Veronica realized that Dominique was speaking to him and tuned into her words.
“Thank you so much for coming in, Mr. Gallagher,” she said, her tone brisk and business-like.
Veronica bit back a small smile. That tone usually meant that the client had tried to talk Dominique into being one of their matches. Not that Veronica blamed them. Her boss was gorgeous, smart, and kind. If she were attracted to women, she would have wanted to date Dominique, too.
“It was a pleasure to meet you,” he drawled, taking her hand and giving it a gentle squeeze.
The words could have been taken as a genuine comment or smarmy, but Veronica was pleased to realize that Torin was sincere.
“And please, come by the restaurant sometime and try the food. I think you’ll enjoy it,” he continued.
He released her hand without doing anything sleazy like brushing his middle finger up her palm or trying to kiss the back of her hand. Not that hand kissing was sleazy, but the way some men did it…well, it definitely was.
“I will. Maybe my assistant and I can have dinner there on Friday.”
Veronica glanced at her boss, then at Torin, and felt a blush heat her cheeks when she saw that he was studying her.
He smiled at her, just a small one, and her heart rate increased. Wow, he really was gorgeous.
“I hope that you do,” he murmured.
“I’ll be in touch with you later this week with possible matches,” Dominique said. “Then, we can arrange your dates.”
“Sounds good,” he said. “Good-bye, Ms. Proxa.” He glanced back at Veronica. “Ms. Salt.”
Veronica swallowed hard as he walked by her desk and tried not to drool at the scent of his cologne. Not only was he incredibly good-looking, he also smelled delicious.
After he disappeared through the door, Veronica turned toward Dominique. “Wow,” she whispered.
Dominique smiled and fanned herself. “I know. He’s very handsome.”
“He asked you out, didn’t he?” Veronica asked.
Dominique cocked her head to one side. “How did you know?”
Veronica had made sure that Dominique knew she wouldn’t read her emotions if at all possible, but she could still see her boss’s surprise.
“Your tone of voice when you came out of the office,” Veronica answered. “It was very business-like and just a little chilly.”
Dominique smiled. “Well, I was tempted for a moment to say yes, but he came here for me to help him find a match, not to date someone who will never settle down.”
Veronica wanted to ask what that meant, but bit back the question. Dominique was friendly and open, but only to a point. There was a great deal that Veronica didn’t know about her boss. She wished she did, though, because sometimes Dominique would get a look in her eyes, a distant grief, as though something horrible had happened to her a long time ago and she was still dealing with the aftermath.
“I’m surprised he even needs our service,” Veronica commented, wanting to change the subject. She didn’t want Dominique to feel pressured to talk about something that she didn’t want to.
“Hmmm. Why?” Dominique asked, already lost in thought.
“He’s gorgeous and sexy. I would expect him to need a stick to knock the women away. Maybe even a bodyguard so they wouldn’t kidnap him to keep as a sex slave.”
Dominique’s gaze focused and cut over to Veronica. “You’ve given this quite a bit of thought.” Then, she laughed.
Veronica knew she was blushing again but could do nothing about it. She shrugged. “The thought did cross my mind,” she mumbled.
Dominique laughed again and Veronica smiled a little.
“I know that’s not very professional,” Veronica said. “But he’s…well…wow.”
“I understand how the thought might have crossed your mind,” she commented.
