white teeth. He was even better looking in the flesh than in his photograph.
‘You are here before me – that is unforgivable of me! I am so sorry!’ His voice was strong, with a faint transatlantic drawl. He took her hand and kissed it, and she smelled his very sexy, musky cologne, then he settled opposite her and said, smiling again, ‘Wow! You are so not what I expected!’
She smiled at him. ‘Oh?’ She was thinking the same. How come such a gorgeous hunk needed to join a dating agency?
‘No, really, I mean . . . I had a feeling, from your photo on the site . . . and all the ones on your Facebook page, that you would be lovely. But wow . . . not this lovely!’
‘Well, to tell you the truth, you are a very nice surprise, too!’ she said. ‘And thank you for the flowers. That was really thoughtful of you.’
‘You like champagne?’
‘If you really twist my arm,’ she said with a grin.
He raised a hand in the air and waved, and almost instantly a waiter came over and began opening the bottle.
‘It’s vintage,’ Bryce said. ‘Only the best for you.’
When their glasses had been filled, he raised his. ‘So,’ he said with a smile that almost melted her heart. ‘ Single girl, 29, redhead and smouldering, love life that’s crashed and burned. Seeks new flame to rekindle her fire. Fun, friendship and – who knows – maybe more? ’
‘God!’ she said. ‘It sounds so cheesy, hearing it back.’
‘Not at all,’ he said. ‘It’s what caught my eye. It’s why we’re here! I’m already having a good time. Are you?’
‘I’m having a very good time.’
They clinked glasses.
He drank some and then said, ‘You know, I’ve been a bit presumptuous. I’m told the menu here is very good, but I thought for our first dinner we should have something a little special. In one of your emails you said you liked shellfish?’
‘I do.’
‘Excellent. I phoned and asked the manager to get us two lobsters. And to start, I thought we’d go off-menu also and I asked him to bring us Beluga caviar – does that suit you? It’s the finest in the world.’
This all seemed so amazing, for a moment she wondered if it was a set-up. Had Raquel – or one of her other friends – done this? Like a Mr Hunk date-o-gram or something? But why would they? They’d never be so cruel, surely. She looked at his face and his eyes smiled back at her, full of laughter and life. This was real. Totally over the top, but definitely real.
‘My God,’ she said. ‘Wow . . . but – I – I’ve actually never had caviar before – not real caviar. Just that lumpfish you get in jars.’
‘Nothing is too good for you,’ he replied. ‘You are stunning, do you know that?’
‘Thank you, but no, I don’t.’
‘Well, you are!’
They clinked glasses again.
Who was this Adonis of a man? It was like a dream. She’d kissed an awful lot of frogs since Dominic. Had she finally met a prince? She couldn’t be intoxicated, not from just one sip of champagne, but she was definitely feeling a little bit tipsy. There was something about him she found deeply charming – and very sexy.
And yet, a caution bell was ringing in her mind.
‘So in your emails, you never told me what you do?’ he said.
‘I work as a PA for a structural engineering firm,’ she said. ‘Although, actually I’ve always fancied becoming an estate agent.’
‘I’ve got contacts with several estate agents in the city. Just let me know and I can put you in touch with them.’
‘Thank you! And what about you? What do you do?’
‘Well, I used to be a pilot for United in the US, then I got a job as a private pilot for a Texan oil billionaire. Unfortunately my wife became sick with advanced breast cancer and I couldn’t be away all the time my job required. I felt I needed to be around to look after her. She was from England, and she really wanted to come back here to spend her last days near her family. I managed to retrain and get a
‘You are here before me – that is unforgivable of me! I am so sorry!’ His voice was strong, with a faint transatlantic drawl. He took her hand and kissed it, and she smelled his very sexy, musky cologne, then he settled opposite her and said, smiling again, ‘Wow! You are so not what I expected!’
She smiled at him. ‘Oh?’ She was thinking the same. How come such a gorgeous hunk needed to join a dating agency?
‘No, really, I mean . . . I had a feeling, from your photo on the site . . . and all the ones on your Facebook page, that you would be lovely. But wow . . . not this lovely!’
‘Well, to tell you the truth, you are a very nice surprise, too!’ she said. ‘And thank you for the flowers. That was really thoughtful of you.’
‘You like champagne?’
‘If you really twist my arm,’ she said with a grin.
He raised a hand in the air and waved, and almost instantly a waiter came over and began opening the bottle.
‘It’s vintage,’ Bryce said. ‘Only the best for you.’
When their glasses had been filled, he raised his. ‘So,’ he said with a smile that almost melted her heart. ‘ Single girl, 29, redhead and smouldering, love life that’s crashed and burned. Seeks new flame to rekindle her fire. Fun, friendship and – who knows – maybe more? ’
‘God!’ she said. ‘It sounds so cheesy, hearing it back.’
‘Not at all,’ he said. ‘It’s what caught my eye. It’s why we’re here! I’m already having a good time. Are you?’
‘I’m having a very good time.’
They clinked glasses.
He drank some and then said, ‘You know, I’ve been a bit presumptuous. I’m told the menu here is very good, but I thought for our first dinner we should have something a little special. In one of your emails you said you liked shellfish?’
‘I do.’
‘Excellent. I phoned and asked the manager to get us two lobsters. And to start, I thought we’d go off-menu also and I asked him to bring us Beluga caviar – does that suit you? It’s the finest in the world.’
This all seemed so amazing, for a moment she wondered if it was a set-up. Had Raquel – or one of her other friends – done this? Like a Mr Hunk date-o-gram or something? But why would they? They’d never be so cruel, surely. She looked at his face and his eyes smiled back at her, full of laughter and life. This was real. Totally over the top, but definitely real.
‘My God,’ she said. ‘Wow . . . but – I – I’ve actually never had caviar before – not real caviar. Just that lumpfish you get in jars.’
‘Nothing is too good for you,’ he replied. ‘You are stunning, do you know that?’
‘Thank you, but no, I don’t.’
‘Well, you are!’
They clinked glasses again.
Who was this Adonis of a man? It was like a dream. She’d kissed an awful lot of frogs since Dominic. Had she finally met a prince? She couldn’t be intoxicated, not from just one sip of champagne, but she was definitely feeling a little bit tipsy. There was something about him she found deeply charming – and very sexy.
And yet, a caution bell was ringing in her mind.
‘So in your emails, you never told me what you do?’ he said.
‘I work as a PA for a structural engineering firm,’ she said. ‘Although, actually I’ve always fancied becoming an estate agent.’
‘I’ve got contacts with several estate agents in the city. Just let me know and I can put you in touch with them.’
‘Thank you! And what about you? What do you do?’
‘Well, I used to be a pilot for United in the US, then I got a job as a private pilot for a Texan oil billionaire. Unfortunately my wife became sick with advanced breast cancer and I couldn’t be away all the time my job required. I felt I needed to be around to look after her. She was from England, and she really wanted to come back here to spend her last days near her family. I managed to retrain and get a
Similar Books
