Derek raised an eyebrow when Ethan returned to the table, a frown etched between his brows. "What's wrong?" Derek asked, concerned by his friend's obvious annoyance.

Ethan scowled. "Can you imagine your mystery lady's friend calling me a pervert?" Derek frowned.

"You? A pervert? Why would she call you that? Were you the reason she left so angrily? Did you hit on her?" Derek asked, trying to understand why Rayna would say something so offensive. "I didn't! Why would I do that?" Ethan asked, annoyed.

"Who knows? Maybe you shared your ridiculous marriage idea with her," Derek said. Ethan glared at him.

"I didn't do that. Why would I propose to a total stranger when I can just put out an ad and have several ladies apply, then make my choice? I neither did nor said anything to her," Ethan said. Seeing how angry he looked, Derek knew he was being serious.

"Did you ask her why she called you that?" Derek asked. Ethan looked away, embarrassed to even mention the accusation. "Someone seemed to have touched her inappropriately, and she assumed it was me because I walked past her at the same time. I kept trying to tell her I wasn't the one, but she wouldn't listen," Ethan explained, still annoyed.

"Oh, I see," Derek said, understanding the situation better.

"It must have been pretty annoying. I'm sorry, man," Derek said. Ethan scowled.

"Why are you apologizing?"

"Because she's my Evelyn's friend. I don't want you to hold it against her," Derek said. Ethan's scowl deepened.

"I already hold it against her. She went too far. She had the nerve to call me a pervert!" Ethan said through gritted teeth, replaying the incident in his mind. "You know what? Let's call it a night. My night has been ruined."

Derek nodded; there was no more fun for him at the club now that Evelyn had left. "Alright, let's go," he said. They both rose and headed out.

"Maybe this wouldn't have happened if we'd all sat together. I was going to introduce her to you," Derek said as they got into the car.

"It's a good thing they didn't join us. And why would you introduce her to me?" Ethan asked. Derek chuckled.

"She wanted me to introduce her to my single friend."

"Of course, she's single! It makes sense that someone like her, with that attitude, is single," Ethan muttered. Derek laughed.

"She really pissed you off, didn't she?" Derek asked. Ethan nodded. "And I can assure you that with that attitude, she's going to stay single for a long time. You should advise Evelyn to stay away from her."

After dropping off Ethan, Derek returned to his suite. As he lay in bed after freshening up, his mind drifted to Evelyn and how alluring she looked in her dress. Sandra was definitely no comparison, he thought. Thinking of Sandra, he sat up, remembering he should call her. Checking the time, he saw it was past midnight, so he decided to call her in the morning. In order for his plan to succeed, he needed to lead her on and make her believe he loved her. That was the only way he could use her to get the evidence he needed to expose Michael.

Derek's thoughts drifted back to Evelyn and their conversation. He contemplated calling her to see if she'd gotten home, but decided not to disturb her. He would just call her in the morning and claim he wanted to know how Rayna was doing, having heard about the incident from Ethan.

The next morning, Derek awoke and, after sending Evelyn a good morning text (he'd decided to send one every day to remain in her thoughts), he dialed Sandra's number.

Sandra, peacefully asleep, was awakened by the ringtone. Thinking it was Michael, she considered turning off her phone, but when she saw Derek's name, she sat up, joy enveloping her. She'd fallen asleep waiting for his call. Without hesitation, she answered, trying to sound calm.

"Good morning, Derek," she greeted, her voice a little coarse.

"Morning, beautiful," Derek replied, his voice smooth and warm. "How did you sleep?"

Sandra frowned, disliking that he wasn't apologizing first, but decided not to mention his absence the previous night. "I think I slept well, actually. What about you?" she asked. Derek smirked.

"Too bad I couldn't sleep," he said, his tone teasing. "I was up all night thinking about you and our date, which was abruptly cut short," he said smoothly.

Sandra felt a flutter at his words and smiled. "Really? Then why didn't you call me when you got back from your meeting?" she asked.

"I'm sorry I didn't. I finished quite late and didn't want to disturb your beauty sleep, as I was certain you must have gone to bed by then," Derek explained, his voice low and sincere.

Sandra smiled, her heart swelling. "Well, you should have called. I don't mind you disturbing my sleep," she said. Derek smirked.

"I hoped you'd say that," Derek said with a chuckle. "Thanks for showing up yesterday. I really enjoyed your company. I hope we can do that again soon," he said. Sandra giggled, her excitement bubbling over.

"What about today?" she suggested.

"No, today can't work. It's a busy day for me," Derek said apologetically.

"It's okay if you're busy today. There are other days. I'm not running away," she said, though slightly disappointed.

"Are you sure about that? You've been running through my mind a lot," Derek said, and Sandra giggled.

"That's such a cheesy line," she said. Derek chuckled.

"But I do mean it. I'll work something out and make sure to see you soon," Derek promised.

"I'll be looking forward to that," Sandra said, happy things were going smoothly. "I have to get ready for my day now."

"I'll call you when I'm free," Derek promised before hanging up.

After they hung up, Sandra lay back on her bed, a satisfied smile on her lips. She definitely felt it—Derek was falling for her. It was only a matter of time before her plan succeeded, and she'd be standing by his side as his wife. She would be Mrs. Stone, wife of the elusive billionaire and most eligible bachelor in the country. What more could she ask for? Michael could go to hell, she thought with a smirk.