That stopped him in his tracks. “Baking?”
She stomped her foot in exasperation and desperation to put some space between them. “Yes, you oaf! Can’t you smell the cookies?”
Alec stopped and sniffed the air. He could actually smell something baking now that he stopped for a moment. He’d missed it initially, having thoughts only of getting Helen alone and naked. The smells he now could decipher made his mouth water but also calmed his temper slightly. “Fine. I’ll accept that. But you’re getting a peep hole installed. You shouldn’t ever open the door unless you know exactly who is on the other side.”
Helen’s arms crossed over her chest. “That would be lovely, Alec. Believe me, if I’d known you were on the other side, I definitely wouldn’t have opened the door.”
Alec almost smiled at her impertinence. Didn’t she realize who she was talking to? He could buy this ridiculous excuse for a building, tear down the door and force her out of here. Then he could very happily have her ensconced in one of his apartments he kept around the world. The idea appealed intensely right at the moment but he had other priorities that wouldn’t leave his mind.
“Next question,” he started off.
“I don’t remember a first question,” she retorted.
“Where did you get this bottle of wine?” he demanded, holding up the bottle of pinot grigio.
“At a store,” she replied, lifting her head slightly. Her lip wobbled slightly and she was terrified that she would lose control. She was barely hanging onto what was left of it now and she needed him to leave as quickly as possible. “Look, if you don’t like it, you just have to say so. It’s one of my favorites but I can’t afford it very often. I’m sorry if I picked something you don’t like but you don’t have to be so ungracious about it.”
“Which store?” he asked, ignoring her second part of the statement. “How can you afford this wine?”
She sighed in exasperation. “Alec, I’m not so poor that I can’t afford a hundred Euros of wine for a friend in gratitude.”
He leaned into her, his hand wrapping around her waist and pulling her forward, flush against his body. “First of all, I’m not your friend. I’m going to be your lover which is significantly different,” he growled out. “And secondly,” he said before she could protest his first statement, “this bottle of wine happens to be over a thousand Euros. And from what I can see, you definitely can’t afford that kind of money, even if it is for your future lover.”
Helen’s mind had started whirling at his initial contact but the second part of his statement also blew her away. “It isn’t a thousand Euros! That wine is very good but it only cost a hundred Euros. That’s why I like it so much. You can’t get that kind of quality for so little now.”
Alec pulled her closer. “Helen, please don’t try and tell me how much this wine is. I can guarantee that it is well over one thousand Euros.”
Her hands reached up to push against his chest in a futile attempt to get some space between their bodies but in the end, her hands were holding him instead of pushing him away. “Just because you pay too much for something doesn’t mean the rest of us can’t find a bargain.”
He reigned in his temper with difficulty. “Helen,” he gritted out, “I know exactly how much this wine sells for.”
That got her anger back up and she wrenched out of his arms, taking several deep breaths before turning back to face him. “Everywhere?” she challenged. “Alec, you can’t know what every vendor sells a bottle of wine for. I’m not as business savvy as you are but isn’t there something called discounts?”
“Not that big of one. Honest business people don’t sell a product at a ninety percent loss.”
“Maybe my source just has cheaper sources.”
“Maybe your source is stealing the product.”
She stared at him for a long moment, wondering what he meant. When his comment broke through her dumbfounded mind, she inhaled sharply. Helen shook her head adamantly. “No way. I know the guy personally and he’s very nice. He doesn’t steal anything. He has four kids and a wife to support. He wouldn’t put them at risk.”
Alec was stunned at her naiveté. “Helen, just give me his name and I’ll investigate.”
She considered his request for a long moment but then thought better of it. “No, Alec. You don’t know everything and you’ll just make Arnold have to get an expensive lawyer to defend himself against your accusations. I won’t let that happen to him. If you don’t have enough to do with your own companies, then find some other person to bother. I won’t help you there.”
He leaned over her in his anger. “This is one of my businesses,” he enunciated slowly.
Helen’s mouth dropped open. “Impossible!”
“Possible,” he countered. “Not only do I own this particular vineyard, I also own the distribution company that has exclusive rights to several vineyards. So yes, I know exactly what I’m talking about when I say that this particular bottle of wine is well over one thousand Euros.”
Helen was stumped. She wasn’t sure how to answer him anymore. His assertion completely knocked the window out of her argument and she backed down slightly and said, “Oh, well. I…um…yes, perhaps you do know how much the bottle is.”
“And the name of the person who sold it to you?” he demanded, still looming over her.
Helen’s eyes shot back up to his, worried now. “No, Alec. I wasn’t kidding about Arnold’s family. If he’s selling me wine at a deep discount, then you’ll just come in and mess up his whole business. That wouldn’t be fair to Arnold or his wife. I won’t do that to a friend.”
Alec held back but it was getting more and more difficult. “Helen, have you ever seen the man’s family?” he demanded.
She looked at him warily, wondering what he was trying to get at. “Well, no. But…”
“So you’ve only heard stories about his wife and four children?”
“Yes….but…”
“And isn’t it possible that maybe one person of your acquaintance might have lied, ever so slightly just to gain your trust?” he demanded relentlessly.