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“I am alone.” His blue eyes pierced her. “Are you waiting for someone?”
His chiseled handsome face and deep Russian accent robbed her of speech. “Umm. No. I’m alone.”
“Good then. We’ll bring in the New Year together.”
Rachel glanced at her watch, 8:15p.m. She should not stay out too long. Not with prowlers and wildlife near her home. “I should head back before midnight.”
“Why? Are you like Cinderella?”
“Yes, no. I mean, someone broke into my home and I’m worried he’ll come back. And not to sound too bizarre, but I also saw a big black wolf lurking outside.”
He gave her reassuring smile. “Don’t worry. I’ll walk you home.” His blue eyes drew her in like a pool of warm water enticing her to jump in. How she wanted to.
God, he was mesmerizing. He reminded her of an Eastern European vampire here on business with the local vampires. “What? No. I mean, you hardly know me.”
“It’s my duty as your father’s grateful patient to make sure the big bad wolf doesn’t eat Goldilocks.”
“You mean Little Red Riding Hood.”
Lev reached and tucked a loose curl on her styled hairdo. “Your golden curls remind me more of Goldilocks.”
His warm fingers brushed against her face, sending tingling sensations throughout her body. Just as quickly, he drew away. It almost felt like she’d left a warm bath and then jump
ed into a cold river. “I normally don’t wear my hair up.”
“Down or up, each way is enticing.”
He was definitely coming on to her. “Thank you.” She smiled. “You must think I’m crazy thinking I saw a wolf.”
“In Russia, it’s common to see wolves near the woods.”
“In Louisiana, there are no wild wolves. This one had to be a hybrid or some other experimental creature since it was clearly the size of a bear.”
He stared at the menu. “We’ll start with the oyster soup appetizer. I will have the lamb rack—and you.”
Maybe it was a language barrier, but there was no question mark at the end of you. She shook her head as if he had her under some sort of mind control. Like the waiter. In horror movies, vampires enthralled people to do their bidding. No, her imagination had done her in, recalling, how for the last couple months, gorgeous mysterious Lev had occupied her dreams. She lowered her gaze to the menu. “The grouper amandine sounds good. And if you don’t mind, we’ll go Dutch.”
“You mean we share the bill?”
Rachel had not expected to pay this much for dinner, but she had her pride. “Yes. I can’t let you pay for the champagne and the entire meal.”
“We go Russian.”
“Meaning?”
“I pay.”
Her cheeks heated. Did this mean he expected more? Not that she didn’t want to go War and Peace all over his hot muscular body, but such expectations would make the entire evening awkward. “Okay, but I’ll cover the tip.”
“I invited you. I pay for everything. End of discussion.”
His dominant alpha persona irked her, but maybe he was filthy rich and a date was all he expected. A man with his looks could have a supermodel. Dang. One for each day of the week. Maybe he was being polite because he was Howard’s former patient and friend. As much as she wanted to argue, in America, women paid for part of the dinner date, something about his deep domineering voice commanded her to obey. Not marriage material, but it’s not like they were seriously dating or anything even remotely close. He was here on business and would leave in a few days. “If you insist.”
Lev raised his glass. “Na zdorovie.”
Rachel relaxed. “Cheers.” They clicked their glasses and Rachel practically drained hers. One martini and now champagne on an empty stomach loosened her up. Why not enjoy an evening with the hottest guy she’d ever met?
The waiter returned and took their order.
