She looked back up at Duke, ready to say something like “never mind” or “forget about it,” but a new word came to her instead. “Scary. Kind of.”
A furrow dashed Duke’s grin in a blink. “Yes,” he said with a nod. “I guess it would be.”
She could see his wheels turning, orchestrating words that might put her at ease, and for whatever reason, Viv wanted to do the same for him.
“I’ve just never had dinner with a tour guide before,” she added.
Duke gave her a half-smile that didn’t come close to crinkling those eyes. “Nice try,” he said. “You don’t have to be scared, Vivi.”
Viv wasn’t sure which part of her liked hearing him use that nickname most—her ears, her mind, or her heart. The mere sound of it sent a thrill through her entire body. She set her gaze back on the window and bit her lip.
“I’d never do anything to hurt you,” he continued. “I hope you know that.”
The pink flower caught her eye once more. Only now, she noticed a slight tear along the length on one side. Viv gave him the slightest nod, still working to dissect what he’d said. She believed that he wouldn’t hurt her intentionally. He was too kind for that. But in relationships, people got hurt all the time without ill intent by the other party.
Duke might be excited for a second chance with the one who got away, but they were hardly in a real-life scenario. She wasn’t busy playing her role as single mom, and he wasn’t trying to juggle a hundred business deals at once. They were on a private island, for crying out loud.
The realization was the beginning of a new barrier threatening to build. She and Duke might be able to hit it off during their excursion in Costa Rica, but when they got back to LA, would the relationship last, or would it be like the island’s seasonal storm—wild and exciting, but destined to fizzle out?
After all, she mused, eyes set on the hibiscus in her view, even short-lived storms could do a whole lot of damage.
Chapter 12
Duke looked through the window as he tried to form words for a dilemma he faced. The view beyond the glass said the storm had moved on, leaving them with sunlight and blue skies once more.
He was glad, but Duke was even more glad that the storm had come through when it did. How it did. All of it had led him to an opportune moment that landed his lips on hers.
Heat roared low in his belly at the recollection. While the haphazard moment had been one for the books, Duke was ready to take charge and orchestrate a few moments of his own. And he wanted things to be just right.
“I guess what I’m saying…” Duke looked from Sebastian to his wife, Irene, then back to Sebastian once more. “…is that I don’t want it to betoomuch.”
The couple turned to one another and did a bit of shrugging. “What do you mean by too much?” Irene asked.
Duke paced along the length of the kitchen as he considered. “I mean, Vivi isn’t really impressed by fancy…stuff.” He spun on one heel, turned to look over the dining table, and felt that tight pinch in his chest. The same one he’d felt upon first seeing it.
The table—which seated up to a dozen—was in its six-person position with his plate at one end and hers on the other. The china had been Betzy’s contribution upon staying at his place last fall; the siblings usually left behind a token of appreciation.
As nice as it was, it didn’t represent Duke in even one sense. Each dinner plate, salad plate, and soup bowl was crusted with diamonds that sparkled with every move. A set of tall, matching candlesticks stood boldly at the center while fancy napkins, folded to fanned-out perfection, rested on each plate.
“We knowyoudon’t like fancy,” Sebastian said, “but for thelady?”He lifted an insinuative brow.
“Si,” Irene added with a nod of her own. The woman’s eyes lit up. “Everywoman likes to feel special. This would make me feel very special to eat on these.” She waved a hand over the setting.
Sebastian studied Irene as she spoke, a wide, appreciative grin on his face. Duke always did love the way he adored his wife. He admired that about him.
“What we’re saying is—you want it different?” Sebastian asked. “We’ll do it different. Of course. No problem. But are yousureyou don’t want to keep it this way for your special dinner?”
“You’ve never entertained a woman here before,” Irene added. “We just want to make her feel like a queen.”
Duke tipped his head to one side as he glanced over the table setting once more. No. There was no way he wanted that.
“I want her to feel that way too,” he assured. “But I don’t want her to think I’m showing off, you know? Trying to impress her with expensive things.”
Irene darted a glance at Sebastian, a flicker of understanding in her eyes. “Ah,” she said while lifting a finger. “I see what you mean.”
Sebastian’s brow furrowed. “Show us how you’d like it, and we’ll fix it.”
Duke’s shoulders softened. He’d grown close to the couple over the years, considered them to be good friends as well as employees. But this was his second shot with Vivi Tripoli. It had to be perfect.
