for me to really deliver.
My eyes scanned the room for Leo. When I found him at a small table by the window, tucked in the shadows, my heart skipped a beat. It’s not that I’d forgotten how he looked or how handsome he was. I suppose I’d just forgotten how gorgeous he was in person. He caught my eyes at the same time, and I froze. I thought I might collapse to the floor as a smile stretched across his face and crinkled the corners of his eyes.
Just the way he looked at all the other girls in those photos I’d seen online, I tried to tell myself. But this time, I realized, he was looking at me.
He stood up from the table and greeted me with a kiss on my cheek, his hand on the small of my back. The closeness of him, his hand on my body, his breath on my cheek—it was all more thrilling than I wanted to admit.
You’re falling for him! I cried inwardly.
But he was like a vampire, even if you knew what to expect—looking too long into his eyes would guarantee your seduction.
“You should walk across rooms more often,” Leo said, keeping me close. “You look absolutely stunning.” I felt the heat of my skin blushing, and I moved to cover my face. He gently took my hand. “Remember,” he said, kissing it, “no hiding.” He pulled out the chair for me.
“Wow,” I said, sitting down. I’d walked across the restaurant toward Leo, and he’d been all I’d seen. Now, though, sitting at the table, I saw that the restaurant was actually perched on the beach, waves hitting a large rock barrier just below us. The sun dipped in the sky, a blazing orange. “This is incredible.” When I looked at him, he still had that easy, pleased looked on his face, watching me. I pointed to the window. “Look at that! It’s amazing!”
Leo laughed. “I see the view and yes, it is amazing.”
I smiled and rolled my eyes. “It’s new to me.”
“Too cheesy?” he asked.
“A little,” I said, but I had to admit I was buying into it despite myself. “Are you trying to impress me, or do you always eat at such fancy restaurants?”
He replaced his napkin in his lap. “I do not always eat in fancy restaurants and yes, I’m definitely trying to impress you.”
“Well,” I sighed, “it’s working.”
“This isn’t so fancy,” he said, looking around the dimly-lit, romantic restaurant.
“Leo. This place has a sommelier and a dress code,” I said. “Fancy.”
“Maybe,” he said. The glow of the sun shone on the side of his face, and when he turned back to look at me, the blue of his eyes was electric, piercing. “I guess I’ve gotten myself spoiled.”
“In more ways than one,” I said. “You even have a driver. Are you not able to drive or do you not want to drive?”
“I am capable of driving, thank you very much,” he said. “One day I’ll take you on drive somewhere. Up the coast to Santa Barbara or something. But having Steve take me—and sometimes my guests—just makes things easier with my schedule. I can work in the car, take calls, go over scripts, that sort of thing. In case you haven’t noticed, traffic in L.A. is a nightmare, so I can keep working while we’re at a standstill on the 405.”
My mind was still on going up to Santa Barbara, Leo in the driver seat—probably of some panty-dropping sports car. Still, I saw myself in the passenger seat, hair blowing in the wind, his hand on my bare thigh. But I had to keep focus and, honestly, I wanted to know more about him. “Did you grow up rich or something?”
“Blunt, aren’t we?” he said. Leo sucked in a breath and said, “I grew up rich in advice.”
“What does that mean?”
“I had lots and lots of people telling me what I should do,” he said.
“Did you listen to any of them?”
“Not a one.”
Leo had ordered the wine before I arrived—from the sommelier, of course—and she appeared at our table to present the bottle and pour us each a glass. Soon after, the waiter arrived and Leo asked if he could order for the two of us.
“Ordering is one of my many talents,” he joked.
He began rattling off specialty rolls, tempura, sizzling meats and all kinds of dishes I’d never heard of, and it sounded like enough food for a party of five.
When I looked at him ordering for us,