quality of her tone as she responded.
“I wanted to know if you’d meet me for dinner tomorrow night. Are you free?” Of course she responded affirmatively. “Good. I’ll send my driver to pick you up at six-thirty.”
He snapped the phone closed and nodded, already making plans for the following night that would segue easily into a marriage proposal. Romance, he knew, would be key. Clarissa might have espoused some silly ideas about not wanting to marry but every woman wanted to marry. He’d had enough experience avoiding the various ploys of aggressive women over the years to know that they pursued that state with an almost single minded determination in some cases.
Looking around his office, he felt his breathing come more easily. The sunset over the horizon was a bit brighter now that he’d made his decision. The knowledge that he wouldn’t have to fight his attraction to Clarissa any longer was powerful and hit him suddenly.
Smiling, he picked up the phone and dialed.
Chapter 8
Clarissa hung up the phone and hugged a pillow to her chest in her excitement. Could his request for a dinner date mean what she hoped it meant? Would he actually accept her proposition? She could hardly sleep that night as the hope and anticipation spiked through her body. When she woke the following morning, all she could think about was buying a sexy new dress for the occasion. She dressed quickly, then grabbed her purse and headed for the stores, stepping out of a cab just as the first one was unlocking their doors.
As she sifted through the various boutiques, she considered and discarded more than forty different dresses. Some were too obvious, others not obvious enough. Too garish, too conservative, too tight…or just not right. By two o’clock that afternoon, she was becoming discouraged. She only had four hours and she still hadn’t found anything that would work. Tonight had to be perfect, she thought with frustration.
She trudged on, determined to find a dress that would work.
An hour later, she found it and almost melted into a heap of excitement as she pulled the zipper closed and surveyed her figure in the mirror. The silk black fabric clung to her curves, making her feel and look like a temptress. The cut of the dress was perfect, clinging to her waist and her breasts, then flaring out at her hips to end mid-calf. Since it had spaghetti straps, she couldn’t wear a bra underneath, but there was enough support in the bodice that she didn’t really need to. Going without a bra made her feel decadent, and oh, so very sexy!
She found a pair of sling-back shoes with a sexy heel in the next store and, with her precious purchases, she hurried back to her cottage. After showering, she dried her hair and curled the ends, flipping the mass back so she looked like one of the models in the underwear catalogs. She applied more makeup than usual and loved the seductive look it gave her. She looked sophisticated. Now if only she could feel the part as well, she thought, putting a hand to her stomach as the butterflies danced around excitedly.
The car arrived at exactly six-thirty but she was disappointed to not find him in the back waiting for her. But that was just as well, she thought. He was so intent on making her into some sort of Mother Theresa, he might have taken one look at her dress and marched her back inside to change. She didn’t want to change. She wanted to see his reaction when he saw her dressed like this. She just knew that he would see her in a different light once he saw her like this and it would reinforce his decision to accept an affair with her.
The car pulled up outside a beautiful house with so many windows in the front, she couldn’t even count them. It was three stories high with lovely landscaping highlighted by subtle outdoor lighting. She was impressed that Max lived in an actual house, well, mansion, she corrected, and not a penthouse apartment some place in town.
The door was opened as soon as she stepped on the top step and she was escorted into the house by a stately butler. She found Max in a cozy family room in the back of the house. As soon as she stepped into the room, Clarissa gasped in delighted surprise. Since it was the middle of summer, there were candles in the fireplace