Chapter Four #2
Jaynie used to roll her eyes and joke that her brother didn’t know how to stay still unless he was asleep.
If he wasn’t playing sports, he was down at the beach catching waves or learning a new skill like scuba diving or practicing 180s on his skateboard.
Once, Jaynie had admitted she envied how fully Danny embraced life because her illness had never allowed her to do the same.
Isabella shook off the memory as she and Danny stepped out into August heat that enveloped them like a damp blanket.
Canopies of green leaves from ginkgo and lacebark elms shaded the sidewalks and filtered the Carolina sun.
Modern multistory buildings of tinted glass and stone in shades of cream, dappled gray, and sunset rose lined the streets as the steady hum of passing cars and delivery vans filled the air.
When Danny opened the door to Le Delice Patisserie, cool air rushed out to greet them.
Isabella breathed a sigh of relief. Inside, crystal chandeliers and aerial sculptures hung beneath the two-story industrial ceiling, and reproductions of famous French paintings in gilded frames decorated the walls.
They threaded their way past an eclectic mix of tables and chairs of various shapes and colors to the long glass case that held an enticing and colorful mix of pastries and baked goods. Warm butter and sugar scented the air, along with the rich, aromatic smell of freshly ground espresso.
After ordering at the counter, they waited for the barista to prepare their coffee, then settled at a table next to the glass wall overlooking the outdoor seating area.
The hour was late enough that most of the uptown office workers who crowded the bakery in the morning were gone, and the lunch crowd had yet to arrive.
She picked at her croissant, her stomach too full of butterflies to accept food, and let the soft croon of the woman singing in French in the background soothe her.
“I’m sorry.” Danny’s voice was low and full of the past.
“We don’t need to get into this. It was a long time ago.” Even though it felt like yesterday, now that he was here in front of her. “It was no big deal.”
His hand slid across the table. Captured hers. The feel of his warm skin made the butterflies swarm. “Bella. Look at me.”
Why, when it was safer to stare at her uneaten pastry?
His fingers tightened.
She sucked in her lips and lifted her gaze.
His expression was warm. Steady. “It was a big deal.”
“You can stop feeling guilty you slept with your sister’s friend.”
Whoops. She’d been going for nonchalance. The stiffness in her tone said otherwise.
Danny’s lips firmed. He paused, seeming to gather his thoughts.
Her pulse ricocheted in her ears. Waiting.
For what? A declaration that he’d thought about her all these years, like she had of him? Or would he pour salt in a wound that, for her, had never completely healed?
She’d given him her virginity in a shared moment of grief and passion.
“I feel guilty because you were seventeen and grieving my sister’s loss as much as I was, and I took advantage of you.”
The butterflies turned to stone.
There it was. Exactly what she didn’t want to hear. What had meant everything to her had been a source of shame for him.
“No, you didn’t.” She picked up her phone, staring at the screen to avoid the pity that was sure to be in his eyes.
Forty minutes.
So much for being able to make it an hour. “I have to go.” The chair scraped the polished concrete floor as she scrambled to her feet and gathered her belongings.
Danny stood with her. “You haven’t eaten your pastry.”
“I’m not hungry. You can have it—you paid for it.”
“Bella.” The way he said her name was like a velvet caress. “Are you going to be able to work with me?”
His question stayed her feet.
Could she?
If she asked her father to find a different head of security, he’d want to know why, and that was not a question she was prepared to answer.
She lifted her chin. “Of course.”
Their past was just that. History. Old news. One more event from her childhood that didn’t need to be spoken of again.
He held her stare long enough to make her fidget, then nodded. “Good. Can I drive you somewhere? My car’s at The Waverly.”
“Mine, too.”
“I’ll walk you to it, then.”
They headed back to the parking garage. A dark gray Honda sat two spaces down. Isabella pointed to it. “That’s mine.”
Danny opened the driver’s door and stepped back so she could slide in. He crouched to her eye level. “Have dinner with me tonight. There’s an Ethiopian restaurant I’m dying to try on the east side that has great reviews.”
Her head was shaking before he finished. “I don’t think—”
“Please? You wouldn’t leave a guy all alone in a strange city, would you?” His tone gentled. “We’re going to be working together. It will be easier if we can establish a level of comfort with each other.”
He had a point, although comfort might be stretching things. “Ethiopian?” Her nose wrinkled. “I don’t know…”
Amusement creased the corners of his eyes. “Have you ever even tried Ethiopian cuisine, Bella?”
“No,” she admitted. Then, “No one calls me Bella.” The words rushed out. Her face heated. “Except you.”
His expression sobered. “Do you want me to stop?”
She fixed her gaze on the steering wheel.
Did she?
It was the one thing she shared with him and no one else.
“No.”
“Good. I like having something that’s only between you and me. Pick you up at six-thirty.” He closed her car door, leaving her speechless and staring after him as he sauntered over to a shiny, royal blue Mustang.
Isabella rolled down her window. “I didn’t say yes to dinner. And you don’t even know where I live.”
He turned and gave her that sexy grin that used to make her blush whenever he aimed it her way. “Yes, I do. I’m staying at a hotel nearby.”
Her body went cold. Her address wasn’t public knowledge.
On purpose.
“How? How do you know?”
Danny’s grin disappeared. “Your father gave me your address.” He was watching her carefully, as if she were a crazy person he needed to manage.
It’s Danny.
Even with everything that went wrong between them, she could trust him.
Couldn’t she?
She gave him a tight-lipped smile. “I’ll be ready at six-thirty.”