But she’d only met the man twenty minutes ago. She didn’t know him, even if Josh could vouch for his respectability. So instead, she went down the dimly lit stairway ahead of him, keeping a foot of space between them. She’d never thought of this hallway as dim before, but being this close to a tall, intimidatingly attractive man made the world seem different somehow.
There was a limousine waiting right outside of her building, which surprised her. “Oh. Um…” The driver opened the door with a small bow, and she glanced over her shoulder at the tall, handsome man behind her. “This is nice,” she told him.
Dimitri’s earlier irritation had evaporated the moment he’d stepped into her small apartment. She was delightful and he wanted to kiss her. No, he wanted to make love to her. But she was so completely different from every other woman he’d ever met, either personally or professionally, that he was almost at a loss as to how to start.
Almost, he thought as he placed a hand to the small of her back, guiding her to the waiting limousine. He was a bit confused by the hesitation he felt in her when his driver opened the door. Most women loved the prestige of riding in a limousine, so why did she hesitate? It was just one more mystery he was determined to resolve.
As he watched her step into the limousine, he had to admit that he was both charmed and impressed by this slip of a woman. She wasn’t anything like he’d expected. From his experience, women were cold and calculating, gauging his reactions carefully and playing games to tease and trick him into doing their bidding.
But Ms. Pepper Abbot didn’t seem to fit into the usual personality traits that he associated with the women who drifted through his life. She was different. Hell, he even enjoyed her quips to force his manners. A novel experience, he thought.
“Where are we dining?” she asked.
“I’ll have my assistant make reservations at Fino’s,” he said, pulling his cell phone from his pocket.
Before he could press the button that would make the call, he felt her soft hand on his. Immediately, he lowered his phone and looked at her, startled by the heat in her touch.
Those big, blue eyes sparkled at him and he felt…ashamed. Ashamed? What the hell? “Don’t bother your assistant. It’s already after business hours, and he’s probably at home making dinner right about now.”
“My assistant is still working,” he told her with absolute confidence, ignoring the spark of…whatever…at her words and the look in her eyes.
She shifted slightly and he suspected that she was irritated with him. Actually irritated!
“Then you’re a beast to work for, Mr. Bosalis.”
He chuckled. “Probably. But I pay my employees extremely well for their time.” He started to lift his phone again, but once more, she stopped him with a simple touch.
“If you don’t mind, I’m not really dressed for a place like Fino’s. Besides, their food is a bit pretentious, don’t you think?”
He’d always thought so, but everyone else seemed impressed. That she thought so was yet another mark in her favor and his fascination increased. “What would you suggest?” he asked.
Her eyes lit up and his body tightened with arousal. He wanted to pull her onto his lap and make love to her right here, right now. Dimitri had always scorned the idea of sex in the back of a limousine, thinking it cliché and trite. But with Pepper Abbot, he wasn’t sure he could control himself.
“There’s a really good Italian place right around the next corner. I eat there at least once a week,” she told him, as her hand slipped down over her softly rounded stomach. “I can attest that the food is amazing!”
Dimitri sensed that she was self-conscious of her stomach, but his eyes followed her hand, his mouth going dry at the temptation of that soft, sexy stomach. She was lush and beautiful, round in all the right places. There wouldn’t be any bones poking him when he finally got her naked and into his bed.
Pulling his eyes away with difficulty, wondering if she’d bewitched him somehow, he sighed. “Fine,” he snapped. “Give my driver directions.”
He pressed a button that rolled down the partition separating them from the drivers’ area. “Change of plans,” Dimitri warned his driver.
The lovely Ms. Abbot leaned forward, giving him an excellent view of her round, enticing derriere as she gave additional directions to his driver. “Just turn left at the next corner. The restaurant is right there.”
A moment later, the limousine slowed to a smooth stop right outside of a small Italian bistro. There were red-checked curtains on the windows, and the black paint was chipped around the edges of the doorway. It had obviously been painted over several times, without the previous layers being stripped away, so the newest layer of paint showed all of the chips and gouges from the years of abuse. There was a tile floor entryway, but several of the tiles along the edges were cracked and chipped, leaving gaps in the floor.
It wasn’t the sort of place Dimitri normally dined. Following her inside, he was just about to tell her that this restaurant wasn’t acceptable.
But as soon as they stepped into the fragrant warmth of the small restaurant, Dimitri had to admit that he was tempted. There was the tangy scent of garlic, of course, and he could also smell fresh basil and…was that mint? He’d never associated mint with Italian food, but it mingled with the other scents, tempting and intriguing him.
“Pepper!” a big, jovial man with a white apron called from the back. There was a buzz of conversation from the other patrons since most of the tables were already filled. “And you bring a
