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he d tied her to the bed and thoroughly had his way with her, but still, his yearning didn t
surprise him. Since he d met her, the craving hadn t lessened. He needed her more every day.
You put up with me, Jay mentally replied to her question. You let me keep you as my little
secret. You re beautiful. Amazing. More than I ever imagined I d find. Because you deserve so
much more than I ve given you so far.
But the coward in him replied with a shrug,  I haven t taken you to a really nice restaurant
before.
 Restaurant? Blaina laughed.  I m pretty sure Dante s is considered a  fine-dining
establishment . She said the last with a snooty, imperialistic tone.  They don t serve dinner
here, they serve supper, she purred.
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Driven to Distraction
He chuckled.  Is milady content with these surroundings or should we adjourn to a more
humble location? I believe I saw a hotdog stand on the beach.
 We ll go there for dessert. Besides, you re dressed up all fancy in that suit of yours. I m
enjoying pretending you re a gentleman. She winked.
If he really was a gentleman, he wouldn t have been stringing her along for so long. He
would have told her the truth about his past, and why he couldn t commit to her beyond what
they shared now. But if he spoke those words, she d walk away. He knew that, just as he knew
that losing her would cause him more grief than all he d kept locked inside for the last twelve
years.
The scar on his chest ached, subtly reminding him of those past mistakes. Fuck being a
gentleman. He d be the selfish asshole if it gave him the means to spend a few more days with
Blaina. Maybe in that time he d be able to convince her to keep their relationship a secret,
because there was no way in hell he d willingly let her go.
Jay tucked his hand in his suit pocket and fingered the present he d purchased for her at the
car show. All the other toys had been a part of the fantasy afternoon, but the slim silver chain
with its suspended charm was the real gift something that would last beyond this weekend,
something he hoped would show her the depth of his feelings. He d planned on giving it to her
earlier, during their bedroom romp, but things had spun out of control he d gotten lost in the
fantasy and Blaina s responses to everything he did. By the time he d remembered the chain, she
had been fast asleep, her body soft and warm spooned against him.
 So, any idea what the carte blanche is? Blaina asked.  Or is it such a big secret that even
the chef doesn t know until he prepares it?
 Oh, but even then, we still might not know what it is. Although it had been awhile since
his last fancy dinner, he d never forget the delicious main course that turned out to be marinated
cow tongue.  And whatever you do, don t ask.
 Don t ask?
 If you don t recognize it, just shove it in your mouth and enjoy. It could be peppered tri-tip
or octopus brain.
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Ashleigh Raine
 Oh God. Ewww. Good point. Let s hope for the tri-tip. Blaina pressed her stemmed water
glass to her lips, then the moment she set it down, a waiter refilled it from a full-sized glass
bottle and replaced it in the ice bucket. She thanked the waiter, but he had already moved on to
the next table where he refilled a man s wine.
She grinned.  I m almost liking the hotdog stand idea after all. I didn t know that ordering
spring water would mean these guys would give me a refill after every sip.
Before Jay could formulate a retort, a man carrying a rather large basket of assorted bread
appeared next to Blaina.  Would you care for some bread? We have cheese twists, olive loaf,
rosemary garlic slices, sourdough mini baguettes and whole grain rolls. He pointed out each
flavorful piece as he spoke.
 Well, now we re talking. Blaina grinned and chose an array for the man to present on her
bread plate.
 You, sir? he asked Jay.
Why was choosing bread such a difficult decision all of a sudden? Jay considered all his
options before taking the easy way out.  I ll have what my lady s having. Wow, it felt good to
say that. My lady. He rolled the words around in his brain. Maybe someday, he wouldn t be
asking for bread when he said those words in reference to Blaina.
As soon as the bread master left their table, Blaina let out a muffled snort.
 What? he asked.
 Me a lady? You a gentleman? We re like two kids playing dress up. I keep thinking we re
going to be escorted out of here for using the wrong fork or for not folding the napkin over our [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]