Off Limits Attraction (The Heirs of Hansol #3) - Jayci Lee Page 0,17

“We need to find someplace that stays open late.”

“You’ve been to Pink’s, right?” he said as he got into his car.

“Nope. I’ve never been.” Jihae grinned at him from the passenger seat. “And I don’t want you to pass out or anything, but I’ve never even heard of them.”

“Seriously?” Colin shot her a sideways glance, his eyebrows hovering near his hairline. “How long have you been in LA?”

“Eight months or so.”

“You’ve been missing out. Pink’s is a Los Angeles institution and you can’t call yourself a true Angeleno until you’ve had a hot dog there.”

“Well, we can’t have that. Let’s go get some dawgs.”

They lucked out and snagged a parking spot right outside the hot-dog stand. He’d deliberately chosen the least romantic place he knew—he needed help to keep himself in check—but he didn’t want to make Jihae walk for miles in her heels.

“Oh, wow! Is that the line?” Her jaw dropped when she saw the line of people down the street and around the corner. “Must be some hot dog.”

Colin grinned at her wide-eyed wonder, proud he was responsible for it. Her excitement didn’t cease even after the forty-five-minute wait.

“Ready to order?” the cashier asked when they finally got to the counter. She gave them a friendly smile despite the never-ending line.

Colin turned toward Jihae, who waved him on to order first. Even after studying the menu for nearly an hour, she wasn’t ready to decide on her first Pink’s Hot Dogs experience.

“Two Planet Hollywood dogs, onion rings and an Orange Crush.” Then he turned to her with a raised eyebrow.

“A Martha Stewart dog and a root beer,” she ordered in a rush as though she was afraid she might change her mind if she didn’t hurry.

“Good choice,” he said.

“I hope so.” She still sounded nervous about her decision.

“You really can’t go wrong with them.”

They sat down at one of the white plastic tables with aluminum fold-up chairs and waited for their order. His mouth watered as he watched the other patrons devouring their dinners. It was an elbows-on-the-table, talk-with-your-mouth-full kind of place. He hadn’t been sure if Jihae would appreciate a restaurant like this, but there was no doubt she was thrilled to be here. A genuine smile danced in her eyes, the shuttered look of her business persona nowhere to be seen. God, she was breathtaking.

Their dinner arrived and her eyes widened at the sheer size of their hot dogs.

“That’s a lot of food.” She sounded more delighted than worried.

Without further delay, they dug in. Damn. It was heavenly.

“So? What do you think?” Colin waited expectantly for her response.

But she’d just taken an enormous bite—her cheeks expanded like a chipmunk’s—and could only nod enthusiastically. After swallowing, Jihae grinned dreamily at him. “Oh, my goodness. The last twenty-seven years of my life have been a total waste. What was I doing when there was food like this to inhale?”

She continued to surprise and enchant him. She took another bite of her loaded hot dog, leaving behind a dollop of sour cream on the corner of her lips. Without thinking, Colin reached across the table and grasped her chin. To his great pleasure, her lips parted on a soft sigh as he gently brushed the pad of his thumb at the corner of her mouth, and her eyelashes fluttered like butterfly wings. He quickly withdrew his hand and leaned back in his seat as though he’d touched fire.

“Sour cream,” he choked out.

“Oh.” Jihae flushed a bright pink as she grabbed her napkin and scrubbed at her lips. “Thanks.”

“No problem,” he said with forced nonchalance.

Jihae recovered from her brief embarrassment, and he managed to drive out his lusty thoughts. Barely. They ate in amicable silence, and quickly cleaned off their plates. She ate like she meant it. He liked that.

“Best Placed Bets is going to be amazing. I can feel it,” she said as soon as they’d cleared the table.

“Charity is going to do an incredible job with Jeannie’s beautiful story.”

“I know.” Jihae sighed happily, then asked in a slightly hushed voice, “Who do you think should play our heroine? I think Sandy Lim is a good candidate.”

“Sandy’s great, but I think finding someone new and fresh might be the way to go.”

“I hear what you’re saying, but there are some risks involved there.”

“There are risks to everything,” he countered with a shrug. He was grinning broadly because he even enjoyed disagreeing with her. The slight tension and the anticipation of how she would respond made adrenaline rush through his