Chapter 2
LEAH
“Ihave coffee.” I hold my cup up, the one that’s still mostly full because I forgot about it in all the excitement.
“That one’s all watered down now,” he says, and holds out his hand, and for a moment, I just stare.
I know the guy isn't just offering to throw the cup away for me; I’m agreeing to so much more. I don't know how I know, but I do. Do I accept? Should I give my coffee to this guy and let him throw it away for me, knowing that means he’ll take me for coffee after buying me a pair of jeans?
I know nothing about this man, save for the way he makes my body react.
That shouldn't be a good enough reason. It should be the reason for the exact opposite response.
I should say thank you and run, never looking back.
Yes, this man is handsome—sexy as hell—but something about him sends shivers down my spine.
How many articles have I read that have warned me and other women always to trust our gut feeling, our intuition, and what it’s trying to tell us?
Still, I find myself handing him the cup, which he takes and throws into the nearest garbage can.
“Do you normally think about things so thoroughly?” he asks smoothly, nodding his chin down the street.
My cheeks heat, and I scrub at them as though that will somehow get rid of the blush of embarrassment. “Just being cautious.”
“Good,” he says, stopping to let his Cane Corso sniff at a stoop decorated by flowerpots before we continue. “It always pays to be cautious, as long as you don’t let it hold you back from experiencing good things.”
“Mmm,” I agree lightly.
“I’m Viktor, by the way.” He says it in a casual tone, and I realize we haven’t even exchanged names.
“I’m Leah.”
Viktor stops and takes my hand, and I freeze. “Leah, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
My entire body is shorting out from his touch, from the feeling of his large warm hand around mine. My stomach tightens and my toes curl, and I barely manage to mumble, “Nice to meet you, too.”
And then the touch is gone, and my hand feels cold despite the day’s warmth. I almost reach for him again out of instinct but manage to control myself as Benji pulls to catch up to his enemy-turned-friend.
It's just coffee, I tell myself. Calm the hell down, Leah.
Coffee with a hot older man. Coffee with a hot older man who will fuel my fantasies since there’s no one else in my life right now to do that. And as a single mother, that's not going to change anytime soon.
The café is more normal than I thought it would be, a very Brooklyn coffeehouse with eclectic art on the walls, plants, a lot of light, and mint-green subway tile on the wall behind the counter.
The smell of freshly roasted coffee and shots of perfectly pulled espresso fill the air, along with the hum of chatter from hipsters in plaid and moms with their kids in expensive strollers.
I order a cappuccino and a croissant au chocolat from the famous Brooklyn bakery a few blocks over, and he orders a triple shot of espresso and nothing else.
We sit down at a table in a small shaded back patio with the dogs on either side of us, their tongues lolling. I slip Benji a non-chocolate-laced piece of croissant, and after glancing at Viktor, I do the same for his dog.
Despite his behavior this morning, Benjamin is being a perfect angel now. I don't know if he just feels bad for the trouble he caused, or if it has something to do with the man sitting across the table from me.
I scoop the foam from my cappuccino with a small spoon as I try very hard not to stare at Viktor.
But it’s almost impossible. He also looks vaguely familiar.
I’m the front-facing one in the office, and I interact with all the clients before sending them back to speak with their lawyers.
Maybe Viktor and I talked briefly when he stopped in to see one of the partners at the firm.
So,” he starts, breaking me out of my thoughts.
He takes a small sip from his small espresso cup, which looks even smaller in his giant hands; hands I want to feel again, the touch of which I can still feel buzzing over my skin.
“I want to apologize again for this morning. I should have been more careful.” Those blue eyes meet mine, pull me in, and I can’t look away. “But in all honesty, I was looking at you and not paying attention to the dogs.”
That catches me off guard. “Me?”
I hadn't thought about how I looked as I darted out the door this morning, dropping Eliza off with her friends before darting to Suzie’s to walk Benji. The only makeup I have on is yesterday’s mascara, which I’d been too tired to take off.
Viktor must see the thoughts flashing through my head—I don’t exactly have a poker face—because I see amusement in his eyes as his full lips tip up into a small enigmatic smile that makes me swallow hard, like I’m in some cartoon.
“I've seen the dog before, but I haven't seen you around,” he says instead of answering my question, because it’s obvious he was admitting he had been looking at me.
“Oh, Benji is my best friend's dog. She's out of town for a couple of days, and I promised I'd walk him for her this morning because the dog sitter won't be here until later. Benji’s pretty young, and he always makes a mess if he misses his morning walk.”
“He needs his exercise,” Viktor agrees. “Well, it's fortuitous that we ran into each other.”
“I'm not sure I'd call it fortuitous,” I say, waving at the new pair of jeans. “Or running into each other.”
“Perhaps you wouldn't, but I would,” Viktor says, and there’s that smile again. I just don't know what to make of it.
“Well, anyway, thank you for the jeans. The other ones were old and worn, or I don't think Benji would have been able to rip them like that. Then again, he's almost two hundred pounds, so who knows?” I know I’m babbling, but this guy has me twisted into knots.
“I can believe it,” Viktor says. “They're gentle giants, but they're still giants that don't know their strength. I'm sure if he knew the issues he's caused, he would feel terrible.”
“Oh, sure,” I agree, though I'm not entirely convinced. Benji is sweet, as are most Great Danes, but he also has a mischievous side, and I'm sure part of him is laughing, just like Suzie will when she hears the story.
“Your dog is a Cane Corso, isn't it?” I ask.
“Yes, Athos is a Cane Corso—one of the best lines on the East Coast. But it’s not a well-known breed. How did you know?” Viktor asks.
I shrug. “I like dogs, especially big dogs. And Cane Corsos are eye-catching—those big, bronze eyes are incredible.”
“Yes, they are. And so are yours,” he remarks, and my heart beats a little faster.
“You said his name is Athos. Do you have a Porthos and an Aramis as well?” I ask after clearing my throat, changing the subject again.
Viktor laughs, and it's a sound I feel in my toes before it rockets straight back up between my thighs, a low rumble I’m suddenly desperate to hear again.
“Not yet,” he says. “He's a good boy, but Athos doesn't play well with others.”
“No, 'all for one and one for all’ for him?” I ask cheekily, and I'm rewarded with another of those incredible laughs.
“I am obscenely curious about the origin of Benji’s full name. Benjamin Maximus Jellybean James is a name I haven’t heard before.”
I flush. “You heard that one, too?”
He nodded, smiling. He’d been out there watching me for a long longer than I thought.
“It was a team effort, I guess,” I chuckle nervously. “I know it’s ridiculous, but it kind of fits him, though I suppose it’s not as charming as a literary name.”
Viktor shrugs. “The Three Musketeers is one of my favorite books.”
“You like to read?” I hazard a guess.
“When I have time,” he replies, “which isn't often.”
“So you're one of those guys with bespoke suits who actually works for a living instead of living off a trust fund?”
This time, there is no laughter, but there is a gleam in the older man’s eyes that I have no idea how to interpret.
“I suppose you could call me a workaholic. I prefer a personal, hands-on approach to my work.”
The words form on my lips: “What kind of work do you do?” But they die there, too.
I think about the look in his eyes and the warning bells still going off somewhere in the back of my mind, and I decide against asking.
It’s not essential knowledge, anyway. I’ll probably never see this guy again after today. Who cares what he does?
“Oh, crap!” I’ve enjoyed myself so much, I completely lost track of time, and the numbers on my phone surprise me.
One of Viktor’s eyebrows rises. “Is something wrong?”
“I’m sorry to run, but I have a lot of work to catch up on.”
“Oh, of course,” Viktor says smoothly, standing as I do and gallantly gesturing for me to precede him out.
As I lead Benji out, I have the strangest feeling that I didn't want to leave; I don’t want our time together to end. The guy is magnetic, and I’m sure he's used to getting whatever woman he wants. He’s too smooth and too polished, and I should be wary.
But as unsettling as it is to have those blue eyes focused entirely on me, it also felt nice in a way I haven’t felt in a very long time.
We chat during the short walk back to Suzie’s, and I make Benji sit and stay before I turn to Viktor—I’m not going to make the same mistake twice.
“Thank you for the coffee, and everything else,” I add hastily.
“It was nice to meet you, Leah,” he says.
I glance at Benji and laugh quietly. “Even considering the circumstances?”
“Including the circumstances.” Something is sparking in Viktor’s eyes when he says the words that makes me swallow. Hard. Something predatory, smoldering, and dangerous.
So why does it send a flush of heat through me I haven’t felt in years?
“It was nice to meet you, too, Viktor.”
I almost ask for his number, almost ask to see him again, but instead, I turn and flee up the steps to Suzie’s front door, dragging Benji with me.
I give him water and see him settled, which gives me time to get my heart rate and my hormones under control. Then I give him a goodbye kiss and tell him he won’t be alone long because the dog sitter is on her way.
It’s time to get over this odd little daydream of a day and get back to real life.
I lock the door and hurry down the stoop.
.. only to nearly run smack into Viktor still waiting at the bottom.
I barely manage to stop myself from crashing into him on the last step, and his hand darts out to steady me—big, strong, warm.
“I want to see you tonight,” he says, and it’s not a question.
“My daughter is home tonight.”
“Then I'll pay whatever extra is needed for a babysitter.”
“No, that's not necessary. I'll ask our neighbor. I'm sure she’ll be up for it.”
I know Eliza and Jade will be up for a marathon movie night with popcorn and a bunch of junk food.
“Good.”
“Where do I meet you?”
Viktor leans closer, and my pulse quickens. I can see all the colors in his eyes, the dark blue to the gray to the black, his cologne thick in my nose, his presence taking up all of my senses.
“I will send a car for you.” His tone brooks no argument, but I should say no. I shouldn’t be getting into a strange man’s car. On a first date. No. Not at all. Sounds like a recipe for disaster.
Yet I can't say no.
I want to spend time with this man so badly it's difficult to comprehend. I'm not even sure how I'll be able to get any work done with the thought of dinner and this blue-eyed god on my mind.
“The car will pick you up at 7:15 for an 8 o'clock reservation. Wear something nice.”
“Okay,” I squeak and hate how it sounds.
I rattle off my address and move on with my day.