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As his grip tightened and their faces came dangerously close, she determined to discover Tadj’s true identity when she returned to the laundry. Someone was bound to know. Gossip was rife on King’s Dock, and spread like wildfire. A man like Tadj would hardly go unnoticed. Her workmates would have all the juice, which would almost certainly include the fact that she’d been seen drinking coffee with him.
‘I’m afraid this is where we part,’ she said as they approached her workplace.
‘Afraid? You?’ he queried with a wry look. ‘Those two things don’t fit.’
‘I’m not a thing,’ she said, warming under his gaze. ‘And I’m not afraid of you,’ she added.
‘I’m very pleased to hear it,’ he said, making her a mock bow.
Everything about this encounter was new to her. She’d never had so much fun with a man. She’d never had fun at all. It was such a shame they would probably never meet again.
He frowned deeply. ‘Do you have to go straight back to work?’
Her pulse raced. So he felt the connection too. ‘Yes,’ she said, instinct telling her not to make things too easy for him. ‘Some other time, perhaps...’
‘When?’
She hadn’t expected him to be quite so direct. ‘Soon,’ she said airily as her heart tried to pound its way out of her chest. ‘I’d like that,’ she added honestly, feeling she’d been a bit harsh. ‘And you don’t have to walk me to the door.’
‘But I insist,’ he said.
‘Do you always get your own way?’
‘Always,’ he said in a way that made a quiver of excitement tremble low in her belly and her nipples tighten to the point of pain.
‘Thanks for the coffee,’ she said when they reached the laundry.
‘Just tell me one thing before you go,’ he insisted.
She looked at his hand on her arm. He let her go. ‘Okay,’ she agreed.
‘What would you do if you had all the money in the world?’
She didn’t even have to think about it. ‘I’d buy new machinery for Miss Francine’s laundry and make sure she took a proper holiday. Did I say something funny?’ She frowned.
‘Only what I expected of you, I suppose.’
Lucy’s heart pounded even faster as Tadj’s magnificent shoulders eased in a casual shrug. ‘Your wish is highly commendable,’ he added, staring down at her with warmth and laughter in his eyes.
‘But you’re not the genie in the bottle,’ she observed sensibly.
‘I could be...’
‘Not this time,’ she said, warning him off with a mock-stern look.
As she was speaking, she was digging around in her shopper to find her purse.
‘What are you doing?’ he asked, frowning as she brought it out.
‘Paying for my coffee,’ she said. ‘I don’t like to be in debt to anyone—and you’ve had enough trouble, from what you’ve told me. I would have paid at the café, but you got in fast. Here. Take it,’ she insisted, thrusting some cash towards him.
‘I’ll leave it as a tip for the wait staff when I walk past,’ he agreed.
‘Brownie points to you,’ she said approvingly. ‘Well, I can’t be late for work.’
‘Don’t forget tonight—’
‘Tonight?’ she interrupted.
‘When I see you again.’
‘Oh, I don’t know about that. I’ve got studying to do when I finish work.’
‘Studying what?’ he pressed, frowning.
‘History of art. My dream is to be a curator, or a conservator one day,’ she explained.
‘Working in a museum or an art gallery?’ he proposed.
‘Exactly.’
Tadj stared at her long and hard. ‘Anything else?’ he said at last.
‘I’ll let you know if I think of something,’ she promised cheekily with a glance inside the laundry.
‘Don’t let me keep you,’ Tadj said dryly.
‘I won’t.’
‘Just one thing,’ he said.
‘Which is?’ she pressed.
‘You’ll need a party dress for tonight.’
‘I’ve already told you, I’m not coming out tonight.’
‘But you’ve got a party to go to.’
‘No, I don’t,’ she argued, enjoying the game. How could she not, when Tadj’s wicked black eyes were full of amusement?
‘Yes, you do,’ he insisted, acting stern.
‘With you? Not likely!’ she countered, wanting to prolong the moment of parting.
‘On board the Sapphire tonight,’ he tempted.
‘You’re kidding me! You know I can’t resist an invitation like that.’
‘Good.’ His lips pressed down attractively, making her wonder what it would feel like if he kissed her. So much so, she almost missed his next statement. ‘My friend Sheikh Khalid is having a party tonight, and you’re invited as my guest.’
‘That’s news to me,’ she said, heart pounding as she lifted her chin to confront those dangerous eyes.
‘I can’t think of anyone I’d rather take as my plus one. At least we’ll have a laugh. What do you say?’
‘Can’t you find someone else to have a laugh with? Someone more suitable?’ Lucy suggested, as the enormity of what she could be agreeing to struck home. A glamorous party on board a yacht that could slip its moorings at any point? However attractive she might find Tadj, or maybe because of it, her sensible self advised caution.
‘I’m right out of amusing women at the moment,’ he said with a somewhat cynical look that s
uggested this might actually be the case. ‘And I don’t relish being bored to tears by people trying to find out if the person they’re talking to is as important as they are.’
‘Good plan. But why me, when there must be dozens of better qualified companions?’
‘Qualified in what way?’ he demanded, pretending to be shocked.
‘There must be dozens of people who’d love to go to that party.’ With you, she left out, deciding that with his good looks Tadj probably didn’t need his ego massaging.
‘No one with your unique qualities,’ he assured her, straight-faced.
She hummed and frowned. ‘I’d love to know what they are.’
‘That will become apparent as the evening goes on,’ he promised.
‘But as I’m not coming to the party...’
‘Those unique qualities will force you to,’ he insisted. ‘You won’t be able to resist.’
He might be right, Lucy concluded. ‘Go on.’
‘You work a real job, and meet real people on a daily basis. You’re interested in everything and everyone, and you have your own quirky take on what you see.’
‘You’ve gathered a lot about me in a very short time.’
He certainly had, Tadj thought. ‘My point is you’re real and I like that. You have no idea how rare that is.’
She thought about this for a moment. ‘You make a very persuasive case,’ she said at last.
And he wasn’t about to give up. ‘You’ll be my honoured guest tonight.’
‘Better that than dishonoured—and you can put that away,’ she flashed when he pulled out his wallet.
‘For the dress you’ll be wearing tonight,’ he explained.
She tightened her lips. Now he’d offended her. ‘I’m not entirely penniless. I’m sure I can rustle something up.’
‘Then, you agree?’
She looked at him and heaved a theatrical sigh. ‘You got me,’ she admitted.
‘Just one thing. Don’t keep me waiting when I pick you up tonight.’
‘Making conditions now? I can always change my mind.’
‘You won’t,’ he said confidently.
