suit like everyone else at the party, but by the way he kept tugging at his lapels Ethan suspected he was a man more comfortable in cargo pants and a denim shirt, roughing it in some remote African jungle. Ethan itched to go over to the men and have Max introduce him, but he didn't dare interrupt. The liquor and hors'd oeuvres might be flowing in abundance, but this was a business affair and Harry Vandis was the most important man in the room as far as Max was concerned. So Ethan settled with hanging out at the bar, making small talk with the people who stopped by for drinks. Being new to the Elite Poole, he was a little shy about mingling and admitting how little he knew about Max's business. He also felt out of his league with the wealthy men for whom this party was de rigueur. His simple life in Indiana hadn't included anything like this. He was relieved when the Italian agent, Giuliani, joined him a few minutes later. Ethan envied the other agent his dark suit and muted tie. The colors comp