Anyway, now I’d stupidly agreed to have dinner with him, I had to work out a way to minimise the damage to my friendship with Juliette.
I’d just have to eat quickly. The faster I finished, the quicker I could arrange an emergency meeting with Claude and find a way to get myself out of this mess.
As Gabriel sat down, I waved at the waitress and she came straight over.
‘We’re ready to order,’ I smiled.
‘Of course, Madame. What would you like?’
‘What’s quickest to prepare? The steak frites, the stuffed chicken with herbs or the sea bass with citrus butter?’
‘Quickest?’ She frowned. ‘If you are hungry and are worried about having a long wait for the main course, perhaps I can bring you a starter? We have a foie gras terrine which is popular or grilled oysters?’
‘No. That’s not the reason. I’m in a hurry, so I need to eat quickly and leave.’
‘Oh…’ Her frown deepened. ‘I am not sure, but all of them are very popular and well worth the wait.’
‘We will both take the stuffed chicken,’ Gabriel answered and my eyes bulged.
The waitress looked at me for confirmation.
‘Fine,’ I said.
‘And two glasses of your finest red wine,’ he added.
‘Very well.’
Once the waitress was out of earshot, I turned to face him and almost wished I didn’t.
He looked even better than he did in that photo Juliette had showed me last month. His olive skin glowed like he’d just got back from sunning himself on a tropical island. Gabriel’s short dark hair seemed freshly cut, that stubble gracing his face was exquisite, his full lips were divine and don’t even get me started on those forearms.
The sleeves of his crisp white shirt were rolled up to his elbows again and frankly they looked so freaking sexy, they should come with a health warning:Danger! Staring at these muscular forearms for more than two seconds may cause fanny flutters, extreme dampness in the knicker area, heart palpations, salivation and result in making very bad decisions.
‘I didn’t need you to order for me!’ I said, desperately trying to distract myself from his annoying hotness.
Spoiler alert: it wasn’t working.
‘I could see that you were having trouble deciding and seeing as you are in such a rush to leave, I thought I would save you some time.’ The corner of his mouth twitched.
We sat in silence for several beats. I started fiddling with the serviette. It was thick and luxurious. Must’ve cost a fortune. Like everything else in this place.
Although I wasn’t looking at Gabriel, I could feel his eyes boring into me. I shuffled in my seat.
Eventually I looked up.
‘You’re staring,’ I said.
‘Not staring.Admiring,’ Gabriel said.
‘So is that what you’ve been doing for the last seven years? Studying at charm school?’ I teased, before remembering that joking or any form of enjoyment wasnotallowed with this man.
Gabriel laughed and I tried not to let the deep rumble affect me.
‘Why? Is it working?’
‘No,’ I said firmly. ‘Even if you went there for ten years, it wouldn’t work because?—’
‘I am your friend’s son,’ he finished my sentence and rolled his eyes. ‘If I wanted to speak about my mother I would have just called her. As much as you do not want to accept it, we are on a date, so please can we try and enjoy our evening?’
