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“Well, that’s certainly been my experience,” she said. “Having been disastrously poor, and now to have more money than I could spend in a dozen lifetimes, I do notice a certain lack of barriers for me now.”
“Such as ordering the most expensive champagne on the menu without batting an eyelid,” he pointed out.
“Such as ordering whatever the hell I want, regardless of price.”
“And is that always the best?”
Her smile was magnetic. Full, pink lips, curved just enough to dig a deep dimple into one of her cheeks. “I suppose that term is relative.”
“Meaning?”
She put her elbows on the table, resting her chin on them, eyes unwavering. “Meaning I know where you can get the best pizza slice in Manhattan, the most authentic hot dog and the saltiest, doughiest pretzel. My favourite things to do are to walk on the High Line in fall and look at the different coloured trees and plants, or to sit in my living room and stare out at the city at night, the sparkling lights that filled my dreams as a kid, even when I’d only ever seen them on TV or in movies.”
To hear her talk like this was more than captivating; it was enthralling. He lifted his champagne to hers, partly hoping it would break the spell. But she clinked her glass towards him without changing gears.
“And the bottega near me sells a bottle of wine from the north of Italy that costs all of fifteen dollars. I’m not a snob, Hamish, and I’m afraid to say I really don’t belong in your world.”
“Don’t you?” he asked, pointedly glancing at the champagne.
“This is just a veneer I’ve perfected—it’s part of my work persona. But this isn’t really who I am.”
“Good. I’ve dated women who have more money than Croesus and seem to think it lends them a distinction above anyone else. I’m not interested in that either.”
She rolled her eyes, a gesture of hers he found delightful and addictive in equal measure, because it was so incongruous with the self-professed veneer she’d turned into an artform. “Your family will never accept me, is my point.”
“I don’t particularly need them to accept you.”
“Isn’t that sort of the point?”
“No, the baby is the point. That alone will soothe my mother, no matter what she has ahead.” Emotions throbbed inside of him. He ignored them.
“They’ll hate me.”
“That’s their favourite sport. You’ll be giving them a gift.”
She laughed. “Great. Can’t wait to meet them.”
“Is that a ‘yes’?”
“Easy, soldier. I’ve got about fifty more questions up my sleeve.”
He arched a brow, trying not to think about the way her jacket had slipped down her shoulder when she walked into the restaurant to reveal a perfectly tanned shoulder and a sleeveless dress.
“Then it’s just as well we have all night. Go on.”
She sipped her champagne thoughtfully. “You said you almost got married once. What happened?”
He opened his mouth to answer but found the whole truth too hard to share. At least, until she’d accepted. There was no sense dragging it all up, having her pity him, when she might still walk away. Of course, if she googled him, she’d see the answers for herself, but that was different to him being forced to describe the betrayal of his two most beloved, at the time, people.
“She left me for someone else,” he said, splitting the difference. “She cheated on me for about a month before I found out.”
“Ouch,” Tia winced. “That’s pretty callous.”
“I can put up with a lot, but dishonesty is not on the list.”
“You must have been furious.”
“Yes.”
