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CHAPTER 23
LEO
Walking the short distance across the restaurant to Cassandra’s table was more like a mile. It had been almosttwo weekssince he’d last seen her. He’d assumed she would’ve been back in New York by now. Dressed in a black business suit,Cassandra wore her glasses againand her hair was in the same knot. He let her leave that morning, and he’d regretted it every day. She had every right to tell him to leave her alone, but there was a hint of interest in her beautiful brown eyes.
He’d tried to put her out of his mind, but Cassandra had become an obsession. During the day, he’d been busy, but in his dreams, he recalled every single detail of their night together. The way her body responded to his played on a repetitive, agonizing loop. He’d wake up lonely and miserable. It wasn’t just her beauty and the sex. He was intrigued by her and had no doubts about wanting more. First, he had to apologize.
Leo cleared his throat and did his best to sound casual. “Good afternoon, Cassandra. This is a surprise.”
Cassandra swallowed but didn’t say anything. Her cheeks flushed a pretty pink.
He smiled and glanced at Cassandra’s friend, whose eyes darted back and forth between him and Cassandra. “Aren’t you going to introduce me to your friend?”
Cassandra blinked her eyes a few times. “Leo Sutton, this is Lucy Hamilton.”
“Nice to meet you, Leo.” Lucy stood to shake his hand. “Thank you for lunch.”
“You’re welcome.” He turned to Cassandra, who kept her head turned away from him to focus on Lucy. This wasn’t a great start to the conversation he needed to have with her.
“I’m sorry, but I need to get going,” Lucy said with a not-so-subtle meaningful look at Cassandra.
“You’re leaving?” Cassandra asked, her voice rising in surprise. “You told me Justin had the girls today.”
“He does, but I forgot I have an errand to run before I go home.” Lucy bit her lip to suppress a smile.
Cassandra glanced at her phone. “Actually, I have an appointment soon.” She rose from her seat. “I’ll walk you out.”
“No, it’s okay. You guys stay here.” Lucy gestured to the table. “Thanks again, Leo.”
“You’re welcome,” he said with a nod.
Lucy left with a final glance over her shoulder.
He turned to Cassandra, who was frowning in Lucy’s direction, obviously not happy about being abandoned by her friend.
“Is Lucy a good friend of yours?” he asked, doing his best to suppress his delight to be alone with her.
“Yeah. I’ve known her for a few years. She’s married to Justin Hamilton, the rock star.” She looked up at him, her eyes narrowing. “Maybe you’ve met him?”
Leo cringed. He wasn’t in the same league as Justin Hamilton. Justin was famous for being a talented musician, while Leo was just fodder for the press.
“No, I haven’t met him,” he said in clipped tone. “I don’t want to chat about a celebrity.”
Cassandra snatched up her purse. “And I don’t have time to chat.”
He said in a low voice, “I need to talk to you.” Fortunately, the table was in a secluded corner of the restaurant, and they had some privacy.
“I can’t. I really do have an appointment.” She turned to leave.
“I promise this won’t take long.”
Cassandra glanced at him with a nod and returned to her seat. She folded her hands in her lap. Her eyes were expectant, waiting for him to begin.
He sat next to her, grateful she agreed to listen to him instead of slapping his face and storming out. “I want to apologize to you. Did you get the note I sent with the book?”
“I did. Thank you,” she said, her tone subdued.
“Listen, I panicked when you told me your last name is Papadakis.” Tension wound tight inside of him. He had one chance to get this right. “I should have explained why it rattled me.”
