Total pages in book: 69
Estimated words: 64966 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 64966 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 325(@200wpm)___ 260(@250wpm)___ 217(@300wpm)
“Just tell me you weren’t breaking in to rob the place. I’d be concerned if I was helping a felon make his escape.”
“No! I’d never do anything like that, I swear.”
“Then what were you doing here? Because that’s the type of party people try to escape from, and you did the opposite.”
He hesitated before admitting, “I came here because I wanted to meet you.”
That felt like the truth, especially since there’d been that spark of recognition in his eyes. “Why?”
He seemed unsure of himself, but he tried to pull up a façade of confidence as he smiled at me. “Because I saw your photo online and thought you were hot. Then I heard about this party in your honor and decided to show up and shoot my shot. Little did I know the place would be harder to get into than a Mormon boy’s panties.”
I chuckled at that analogy as we continued to the curb. “Well, I’m flattered.” After I handed the valet my ticket and she left to get my car, I said, “So, the Larsons of Stockholm?”
“Technically, yes. My great-grandpa emigrated from Sweden. I was trying to do that name-dropping my pedigree thing rich people do, so your buddy Whit might accidentally mistake me for one of you.”
“I see.”
Daniel shifted his weight from one foot to the other. He seemed to be gathering his nerve as he took a deep breath, and then he blurted, “Would you maybe want to go somewhere and get a drink?”
It really seemed like he expected me to say no. He subconsciously braced himself for the rejection by crossing his arms over his chest and ducking his head. That kind of reaction from someone so beautiful was surprising. I would’ve expected him to be confident, maybe even cocky, but that didn’t seem to be the case.
He was intriguing, and I wanted to know his story. I also wanted to discover what had made him seek me out. He wasn’t coming across as a groupie or a superfan, and I doubted it was as simple as wanting to meet me after seeing my photo online. There had to be more to it than that.
Because I was curious—not to mention undeniably attracted to him—I said, “I’d prefer to grab some dinner, if you’re hungry.”
His face lit up. “I’d love that! But since I’m in the middle of a pretty major wardrobe malfunction, it probably shouldn’t be anyplace fancy.” He tugged on the sleeves tied around his waist to tighten the knot.
“If you want to, we can go to my hotel and order room service. The dress code there is extremely lax. I’ll even loan you some sweats, so you can be more comfortable.”
“Perfect.”
Now that he’d received a bit of validation, he started to relax and enjoy himself. When the valet returned with my car, Daniel’s grin turned teasing. “Is this really what you drive?” It was a fairly nondescript silver sedan.
“Were you hoping for a Ferrari?”
“God, no. You seem like an interesting guy though, so I expected more from you than the blandmobile.”
“This is a rental car. I spent the last two years on the east coast, and all my stuff is still in storage, including my Saab.”
“Is the Saab old and funky?”
“It is, actually.”
He looked amused as I opened the door for him. “That tracks.”
Once we were in the car and headed toward the bridge, I said, “Tell me about yourself, Daniel.”
“What do you want to know?”
“Everything, starting with your age.”
“I’m twenty-eight. Is that too young for you?”
“Definitely.” He looked disappointed when I glanced at him, so I added, “Not that it’s a deal-breaker.”
“Good.”
“You’re not put off by the fact that I’m twenty years older than you?”
“Not at all. Silver foxes are sexy, and you’re even hotter in person than I’d expected.”
“Do I qualify as a silver fox? I think I’m more salt-and-pepper than silver.”
“Keep telling yourself that. The salt is definitely inching out the pepper.”
That made me grin. At least I didn’t have to worry about this guy blowing smoke up my ass. “Tell me more. What do you do for a living?”
“I’m currently on sabbatical, following several years in the restaurant industry.”
I guessed, “In other words, you’re a waiter, and you recently got fired?”
“I quit, thank you very much.”
“So, what are you going to do now?”
“Long term, I have no idea, but this is my first big chunk of time off since right after college. My plan for the next two weeks is to relax, enjoy myself, and have loads of sex with you.”
A bark of laughter slipped from me. “Way to cut to the chase.”
“Well, why not? You’re single, right?”
“I am. How did you know?”
“I read an article that referred to you as a ‘lifelong bachelor.’ It also mentioned the fact that you’re bisexual.”
“So, you thought, ‘I’m gonna get me some of that.’ Right?”