“And you’ll pay me what I asked?” she pressed.
Storm gave a laugh. “Honey, your services are worth far more to me than that measly sum. You’d be closer to the mark if you aim for ten times your pay.”
Dani’s heart hopped in shocked pleasure. Could this really be happening? Then she narrowed her gaze. “You’re not pulling my leg, are you?”
He looked amused. “Now why would I do something like that? What? You think I can’t afford it?”
Dani remained silent. He had a point. That kind of money was nothing to a man like him.
“I want you to be comfortable when we go out,” he was saying. “You’ll want to dress nicely. You’ll need money to do that.”
It was then that she realized he wasn’t being overly generous just for the heck of it. He’d clearly calculated her needs and that was how he had come up with his figure.
“I’ll take it,” she blurted out before she could change her mind. “When do I start?”
“I’d like to announce you to my family in the next few weeks,” he said, “so our first order of business is to advise Tony that you won’t be coming back and your second,” he reached over and took her hand in his, “is to get to know me better.”
Dani almost snatched her hand back, she was so surprised. She wasn’t on the job yet so why was he holding her?
He must have seen her discomfort because he let her slide her hand from his. “You have to start pretending to like me, Dani. And that means touching sometimes.”
She could feel the heat rising in her face. Shoot. She hardly ever blushed so why now? All he’d mentioned was touching and she was turning red. What if he’d mentioned sex? She would have probably looked like a lobster.
Not that she intended to hop into bed with him. Delicious as he looked a girl had to draw the line somewhere.
“We’ll spend the next few days in each other’s company. I’ll show you some of the things I like to do and you can bring me up to speed on your interests. We can’t be total strangers when we go to meet my family.”
“Okay,” she said slowly, “that makes sense.”
“And I’ll only monopolize your evenings. I know you’ll be busy at the preschool until, what, four o’clock?”
“I get off at three,” she said, “but you can pick me up at four. I only live five minutes drive from the school.”
“That’s convenient. Can you be ready by five tomorrow? I’ll be free by then and can pick you up.”
“Five o’clock is fine,” she said with a shrug.
“Wear jeans and a comfortable top. We’re not going anywhere fancy.”
“Where are we going?” she asked.
He shook his head. “It’s a surprise.”
Next evening Storm showed up at her apartment right on time. The buzzer sounded at exactly five o’clock.
“I’ll be right down,” she yelled into the intercom. She was wearing jeans and a white shirt and she grabbed a light jacket on the way out the door. As she exited the elevator and entered the lobby of the apartment building she saw Storm. He had his back to her, his cell phone to his ear. Unobserved, she took the opportunity to admire his strong masculine frame, the breadth of his shoulders in his black leather jacket and the tightness of his butt in faded jeans. Talk about delicious. She would never say this to him but he looked good.
At that moment he turned and when he saw her his lips curled into a crooked smile. He said something into his phone, effectively ending the call, then turned his full attention on her.
“Very nice,” he said, his look approving. “This beats you in a chauffeur's uniform any day.”
“And…you look good, too.” She might as well practice complimenting him. Most likely she’d have to do a lot of that in her future role as fiancée. And it wasn’t like she’d be lying. He’d looked handsome each time she’d seen him in formal wear but now in jeans and leather jacket with just a hint of shadow on his chin he looked so much younger and a whole lot sexier.
He seemed to like the compliment because he threw her a boyish grin then gave her his arm. “Let’s hit the road.”
Dani got the surprise of her life when they walked out into the parking lot and headed toward a big black motorcycle. When they stopped in front of it she looked up at Storm in uncertainty. “Are we going riding on this?”
“Yes, we are. This is my baby,” he said, his voice full of pride. “We’ve been together for three years now and she’s never let me down.”
“Well you just continue to have good times with your baby. Alone. I’m not going on that thing.” Dani folded her arms across her chest.
“Oh, come on, don’t tell me you’re a scaredy-cat,” Storm teased. “You’ve been such a tough cookie since I met you. Don’t tell me you’re turning chicken now.”
“I’m not chicken,” she retorted. “But I’m not stupid, either. Motorcycles are dangerous.”
“What if I promise to go real slow and only on the local road, no highways?”
“Still dangerous,” she insisted.
He stepped closer to her, so close she could smell the earthy fragrance of his cologne. Her eyes wandered up his torso and the expanse of his chest, over the square jaw with its barely-there stubble and up to his eyes that twinkled with undisguised amusement.
“Would you come if I told you I have two helmets?”
Slowly, she shook her head. “Not even then,” she said but this time she was smiling. She’d meant to stand her ground with him but who could resist that crooked smile and the surprising dimple in his left cheek? And the fact that he’d let his hair grow a little longer until it curled at the collar of his jacket did not make things any easier.
She had to admit, the man was gorgeous. Second admission - she wanted to spend the evening with him and if the only way she could do that was on the back of a motorcycle then maybe she’d take the chance. As long as he promised to go really slowly.
“Come on,” he wheedled. “You know you want to try it.”
She drew in a deep breath then expelled it in a sigh of acquiescence. “Alright, you’ve worn me down. I’ll go. But only if you promise to be careful.”
Storm put his hand up in a brisk salute. “Scouts honor. You’re safe with me.”