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“It’s magical,” she whispered.
He was suddenly afraid to look at her. The setting was too enchanting, too enticing. Too seductive. Perfect for romance…and a prelude to a sizzling-hot night of sex.
The quartet ended one song and began another. Lyssa set down her champagne and her plate. “I love this song.”
Though hauntingly familiar, he couldn’t place the tune.
“‘Unforgettable,’” she said in response to the question in his eyes. “It’s perfect for this unforgettable night.” She waited a beat. “Nat King Cole? From the fifties?”
The sweetness of her smile dazzled him. Then he finally understood what she was hinting at. “Would you care to dance?” He held out his hand, even though a voice in his head was telling him that dancing with her would be playing with fire.
“Why, I’d love to, Mr. Danniger.” Her hand in his, she let him lead her to the dance floor.
The capsule wasn’t large, and dancing seemed too incredibly intimate as he took her in his arms. He’d danced with her at Matt and Ari’s wedding, but those had been fast, fun dances and included two young boys and the rest of the single women. Even then, he’d felt Daniel’s evil eye on him, and it had made him laugh to think that his friend could ever be worried that Cal would dare touch his sister.
But as he twirled Lyssa in his arms tonight, Cal realized Daniel’s evil eye wasn’t far off the mark. She felt so sweet in his arms.
Too sweet.
“Where’d you learn to dance?” he asked as she followed his steps gracefully.
She laughed, and the honeyed sound vibrated through him. Whenever she laughed at the office, he lost his train of thought for a few moments. “I used to make my brothers dance with me when I was little. You should’ve seen them, hauling me around while I stood on their toes and bossed them around.” She giggled. “They’d turn beet red, but Mom told them that someday, when they got married, they’d have to know how to dance. I danced to this song when we played it on Dad’s old record player,” she added softly. “And where did you learn?”
“After the first charity function I attended, I realized I’d better master ballroom dancing.”
Her eyebrows went up. “You took lessons?”
He shook his head. “I watched and analyzed.”
Her smile almost brought him to his knees. “Of course. That’s how you do everything, isn’t it? You watch and learn.”
“You do the same thing,” he noted as they executed another perfect glide around the capsule.
They were at the very top of the wheel now, the sight of London spread out in a dizzying panorama before them. Or maybe it was simply that the feel of her in his arms made his brain fuzzy.
He hadn’t wanted to admit it. Hadn’t wanted to face the truth. But with Lyssa in his arms, there could be no more hiding from the fact that he’d noticed her all along. Noticed her skill at work, her ability with people, her sweetness, her confidence, her willingness to do anything he asked. She soaked up knowledge and responsibility like a sponge. He’d noticed how beautiful she was at Matt and Ari’s wedding. If he was honest, he hadn’t truly taken his eyes off her since then.
That was the real reason for Daniel’s evil eye. Daniel must have suspected what was really going on inside Cal’s head, even when Cal refused to admit it to himself.
Just then, Lyssa missed a step, and when she stumbled, he held her tighter, full against his body.
The voice inside his head—the one warning him to take a step away from her, rather than toward her—had been right. He never should have taken her in his arms, never let the waiter dim the lights, never given her champagne, never watched her lips move as she devoured the appetizers, never danced with her to a song that would always make him think of her from this day forward. If he’d been thinking straight, he would have seen the temptation in bringing her to the London Eye, where nothing could possibly remain “just business” up high in the night sky. Especially when she was wearing a dress that hugged her curves and hinted at the gorgeous skin beneath. Hell, if he could do it all over, he wouldn’t have taken her on this trip and shared a suite with her at all.
He respected her brains and her wondrous ability to bring the people they worked with on board their team. But now, he also had to admit how beautiful she was. How good she smelled.
And how damned perfect she felt in his arms.
He was drunk on her smile, on her laughter, on the feel of her skin. Drunk on her hypnotic scent.
There had never been a woman he’d wanted more than he wanted her in this moment.
