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She turned to look at him and he pointed to his own chin. Her hand shot up to touch the marked area, her mouth twisting wryly.
She rolled her eyes. “Totally my fault. I got it at work when I wasn’t paying attention.”
“At work? How?”
She looked away. “This is a beautiful view. I wonder how much one of these co-ops cost.” She smiled. “Not that I’d ever be able to afford one.”
“I will someday.”
Her eyebrows rose. “Ambitious or optimistic?”
He laughed. “Both.”
“I wish you luck.” She gave him a peculiar smile and then turned away to look out over Central Park.
“You must make good money modeling.”
A smile played at the corners of her mouth. “What makes you think I’m a model?”
He stared, waiting for a telltale flicker to cross her face. She didn’t even blink. “Aren’t you?”
“No. But I’m flattered.” She seemed so damned sincere. Maybe he was going crazy.
“Then what do you do?”
“Why?”
He shrugged. “Just making conversation.”
“Then you won’t mind talking about something else.” Her lips curved in a smile that made him her slave.
A totally new experience for him. He liked women, of course, but he hadn’t found one yet that had him thinking with the wrong head. Not since high school, anyway. “You like being the mystery woman, huh?”
The smile lingering on her lips, she lifted her chin and shook back her hair, lifting her face to the balmy breeze.
“So, if I can’t get more than your name, how am I going to ask you out to dinner?”
After a moment’s hesitation she looked directly at him and asked, “When?”
“Tomorrow night.” God, he hoped he could get a reservation this late. “Amuse Bouche. It’s that new restaurant at the—”
“I know it.” Amusement lit her eyes. “Trying to impress me?”
“Damn right.”
She laughed. “Another point for honesty. But unless you had another date cancel on you, we will not be getting into Amuse Bouche tomorrow night.”
“I confess. No reservations, but I know the maître d’.”
“Ever been to Hakata on West Forty-eighth?”
He frowned. “Sushi place, isn’t it?”
“Among other things.”
Just his luck, the woman was one of those adventurous-eater types. That was the trouble with New Yorkers. They weren’t happy with a simple steak. “You wanna go there?”
She grinned. “Ever tried sushi?”
He sighed. All the guys in the office kidded him. When they went for sushi, he went to McDonald’s. “I have a feeling I’m about to.”
“Your enthusiasm is overwhelming.”
“The stuff is raw. Can’t be good for you.”
She laughed. “Common misconception. Sushi can include raw fish but not necessarily. Don’t worry. I’m a pro at ordering for neophytes. I’ll be gentle with you.”
He cleared his throat and tried not to make anything of the way she moistened her lips. Tried not to stare at her glistening lower lip. “Not too gentle. That would take out all the excitement.”
Her eyebrows rose.
Eric smiled. “Bring it on.”
She laughed, deep and throaty, and the sound skated down his spine. “You’re giving me carte blanche?”
“I’m all yours.” He hoped they weren’t talking about sushi. Or he was screwed.
“Hmm…”
He moved closer. She didn’t retreat. Excellent sign. “So, what would you like to do with me?”
“Oh, I never tip my hand too soon.”
“Oh, right. A woman of mystery and surprise.”
“You have no idea.”
“I’m willing to stick around until I get an idea.”
She smiled. “You get another point for being adventurous.”
“Yeah? And what exactly are these points worth?”
She tilted her head to the side and pursed those sexy lips of hers. “I’ll have to think about it.”
“I don’t.” He took her hand, and when she didn’t resist, he pulled her against him and slid his arms around her narrow waist.
She tilted her head back, her eyes glittering with unmistakable challenge. He lowered his head and she lifted her chin to meet his lips. They touched, gently at first, tentative, searching, exploring, and then she opened her mouth to him.
He slid his tongue between her lips and tasted her eagerness. That’s all the permission he needed to plunge deeper. When she put her hands on his chest and slid her palms up to his shoulders, the tips of her fingers doing this little stroking thing that drove him crazy, he stifled a moan, willed his sudden hard-on to calm down before he scared the hell out of her.
But he couldn’t calm down and she didn’t scare. Instead she moved her hips, taunting him, driving him beyond insane. He cupped her backside, not sure if he wanted to stop her or make her grind harder.
Taking the decision out of his hands, abruptly she moved back, stared at him for a moment and then let her hands slide down his chest. “I have to go.”
“Now?”
She smiled. “Tomorrow?”
“Yeah, sure— Wait!”
She’d already headed for the door that led to the stairs but stopped hesitantly and then turned to him.
“Dallas?”
“I’ll be there at seven,” she said and then took off.
4
DALLAS HAD BARELY FINISHED her first cup of coffee when Wendy plodded into the kitchen, still wearing red boxers and a white tank top—her preferred pajamas.
“What are you doing up so early?” Dallas asked, wondering the same thing about herself. She’d only had four hours’ sleep, tops. After she’d gotten home, she’d been so wired, she’d stayed up and watched Pretty Woman for the twentieth time.
Well, she hadn’t actually watched it. Stared, really. While she’d replayed the kiss over and over again in her head. While she’d imagined his hands curving over her butt, drawing her against his erection.
“I’m dying to hear about last night.” Wendy got her usual morning cola out of the fridge. “Did he totally freak when he saw you?”
Dallas smiled, thinking about the stunned look on his face as he’d approached her. “He pretty much kept his act together when we were introduced. Although I’m not sure when he first spotted me.”
“Who did he think you were?” She popped the tab of the can, sat cross-legged on the love seat and then yawned before taking her first sip.
“A friend of his boss’s daughter. But we kept it vague.”
“How late were you out?”
“I got in around midnight. You need a haircut.”
Wendy’s hand went to her spiky hair, and she hopelessly tried to pat it down. “I know. As soon as I get a few bucks together, I will. Maybe next Friday.”
Dallas forced herself to keep her mouth shut. She was always ready to bail someone out. It wasn’t that she was a pushover. She preferred to think of herself as a nurturer. Anyway, even if she offered Wendy a loan, she wouldn’t take it. To her credit, Wendy watched her finances. “Any news on the audition?”
“I didn’t make the final cut.”
“I’m sorry.”
“C’est la vie.” Wendy shrugged. “Maybe I should start sleeping with directors.”
“Right.” Dallas rolled her eyes. “That would be a good move.”
“Hey, I didn’t get up early to talk about how I screwed up yet another audition. Tell me about last night.”
Dallas briefly turned away to pour another cup of strong black coffee. “Speaking of getting up early, I had to walk Bruiser again.”
“Oh, no. Sorry. You should have knocked on my door.”
“He yelped and howled for five minutes. If he couldn’t get you up, I doubt I could have.”
Wendy sighed, and then her lips started to curve as the curly black mutt, having heard his name, lumbered out of his cushioned basket and then stretched before leaping up onto the love seat with Wendy. “He’s so cute, isn’t he?”
“Adorable. Especially at six in the morning.”
Wendy gave her a sheepish look but then narrowed her eyes. “You’re trying to avoid talking about last night.”
Dallas rubbed the back of her neck. “Not really,” she said, even as she privately acknowledged there was some truth there. “Last night was great. More fun than I’d expected.”
“Yeah?”
“Yeah.” Dallas leaned with her elbows on the kitchen counter that served as their table and a room divider. She cradled her mug in her hands and stared at the black liquid. “Eric is really a nice guy.”
“And?”
“And I’m seeing him again tonight.”
Wendy’s hand froze in Bruiser’s curly black fur. “You’re kidding.”
“Why not?”
“Alone?”
“At a restaurant. I’m not totally insane.”
“This is so totally not you.”
“That’s the fun part.” Dallas grinned. “It’s not me.”
Wendy put down her cola, linked her fingers together as she often did when she angsted over something, which wasn’t often enough. She generally acted first, thought later. “Okay, what’s really going on here?”
“Nothing.” Dallas straightened, her defenses rising. “What’s with you?”
“You’re worrying me.”
“This coming from someone who’d sleep with a director for a role?” Dallas snorted. “Besides, you’re the one who encouraged me to go last night.”
“Hey, I was kidding about the director.” Wendy rubbed her eyes and sighed heavily. “How much did you tell this guy about yourself?”
“I haven’t told him anything.”
“Nothing?”
