“Flirting.” One word dripping with a husky need falls from his impossibly beautiful lips. “It’s all right to step outside of your comfort zone sometimes, Violet. When you do, good things happen.”
“Tonight is dinner,” I insist, but I’m trying to convince myself more than I am informing him. As much as I want to deny my attraction to Colton, I can’t. It’s right there, and the thought turns my cheeks hot.
“Dinner.” He nods.
I rush into the bedroom, leaving him to grab my purse and my phone. When I walk into the living room a few seconds later, I notice him looking at the photo of me and my sister, Victoria. I always remember my mom telling us she almost named her Jolene. Yeah, my mother enjoyed country music while she was pregnant with my sister.
“I’m ready,” I tell him, causing him to turn around. Once more, his appraisal is done with those eyes, and I can’t stop the shiver trickling down my spine. His nearness doesn’t help as I pull open the door, and Colton steps up behind me.
His tall frame looms over me, his warm breath at my neck, sending waves of pleasure through me. I have to bite my lip to keep from moaning. Get a hold of yourself.
Once I’ve locked my apartment, we make our way to the elevator in silence. The moment the doors slide shut, Colton glances at me.
“You know, I don’t bite. Unless you really want me to,” he flirts. I glance down, noticing how tightly my fingers are gripping my purse.
“I’m not great on dates,” I admit.
“So, it is a date?” he challenges, a naughty smirk dancing across his lips as his curious, yet mischievous gaze sweeps to mine. Colton’s confidence seems to grow by just watching his effect on me. I want to refuse him, to tell him I made a mistake and show him the door. But instead, I follow him to the waiting car. He opens the door, and I slip inside.
Soon, the driver pulls out into the evening traffic, which seems to be never-ending. I focus on the world outside instead of looking at the man who’s staring at me. I can feel his eyes on my body. It’s as if his hands are all over me.
“Tell me about you,” he requests from my left, and I finally force myself to look at him. I can’t hide the effect he has on me. It’s clear, and I can’t help but chastise myself for it.
“What would you like to know?”
“Well, you’re nothing like the girls I normally am photographed with or the girls in the industry who show interest. You’re the one I want to be with.” His words are sobering. Not that I’m not like the girls he usually spends his days around, but because he said he’s choosing me.
“Are you trying to tell me you’re forced to be with these beautiful women outside of work?” I challenge, crossing my arms over my chest to calm my shaking hands.
“Most times, yes, because of the publicity. You look at me and see the face on thousands of billboards,” Colton states, his voice lowering to a whisper. “But I’m much more than that. And I’d like to show you who that man is.” The earnest tone of his voice settles in my chest, reminding me that I’m judging him without knowing who he is.
“Okay,” I acknowledge as the car pulls to a stop outside a restaurant that boasts the best pizza in town. “I’ll give you that.” This is my promise before we exit the car and find ourselves in a small corner of one of the busiest cities in the world. When I join Colton on the sidewalk, I look up at him with a grin. “So, you’re hiding me away in a small pizzeria in the middle of nowhere?”
“There’s no way I could ever want to hide you,” he proclaims. A cocky wink along with that grin makes my stomach flip-flop. “But for now, let’s get to know each other, and then, when you’re ready, I’m going to announce us to the world.”
“I don’t know if I’ll ever be ready for the world.” He ignores my response because he doesn’t even answer me. Instead, he links his hand with mine before leading me into the restaurant that’s lit up in reds and greens, some white here and there, but it’s filled with the fragrance of tomatoes and oregano, which only makes my stomach grumble.
“I think someone’s hungry,” Colton teases as we are taken to a booth in the back of the restaurant. He waits for me to settle before sitting down opposite me.
“I haven’t eaten since lunch,” I admit when I consider the last time I had anything more than coffee, or water for that matter.
“Then you should eat before you have any wine,” he expresses earnestly. “I wouldn’t want you thinking I’m going to take advantage of a drunk woman.”
“Oh, please, you wouldn’t get that far.” My retort earns me a chuckle as we scan the menus for drinks and food. Everything sounds good, but it may just be because I’m hungry. Under my lashes, I glance at Colton, who looks as enamored with his options as I am. But I find myself looking at him more than I am at the list.
“I’m having a pizza, with pineapple and anchovies,” he announces after a short while, causing my nose to crinkle.
“Are you serious?” The sparkle of mischief in his eyes has me rolling mine. He’s more playful than seductive right now, and I decide I like both sides of the man I’ve seen so far. But I have a feeling there’s so much more under the attractive exterior.
“No.” He laughs. “I’m getting a Margherita. It’s simple, classic, and it’s deliciously cheesy,” he tells me then.
“Just like you.”
His smile reaches his eyes, his laugh bubbles in his throat, and the sound is as sexy as he is. I’ve never thought about a man’s laugh, but right now, I want to hear his even more. The waitress appears at that moment to take our order, but her eyes are glued to Colton. And to be fair, I don’t blame her one bit.
13
Colton
“I’ll have a Margherita and a lager,” I inform our waitress, ignoring the fluttering of her lashes. Turning my gaze on Violet, I gesture for her to proceed.
“I’ll have the same,” she shocks me when she orders. I didn’t expect her to want a lager. Once we’re alone, she glances at me, a small smile tilting her full lips. “What?”
“Lager? Didn’t peg you for a beer-drinking kind of girl,” I profess honestly. Each time I’ve spoken to her, she’s surprised me.
Violet shrugs. “I wanted to try it. I may hate it,” she explains. “But why not try something new? Since this” — she waves her hand between her and me — “is very new to me.”
“You’ve never been on a date?”
She grins playfully, and her eyes sparkle with mischief when she declares, “Not with an underwear model.”
“Like I said, that’s not only who I am.” I lean my arms on the table, wanting to get closer to her. The gentle scent of her perfume intoxicates me. Sweet, but not cloying like some women’s fragrances do to me. “I grew up with a single mom. We had a small flat in London, and I would catch the train to school every day.”
Her eyes widen, but she once again shocks me and doesn’t ask about my nonexistent father. “Any siblings?”