The Russian's Furious Fiancee Page 0,42

you’re right.”

“So what’s the problem with this gorgeous hunk you’re trying to avoid? And changing the subject each time I turn it in that direction.”

Eva laughed. “Am I that obvious?”

Geselle’s beautiful pixie face split into a unrepentant grin. “Only to those of us who know you well. Sounds like this guy has really gotten to you.”

“You have no idea.” She couldn’t tell her friend that she was engaged, even if she might be starting to believe it. The idea was too preposterous to even speak out loud.

“But you really dig him, huh?”

“No. I really don’t.”

The next class of students was starting to filter into the classroom and Geselle stood up. “I guess we’d better get to work.”

Eva had three classes today, all with a very large group of students. Her first class was only twenty five students but her second and third had over fifty people in it. She had to concentrate to get through all the material in time to answer questions at the end. She loved teaching the classes and felt energized when they were able to take the information she gave them and learn to invest on their own. She never gave out advice on which stocks to buy or which companies to invest in, but she heard many success stories from her students if they followed her advice and researched their stocks carefully. Of course, there were the sad cases as well where people did their research and still the company didn’t do well. But that happens when one invests and she emphasized that throughout all the classes.

Her favorite story was about a woman who came up to her to thank her for helping her get on her feet after years of struggling to make payments on all of her bills. Eva had heard several women tell her that they’d been able to get on their feet and find more independence after learning to invest. They had confidence, they stood up to their husbands who thought they were door mats and those women finally found happiness, or at least a sense of peace now that they weren’t under a man’s control.

She considered that as she went out to her car that evening, exhausted but thrilled with all the ideas that had been tossed about in her last class. There were several students who were really getting into the whole issue of investing, but being careful about their choices.

Her cell phone rang and she grimaced when she saw who was calling. She considered ignoring it and just letting it go to voice mail, but she knew he’d keep calling until she answered. Or even worse, he’d search her out. She didn’t want to sleep at her parent’s house tonight so she’d better just answer it and get it over with.

“Where the hell have you been?” his deep, angry voice said as soon as she flipped open the phone.

“Good evening to you, Damon. I can tell you’ve been working on your charm once again and it’s really working!”

“Don’t give me that crap, Eva. Tell me where you have been for the past five hours.”

“No.”

There was a long pause while Damon absorbed the fact that she’d disobeyed him. Completely and unequivocally.

“No? Just no? You’re not even going to explain why you’re not going to answer my question?”

She was enjoying his consternation, probably too much she thought as she leaned back against her car, smiling as she pictured his dumbfounded expression at her responses. “Just no. Is there anything else you’d like to know?”

He actually laughed. “Would you tell me if I asked?”

Eva ignored the tingly sensation that bubbled up in her stomach with his laughter. “Probably not. So I guess this conversation is at an end.”

“Don’t’ you dare hang up, Brat.”

“Ah, more charm just oozes out of you. I can actually feel it transmitted over the waves.”

“Meet me for dinner tonight.”

“We’re not going to do that again.”

“If you don’t, I’ll come over to your house and pick you up. And we might not make it out of your bedroom, so you’d better meet me for dinner. Make it some place public and you’ll be relatively safe from a repeat of last night. Even though you know you don’t want to avoid my bed any longer, do you?”

Eva ignored his last question, trying hard to keep the conversation impersonal so she didn’t have to deal with the questions running through her mind after what they’d done last night. “What if I don’t want to meet you?” she asked, although there