My mouth was dry as fucking ash, my brain sticking on my conjured-up memories of the look in her eyes when she was right on the edge and of those fingers wrapped around my shaft. Taking a deep breath, I shoved at those thoughts as hard as I could and gave her the closest thing to a smile that I could muster.
“It was fine,” I said. “Yours? Everything okay with your suite?”
“Okay?” she echoed with disbelief dripping from her tone. “It was so much more than okay. It was amazing. Thank you for organizing that for us. I can’t believe the company put us up without even knowing my answer.”
“The company can afford it,” I said. “Besides, we might’ve hoped it would be something of an incentive. Did it work?”
“Putting me up in a fancy room with my own hot tub in the bathroom, mood lighting, and a bed the size of my apartment? No. It didn’t work.” She kept her features schooled for a few more seconds before she broke out into a grin. “Being asked to do it by a billionaire and my brother’s best friend worked, though. Especially since said brother seems to think it’s a wonderful idea that I can’t possibly turn down.”
I stilled for a moment, shocked that she actually seemed to be saying yes. “Does that mean what I think it means?”
She smirked, the nerves having all but disappeared from her expression as she nodded. “If you think it means that I’m coming to New York, then you’re right. It means what you think it means.”
“That’s great news,” I said, almost overwhelmed by the urge to sweep her into my arms. When I couldn’t think of a good enough reason not to at least offer her a hug, I opened my hands and waved her into my arms. “Come on. Give it up. You know you want to.”
A few seconds passed before she released a breath and then stepped forward, slotting herself in right underneath my chin. “I hope you know what’s waiting for you, Great Dane. I might not be able to deliver what you guys were actually looking for.”
“Great Dane?” I groaned, though I couldn’t deny that the appendage I’d been nicknamed for was thoroughly enjoying having her this close to us. “I thought I’d left that name behind.”
I felt her shrugging against me. Then her body shook slightly as she laughed. The feeling of having her in my arms was amplified by her seemingly being so comfortable there that she hadn’t made any move yet to back away.
If I didn’t release her soon, she was definitely going to get her first real hint of why I’d been named that in the first place. Giving her a final squeeze, I ran my hands up until they rested on her shoulders but put a few inches of space between us as I looked down into her eyes.
“I’ll pick you up in New York on Thursday myself,” I said. “In the meantime, our lawyers will be sending the contract over to you as early as this afternoon. Call me if you have any questions, okay? I’d also advise you to get someone to look over it for you. I can send you the number for the attorney my family uses if you’d like?”
“No, that’s fine,” she said. “Rick’s got someone for the restaurant. I’ll ask him.”
An entirely irrational and yet completely unavoidable pang of jealousy surged in my gut at the thought of her asking another man to do anything for her, but I killed that fucker just as fast as I had my dirty thoughts.
I had four days until she landed in the city I now called home. Four days to either get my shit together or to decide it was worth risking Rick’s wrath if I made a move on his sister. As I stood there with her, so close that I could see each of the lighter pockets of color in her eyes and feel the heat of her body against mine, I didn’t care so much about any wrath I might possibly face, though.
“So Thursday, huh?” she said after a beat, her lips slightly parted before her tongue darted out to wet them. “That seems really soon.”
“It is, but I’m looking forward to it,” I said, meaning every word. “It’s the day our adventure will really begin.”
Leah arched a dark eyebrow at me, dragging in another deep breath. “I really hope I’m ready for this. You guys aren’t giving me