had to scrimp to pay for
an evening gown. The luxury of picking something that fit and having the
in-shop seamstress make sure it draped properly was intoxicating.
This week, he’d
sent her a single dark chocolate. Darla didn’t understand how he could send her
an obscenely expensive gift one week and one that cost literally five dollars
the next.
“It’s not about
the money,” Kaylee explained, savoring the chocolate. The note this time had
said that the taste of the chocolate reminded him of her: sweet, sexy, and
surprisingly complex. Her heart was still fluttering over those words, even as
she tried to explain Hugo’s personality to her friend. “He’s trying to woo me,
I think.” She smiled to herself. Who could have guessed he’d be such a
romantic? She’d suspected, especially after how gentle he’d been with her in
Chicago, but she hadn’t really dwelled on it. Now, remembering how many love
sonnets he’d made them read in high school had her chuckling. Suspecting
someone was a closet romantic and experiencing it first hand were entirely
different sensations.
“Clearly he has
money to burn, though. Maybe he’ll send you a car next week?” Darla asked
cheekily. “That would be cool. I’d like a ride in a Ferrari.”
Kaylee tucked a
stray hair out of her eyes as she smiled at her friend. “I don’t want a car.
I’d settle for his damn phone number.”
Darla frowned.
“Wait. You’re telling me that you know who it is and you don’t have his phone
number?” She shook her head, clearly exasperated. “Why don’t you just call
where he works? Valtree must have a directory or something.”
Kaylee snorted.
“I know exactly where he works and trust me, you can’t just call him.”
Darla fell
silent at that, eyeing her speculatively.
Uh-oh , Kaylee thought, correctly interpreting the look on her friend’s
face. I just gave it away . She
shifted uncomfortably on her chair.
Darla narrowed
her eyes at her. “It’s Hugo Valtree, isn’t it? Your secret admirer is the
hottie billionaire himself,” Darla said, not a hint of doubt in her voice.
Kaylee bit her
lip.
Darla made an
impatient movement with her hand. “Come on, out with it.”
“Out with
what?” Kaylee tried to act innocent.
“You had him
for English in high school, don’t think I forgot that,” Darla said. “The
question is , how does he know you now? You were in
California, not exactly close to his usual hangout here in Manhattan.” She
ticked off a few more points on her fingers. “You’re shy. You don’t date. You
told me yourself that you’ve never had a boyfriend.” Her eyes sparkled. “Are
you a virgin?”
“What? No!”
Kaylee had never been so happy to be able to tell the truth. She’d be mortified
if anyone, even Darla, found out how old she was when she first had sex. Thank
God Hugo had solved that little problem for her.
“Okay, given
all that, how do you know Mr. Insanely Hot and Rich Valtree now that he’s no
longer your teacher?”
Kaylee looked
at her friend and recognized that she wasn’t going to be put off this time. She
took a deep breath and plunged into her explanation. “I met him again right
before I started working here. I ran into him at the airport in Chicago when
our planes were grounded because of a winter storm.”
Darla nodded. “And?”
“What do you
mean, ‘and’?” Kaylee asked.
“Running into
an old teacher at the airport doesn’t lead to that.” Darla pointed at Kaylee’s
ears where the diamonds Hugo had given her dangled.
She sighed.
“All the hotels were full up. He offered to let me stay with him for the
night.”
Darla stared at
her. “You shared a room with Hugo Valtree.”
Kaylee
shrugged. “He’s a nice guy. I was an old student, just like you said. He
insisted.”
Darla didn’t
speak for a long moment. Kaylee squirmed beneath her friend’s penetrating look.
“How nice?”
Kaylee blinked.
“What?”
“How ‘nice’ is
he?” Darla used
an evening gown. The luxury of picking something that fit and having the
in-shop seamstress make sure it draped properly was intoxicating.
This week, he’d
sent her a single dark chocolate. Darla didn’t understand how he could send her
an obscenely expensive gift one week and one that cost literally five dollars
the next.
“It’s not about
the money,” Kaylee explained, savoring the chocolate. The note this time had
said that the taste of the chocolate reminded him of her: sweet, sexy, and
surprisingly complex. Her heart was still fluttering over those words, even as
she tried to explain Hugo’s personality to her friend. “He’s trying to woo me,
I think.” She smiled to herself. Who could have guessed he’d be such a
romantic? She’d suspected, especially after how gentle he’d been with her in
Chicago, but she hadn’t really dwelled on it. Now, remembering how many love
sonnets he’d made them read in high school had her chuckling. Suspecting
someone was a closet romantic and experiencing it first hand were entirely
different sensations.
“Clearly he has
money to burn, though. Maybe he’ll send you a car next week?” Darla asked
cheekily. “That would be cool. I’d like a ride in a Ferrari.”
Kaylee tucked a
stray hair out of her eyes as she smiled at her friend. “I don’t want a car.
I’d settle for his damn phone number.”
Darla frowned.
“Wait. You’re telling me that you know who it is and you don’t have his phone
number?” She shook her head, clearly exasperated. “Why don’t you just call
where he works? Valtree must have a directory or something.”
Kaylee snorted.
“I know exactly where he works and trust me, you can’t just call him.”
Darla fell
silent at that, eyeing her speculatively.
Uh-oh , Kaylee thought, correctly interpreting the look on her friend’s
face. I just gave it away . She
shifted uncomfortably on her chair.
Darla narrowed
her eyes at her. “It’s Hugo Valtree, isn’t it? Your secret admirer is the
hottie billionaire himself,” Darla said, not a hint of doubt in her voice.
Kaylee bit her
lip.
Darla made an
impatient movement with her hand. “Come on, out with it.”
“Out with
what?” Kaylee tried to act innocent.
“You had him
for English in high school, don’t think I forgot that,” Darla said. “The
question is , how does he know you now? You were in
California, not exactly close to his usual hangout here in Manhattan.” She
ticked off a few more points on her fingers. “You’re shy. You don’t date. You
told me yourself that you’ve never had a boyfriend.” Her eyes sparkled. “Are
you a virgin?”
“What? No!”
Kaylee had never been so happy to be able to tell the truth. She’d be mortified
if anyone, even Darla, found out how old she was when she first had sex. Thank
God Hugo had solved that little problem for her.
“Okay, given
all that, how do you know Mr. Insanely Hot and Rich Valtree now that he’s no
longer your teacher?”
Kaylee looked
at her friend and recognized that she wasn’t going to be put off this time. She
took a deep breath and plunged into her explanation. “I met him again right
before I started working here. I ran into him at the airport in Chicago when
our planes were grounded because of a winter storm.”
Darla nodded. “And?”
“What do you
mean, ‘and’?” Kaylee asked.
“Running into
an old teacher at the airport doesn’t lead to that.” Darla pointed at Kaylee’s
ears where the diamonds Hugo had given her dangled.
She sighed.
“All the hotels were full up. He offered to let me stay with him for the
night.”
Darla stared at
her. “You shared a room with Hugo Valtree.”
Kaylee
shrugged. “He’s a nice guy. I was an old student, just like you said. He
insisted.”
Darla didn’t
speak for a long moment. Kaylee squirmed beneath her friend’s penetrating look.
“How nice?”
Kaylee blinked.
“What?”
“How ‘nice’ is
he?” Darla used
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