so he didn’t reach for me, I couldn’t say. But I wished he’d reach for me. “See you tomorrow at ten,” he said.
Before I could respond, the doors closed. I leaned against the wall, worked on slowing my heart, but I was smiling because I was seeing him again tomorrow.
I didn’t go right home. I stopped at my favorite store and spent an hour trying on jeans and blouses. I bought low-rise jeans that hugged my figure and a blouse that knotted closed, with a deep v neckline and open at the belly. And I didn’t care if people judged. I was going out with the sexiest man I’d ever met, damn straight I wanted to look hot as hell. That was why I stopped at the salon after. I never did much with my hair besides cut the bottom, but I had the stylist actually give me a style with long layers and balayage highlights: a sun-kissed version of ombré. When she turned me to the mirror after she was done, it was me but sexier. I absolutely loved it. He would know I had it done for him, but that didn’t bother me. I wondered where he was taking me, but didn’t really care because I’d be with him, but the thought kept me up for most of the night.
In the morning, I was tying up my sneakers when the doorbell rang. I jumped up, but then forced myself to slow down, took a deep breath and pulled the door open. It wasn’t Kade. It was Ethan. His mouth opened then closed, as his gaze moved from my head down to my toes.
“Damn, Molly, you look hot.”
A tingle moved through me because that had been the goal. “Thanks.”
“Where are you off to looking all…” He leaned against the doorjamb. “Sexy.”
“I’m not sure,” I said honestly. “Want to come in?” He followed me in. “There’s coffee,” I offered.
“What do you mean you don’t know?”
I turned to him. “The man who sent me Bergdorfs is taking me somewhere.”
He poured some coffee into a mug. “I wondered what happened to him.” His eyes found mine. “What did happen with him?”
“I’m captivated, Ethan.”
He was about to make a joke but took a good look at me and said, “You’re serious.”
“I am.” I knew there were obstacles, the least of which being the man thought he was a villain, but someone who made me feel like he did was worth taking a chance on. “I never saw him coming, and I really don’t know him, but I want to.”
He leaned against the counter, took a sip of coffee, his eyes moving behind me. “He the one responsible for your new look.”
I held his stare and answered truthfully. “Yeah.”
“Lucky man.”
It was then I felt the heat move down my spine and turned to see Kade in the doorway. And like he had the night of the ball, he held me hostage with nothing more than his hot gaze.
Ethan walked from the kitchen, stepped up to my side and kissed my cheek, before he headed to the door. “Have fun.”
Kade and I didn’t acknowledge him, and when Kade finally did speak, he said, “I am.”
When his words finally registered, I asked, “You are what?”
“A lucky man.” His gaze drifted down my body. “You’re beautiful.” Looking at me the way he was made me feel beautiful. “Are you ready?”
I so was. I grabbed my purse and keys; he waited for me to lock up, before he touched the small of my back and led me to the waiting car.
Once we pulled into traffic, I’d gotten some of my senses back and asked, “So where are we going?”
“You’ll see.” He touched a strand of hair that fell over my shoulder. “Beautiful.” His gaze dropped, heat stirred. “You should have that shirt in every color.”
I needed to change the conversation because what I wanted to do was crawl onto his lap, straddle him, kiss him, shit, I wanted to do a hell of a lot more than kiss him. “Do you always work on the weekends?”
I was sure he knew what was going through my head, but he took mercy on me. “Usually. I imagine you do, too.”
“More than I like, and not that I mind working on the weekends, but…”
“It means someone’s died.”
“Exactly.”
“How’s the case?”
I didn’t want to think about it because the case gave me a headache. “Complicated. Not that murder isn’t always complicated, but the more we investigate, the less we know.”
He was intrigued, but