Roe reached out and took my hand in hers. “Trust me.”
“I do, but this is weird.”
“I’ve been getting your lunch for a month.”
“And?”
“You’re going to love this.”
It seemed the only thing I was able to pick was the wine, and decided to just go with the flow, allowing the waitress to pick her favorite.
“If I haven’t said it yet, you look beautiful. I like this look on you.”
“You did say ‘Wow’ when I opened the door, and your eyes nearly fell out of your head. And good, because regular Roe has a lot of things like this in her wardrobe.”
That didn’t surprise me. While it wasn’t a normal look that would have attracted me, I loved it on her. She had a hippie, free vibe to her.
“Does she? I can’t wait to see more.”
“Me too.”
“You don’t know what’s in your closet?”
She let out a cute little giggle. “I meant on you. The zoo trip was the only time I’ve ever seen you in anything that wasn’t a suit. Though, even in jeans and a T-shirt, you looked like you just walked out of a boardroom. You scream money and power with just a glance.”
“Is that a bad thing?”
She shrugged. “No, but I’m not sure you noticed that even when you’re casual, you are commanding.”
“Was that why your ex seemed intimidated?”
“That, and you really are too sexy for your own good.”
I grinned at her and brought her hand to my lips. “I’m not sure I’ve ever heard that before.”
She leaned back. “Uh-oh, I just blew your ego up. Your head might not make it through the door.”
I nipped at her knuckle. “I like hearing that you find me irresistible.”
She shook her head and pursed her lips. “I didn’t say that.”
“You did.” I leaned in. “I’m pretty sure I can get you wet with just a look.”
She blinked at me, pink spreading across her cheeks.
“You get me hard with just a look. I find you more irresistible than you find me, I guarantee it.”
“Guarantee, huh?”
“And I plan to show you how much more all night long.”
She swallowed hard, the pink in her cheeks deepening. “All night? I don’t know if you’ve got the stamina to keep up.”
Even being playful, she kept it up with the hits. I think the score was Roe—25 to Thane—6.
And I planned to prove to her all night long just how wrong she was, and to make true the lie we told her ex.
“After tonight, you’re going to wish you said yes to me a month ago.”
“There’s that ego again.”
When Roe said I would love the food, I was dubious. The place wasn’t posh or modern, and the menu was the most limited I’d seen. However, it seemed very popular as people flowed in constantly. Our food took hardly any time to arrive, and one bite in I almost proposed.
There was this weird green sauce that the sirloin was sitting in and at first I didn’t know what to think about it, but then I couldn’t stop eating it or dipping the perfectly crisp fries in it.
“How did you get to become the President of Acquisitions?” she asked when I was about halfway through stuffing my face.
“James.”
She rolled her eyes. “Well, yes, I gathered that much.”
A chuckle left me. “I worked with him in a different role, but then he needed a person who could handle the acquisitions because it was taking too much of his time. He wanted to focus on other aspects of the business, so I was named President and I have been growing the company ever since.”
“Is that when you bought your condo?” she asked.
“I’d been renting in the East Village and when I got the promotion, my lease was also ending and it was the perfect time to buy myself a place.”
“How long did you live there?”
“About six years. So it was a stretch when I first started working, but wasn’t by the time I left.”
We polished off a second bottle of wine, and I finished a second plate of steak and fries before paying the check. I patted my stomach as we headed back toward home.
Time to eat my dessert.
I had never taken a woman back to my place. Not since the days of my ex-girlfriend, Liv. Knowing that it would never be more than a night or two, I didn’t see the point. They would never be part of my life.
Roe was different. I wanted her to be part of my life.
“Fuck, I am full.”
“So, I did good?” she asked.
I stopped and turned to her, pulling her arm up until I could place a light kiss against the inside of her wrist.
“You did unbelievably good, baby.”
“Baby, huh?”
I nodded. “Work for you?”
She stepped away, pulling me with her. “Baby could work.”
“Still playing hard to get?”
She turned back and shot me that sexy minx smile that drove me crazy. “Maybe.”
“Now I need to go work off all this food. I wonder how I can do that?” I grinned down at her.
“I might know of something.”
The walk from the restaurant to my place only took a few minutes, and we passed her apartment on the way. She tried to play that she was going in, but I kept a firm grip on her as I continued on.
“Nope, I’ve been to your place. Now you’re going to see mine.”
When we arrived at my building, her eyes widened. “Very posh.”
“You’re the first woman I’ve brought here,” I said as I held the door open.
“In the last month?”
“Ever.”
She blinked up at me. “Ever?”
I nodded. “Though technically, there has been one woman, but she’s my mom so she doesn’t count.”
“Making a girl feel special over here.”
“I’m trying.”
“Evening, Mr. Carthwright,” Adriane, the concierge, said as we headed toward the elevators.
I gave her a wave before stepping onto one of the waiting elevators.
“What floor again?”
I moved my wallet in front of the sensor and hit the button. “Twenty-ninth.”
“Wow.”
My stomach clenched and my heart was beating faster than normal. Why was I nervous?
When we entered, she took a second to slip off her shoes, but once she was passed the entryway her eyes popped wide. “Holy shit.” She stepped forward, passing the library that was empty of any objects, then the kitchen, and then living room and dining room.
Her lips were parted as she turned back to me. “Half this space is the size of my entire apartment. How big is this place?”
“Too big,” I admitted. With the money came the need to have actual space in New York City, which was expensive. Instead of the two bedroom that was about fourteen hundred square feet, I doubled down for twice the size. It left me with lots of empty space.
I was lost in thought when the click of a door caught my attention, and I watched the skirt of Roe’s dress fly up from the breeze as she stepped out onto the terrace.
“Holy shit,” I heard her whisper again as I stepped out behind her. “Even your terrace is bigger than my apartment!”