Johanna locked the phone immediately. “None of your business.”
Her sister was exhausting.
Johanna grabbed a lemon cupcake from the tray near the register before retreating toward her usual table beside the front window. February sunlight spilled through the glass, warming the small café space while customers drifted in and out carrying pastry boxes and oversized coffee cups.
Only after she sat down did she unlock the next message.
BLAZE: Your auction package starts in three hours.
Her stomach flipped immediately.
Lord.
A private helicopter ride. Dinner in Baltimore. She had almost forgotten about the actual auction package. Mostly because Blaze himself had become significantly more distracting than the prize attached to him.
JOHANNA: Seriously?
The response came almost instantly.
BLAZE: Very.
Then another message appeared before she could answer.
BLAZE: Wear something that makes me suffer a little.
Johanna stared at the screen.
Then smiled before she could stop herself.
Risky.
Very risky.
By the time Blaze pulled up outside her apartment later that evening, Johanna’s nerves were officially out of control.
Not entirely because of the helicopter. Okay, partiallybecause of the helicopter. But mostly because Blaze had spent the last several days looking at her like he was already halfway in love with her all over again.
And the truly terrifying part… she was starting to look back the same way.
Johanna stepped outside carefully, the February wind immediately catching loose curls around her shoulders. Tonight, she wore a curve-hugging emerald sweater dress paired with chocolate knee-high boots and a long camel coat that moved softly around her legs as she walked.
Blaze got out of the truck the second he saw her. Then stopped moving altogether. The reaction sent pleasure through her chest.
Good.
Let him suffer a little.
His eyes admired her with absolutely no attempt to hide that he liked what he saw.
“Damn, woman,” he muttered under his breath.
Johanna fought a smile. “You seem stressed.”
“Baby, I was perfectly calm thirty seconds ago.”
The sincerity in his voice made her laugh. “You said you wanted to suffer.”
“Well,” Blaze said while crossing the sidewalk toward her, “you definitely succeeded.”
