I suck in a breath and nod. “I did want to see you.”
“Why?” he demands.
“I liked your articles.”
A smirk spread across his face. “What do you like about them?” His voice lowers an octave.
"Everything," I say below a whisper. It's a lie. I hate his articles. They're juvenile and not my kind of thing. My heart is racing and my mind not thinking clearly.
The heat between us is evident, and l silently beg him to kiss me. My head is spinning, my nerves on end.
“I—” try to sound confident, but words failed me.
"Goodnight, Snowflake. When you're ready to talk, you know where to find me." His gaze holds mine as he brings his face closer. So close that if I move an inch, we'll be kissing. But he backs away in the last second. He saunters away, leaving me out of breath and unable to understand what the fuck just happened. I’m not the kind of woman who falls so quickly.
I wakeup the next morning wanting nothing more than to order pizza. Yeah, I am losing it. My last few relationships ended in disaster. Before Will, there was Lucas, another corporate sheep, and I was, well, me. I couldn't care less to play by anyone's rules. His parents didn't approve of our relationship, being the upper-class snobs they were, and instead of telling them where to get off, he decided he would try to change me. He offered to expand my brand, got in marketers and PR people, and then tried to sell me to a major franchise.
At first, I was swept up in Lucas. He knew all there was to know, had a brilliant business mind, and was good-looking to boot. But then, it started to feel unreal. I felt like he wanted to better everything I'd worked so hard to achieve. He tried to better my staff and my methods of doing things, and in the end, I wondered how much did he want to better me?
He begged me to reconsider us, told me he didn't care whether his family looked down on me, and I fell for it. At our engagement party, he told people I was a consultant for a major beauty brand. He didn't realize I'd heard him say that. I dropped the oversized engagement ring in his champagne and left. That was three years ago, and I was anti-relationship until Will, who swept me off my feet.
But Will was a control freak, and I could not handle that.
So why is it that Kace leaves me flustered? I should be running for the hills.
It’s not just his looks, and he is absolutely gorgeous. It’s more. It’s the way he looks at me, with such intensity, as if he’s trying to figure me out. It’s the fact that I don’t get why someone as talented as he is with words, to land a column in one of the city’s largest newspapers, is delivering pizza and working in cafes.
Maybe it’s those eyes that remind me that there are stories I want to know more about, and his was at the top of my list. He is different.
Mac and I are meeting at our usual Starbucks for coffee and cake. She's late, as usual, and I am tucking into my buttered scone already. My sister is always late. She'll be the one late to her own funeral. The bell above the door rings, and I continue to focus my attention on the newspaper before me. The spring colours are coming in, and I could not wait to stock up on nail polish and makeup to compliment that.
“Fancy meeting you here.” I look up to find Kace staring down at me.
I cannot stop the grin spreading across my face. “Kace. Hi.”
“Hello, Kenzie.” Even the way he says my name is sexy.
"Would you like to sit down?" I motion to the chair across from me.
“Can’t. I’ve got a deadline.” My heart and shoulders sink. Could he not see that I’m interested in him?
“But I can offer to take you out tonight.” I could tell he was as confused as I was about the offer. “Or we could have that pizza you like so much.”
I scrunch my nose. “I think I’ve had enough pizza to last me a lifetime.” He laughs. It’s a melodic sound and makes me want to laugh along.
"Okay, so dinner it is. I'll pick you up at . . . say, seven?”
“That’ll be perfect.” My insides clench. Was I actually going to go out with someone else this soon?
"I should get going." He smirks, and I flush. He has a gorgeous smile.
"Who the hell was that?" Mac whisper-shouts and makes me want to hide my face.
“It’s Kace, or Mr. N, as you know him.”
“And since when do you two know each other?” Her eyes are wide as he casts glances this way.
“Would you stop staring?” I swat her hand playfully. “He’s going to think we’re talking about him.”
