“Definitely. It’s impressive. That, and the dress isn’t bad either.”
She felt the tingle in her stomach again and decided that was exactly right, too. She liked that he had such an effect on her.
“Better hit the lights, Kojak, or we’ll never get there in time.”
He made a point of trotting around the car at a jog, then threw open his door and swung behind the wheel. The engine cranked over, and within a few seconds they were threading their way towards the restaurant.
Neither of them registered the SUV parked thirty yards across the street, nor did they notice that the occupant seemed particularly interested in their departure, as well as the departure of the NYPD cruiser that had been sitting a few yards behind them.
Silver and Richard settled into their corner table in the mood-lit restaurant and sipped their cosmopolitans appreciatively.
“Everything looks amazing,” Richard said, studying the menu and glancing at the table next to them, where the couple was halfway through their entrees.
“It does, doesn’t it?”
They took their time with their drinks, and when the waiter arrived, Silver ordered the lamb chops, and Richard got the filet and selected a Malbec from the considerable wine list. When the bottle arrived, he sniffed the cork and then nodded approval after tasting a splash of it in his glass.
“You know a lot about wine?” Silver asked, studying the deep, garnet-colored Malbec in her glass.
“This one’s red. I understand they make white ones, too.”
They studied each other’s expressions then both laughed simultaneously.
“So you’re an expert.”
“I wouldn’t say that. But I know what I like.” He held his glass aloft and toasted her. She clinked the lip of her glass against his and took a sip.
“Wow,” Silver said, “that’s really good.”
“You like?”
“Me like.”
The waiter brought bread, and they munched on it as they bantered. By the time the main course arrived, the wine was almost gone. Richard ordered a second bottle.
“Are you trying to get me drunk? Because it’s kind of working,” she warned.
“It better be. At these prices, I’d have to take out a loan if you needed a third bottle.”
“Maybe we can only pay for what we drink? Give them part of the bottle back?” Silver suggested.
“Heresy. There won’t be anything to give back.”
They savored their meal, and Silver realized that she was enjoying her evening with Richard far more than she’d hoped. He was witty, self-deprecating but very fast, yet with no trace of competitiveness. Just a handsome, smart man sitting across from her. And a great kisser, she remembered.
When they were done, the waiter brought the dessert menu, but Silver waved him off. Richard stopped him.
“Do you have something really chocolaty?” he asked the waiter. “I’ve kind of got a craving tonight.”
“Yes, of course. We have a specialty of the house. Molten chocolate cake with a drizzle of hot chocolate sauce.”
Richard nodded. “Sounds heart healthy and low calorie. We’ll split one.”
The waiter nodded and departed.
Silver studied him with new approval. “And you like chocolate, too?” she asked, finishing her glass of wine.
Richard poured the last of the second bottle into their cups and placed it on the edge of the table. “Doesn’t everybody?”
When they made their way to the sidewalk to wait for the valet to bring the car, Richard wrapped his arms around Silver from behind. She leaned her head back against him.
“Mmm. That was incredible, Richard. Thank you so much. You know how to spoil a girl, that’s for sure.”
He kissed the top of her head and nuzzled her cheek.
“Some girls deserve it,” he said, and she turned towards him.
Their second kiss lasted an eternity, and by the time it was finished, her knees were weak. When the car arrived, they parted wordlessly, and the valet got out and ran to open her door for her. She slid in and glanced over at Richard, who leaned over and kissed her again, savoring her taste and smell.
A horn tooted from behind them, breaking them out of the moment. Richard waved in his rearview mirror and put the car in gear. Silver slid her hand over and took his.
“I don’t mean to be presumptuous,” Richard ventured, “but could I talk you into a nightcap? I know a place by my apartment…”
And there it was. The moment of truth they’d been leading up to all night. If she said yes there was no turning back, she knew.
“I thought you’d never ask.”
They made short work of their chocolate martinis at the dark little bar around the corner from his place, and spent the last half of their short time there kissing in a private booth at the rear. It was a slow night, and they had the area to themselves, the bartender and waitress occupied at the front with their few regular customers. A guitar player sat by the window near the door, playing Cat Stevens and James Blunt, crooning softly into a mike. Silver hummed along with the melodies as they relished each other. When their glasses were empty, Richard stood and took her by the hand, and they weaved their way to the front, pausing to put a ten-dollar bill in the hat by the guitar player’s feet.
Once out on the street, he guided her to his front door, and they waited impatiently for the elevator to arrive and take them to his fifth-floor apartment. They were alone, and she traced the beginnings of laugh lines around his eyes with her fingers after another kiss, wondering at the good fortune that had brought them to this point. She wanted him more than she thought possible. It had been far too long, and she resolved herself to not analyze anything and instead to enjoy being carried along by life.
Inside his darkened apartment, Silver pulled at the buttons of his shirt, rubbing her hands hungrily along his stomach as he leaned his head back and moaned, her tongue flicking his neck as she panted her need in his ear. She could feel his arousal through his slacks and pushed him towards the open bedroom door as she stripped off his top, the only illumination the dim glow from the windows facing the street.
Richard ran his fingers through the hair at the back of her head, and his fingers tightened on it, restraining her while he ran his lips along her earlobe. Her breath caught in her throat at the pull of his hand, and she groaned with pleasure as his tongue followed her neck down to her shoulder. When his hands caressed her breasts through the dress, she moaned again, and then with a single movement, she pulled the dress over her head and tossed it on the floor.
She pulled at the waist of his pants with an excited urgency, and within seconds he was naked, the evidence of his passion unmistakable. She took him in her mouth, and he sighed with pleasure, and then without saying a word, she stood and slipped her panties off.
They fell onto the bed, his hands all over her body, stroking her, teasing her. Silver pushed him back against the pillows and shuddered with passion, straddling him while still locked in a deep kiss. She trembled with anticipation, then her back arched as he slid into her slickness. An animal sound escaped her lips, raw and wanton, as she greeted his thrust with a furious intensity that matched his own.
Chapter 17
When Richard and Silver turned the corner onto her street, they were jarred out of their exhausted glow by the harsh flashing lights of the squad cars gathered in front of her building. Richard pulled to the curb, double parking in the red zone.
