Seduced In The City

“Tina knows someone at Sak’s Off 5th and she’s going to let us use her employee discount. But the only night her friend works is Thursday.”

“Okay,” Sara said. “But why would you be late?”

“We have to be there at the end of the night. They close at ten.”

“What time is your regular curfew?”

“God.” Ellie rolled her eyes. “I’m seventeen. Not twelve.”

Sara gave her a stare only a sister could deliver.

“Okay. Fine. It’s midnight.”

“On a weeknight? Really?”

Thinking back to when she was a teenager living under the draconian rules of her old-fashioned parents, she had some sympathy for Ellie. Although Sara hadn’t needed a prom dress because she hadn’t gone, she’d secretly been heartbroken over her lack of a date. And she hadn’t had to deal with an older sister either. Maybe this would be a good time to show a little solidarity.

“On weekdays it’s ten,” Ellie said, sighing loudly. “Come on, Sara... It’s the prom and I don’t have a dress yet.”

“Wow, I hardly ever got to go out on a weeknight. And on weekends I had to be home by eleven.”

“Well, that was before cell phones. Or cars.”

“Ha. You’re hilarious.”

Grinning, Ellie ran her hand over the antique dresser that had once belonged to a second cousin. “Anyway, you owe me.”

“What are you talking about?”

“The other night when you chased Dom away. Who knows when he’ll come back? He’ll probably find some other place to get his pizzas.”

“That’s absurd. He was just there.”

That caught Ellie’s attention more than anything Sara had said. “When?”

“Tonight. Right before closing.” Sara lined up the pencils that had been jostled by Ellie’s explosive entry.

Ellie looked positively crestfallen. “What did he want?”

“A slice.”

“That late?”

“Exactly what I told him.”

She studied Sara with an accusing glare, then spun around for the door.

Seventeen hadn’t been that long ago for Sara and something twisted inside her. “Ellie?”

“What?”

“Be home by midnight.”

The door didn’t slam, but almost.

Damn that Dom Paladino. Here he was still causing Sara problems.

4 (#u02e11e62-5bfe-5799-9c81-734a71e1dd03)

THE EMERGENCY AT the NoHo renovation turned out to be corroded pipes inside inadequate PVC tape. Evidently the plumber hadn’t wanted to go to the trouble of swapping out the pipes themselves, so he’d resorted to cosmetic changes. Dom was more than a little steamed, but Eric, their project manager, had things under control.

Good thing, since Dom had a full day. He needed to stop by the office and have a look at the blueprints for the SoHo apartment complex. Hopefully Luca would be there and they could go over the plans for Tony’s bachelor party. Then Dom had an appointment for a trim before his interview at Edelman PR, which he was looking forward to. The great thing about working at such a large firm was that they had offices all over the world. The downside? He’d be a small cog in a huge machine.

Half a block ahead of him, he noticed a dark-haired woman wearing jeans and a tucked-in T-shirt. It took all of a second to be certain it was Sara. He’d memorized that curvy behind.

He noticed the canvas bag she was carrying and had a hunch she was going to the same place he was headed—Met Foods. Walking faster, he made sure he didn’t get too close. It would be a shame to let this opportunity pass him by. She still owed him an answer, and while she’d dodged him the other night, he wasn’t going to be so quick to let her off the hook this time. Two minutes later he followed her into the store.

After grabbing a bottle of water and a pack of breath mints, he scoped out a couple of aisles before spotting her in the produce section. He planted himself across from her and tried to look engrossed in the nectarines.

“Stalking me now?”

He looked up, pretended to be surprised and said, “Hey.”

“What are you doing here?” she asked.

“Um...the same thing you’re doing?”

The way she looked at him was like being x-rayed at LaGuardia. She was probably deciding what to say to make a quick escape. Then a glance at his selections made her laugh. “Water and breath mints. I’m actually surprised you don’t have cases of mints on hand at all times.”

“Meaning?”

“I think you know.” Her voice was like rich honey, easy, flowing, made even sweeter by the sly smile that turned up the edges of her lips.

“Dominic?”

The voice came from behind him. Definitely feminine, not completely familiar. Turning, it took him a second to realize it was Danielle Orteaga, a thirtysomething woman he’d met a few times at his gym. She was in great shape, pretty, not afraid to ask for what she wanted. And she was married. Which was enough for Dom to keep her at arm’s length. He nodded at her with a noncommittal smile and turned right back to Sara.

“Well, I better get busy so I can make it to the restaurant before the lunch rush,” she said.

The drop in temperature only made Dom more determined not to let this serendipitous meeting go to waste. But if he just came out and asked her what he’d done to piss her off, she’d be gone before he could take a second breath. He went around to her side before she could get away and looked in her cart. “So this stuff is all for pizza?”

“And the pasta dishes. Salads. Appetizers. Come on, you know our menu better than I do.”

“It threw me when I didn’t see any pineapples.”

That made her smile change. No trace of sarcasm, which he considered a victory. He wasn’t even sure why he was trying so hard. She was hot, of course she was, but if that was all it took, he’d have actually lived up to his reputation.

Sara pushed her cart over to the lettuces, several of which she carefully selected, then on to the radishes. He trailed along, not even trying to make up an excuse, although with everything she had in that cart, he wondered if she’d have to take a taxi back to Moretti’s.