AllFreeNovel
Share Us
He drew them back out. “What’s this?”
She braced herself, knowing he wasn’t going to like this. “I’m paying for my own dinner.”
His eyebrows shot up, and he looked as if he were going to explode. “You sure as hell are not!” He jammed the bills back into her purse.
She knew she’d lose a physical struggle with him, so she resolved to add the money to what she owed him. “I’m not going to forget about this, especially now that we’ve slept together. That makes it even more important that I pay my own way. I told you, Bobby Tom. I’m not taking anything from you.”
“We’re on a date!”
“Dutch treat.”
“I don’t do Dutch treat! I don’t ever do Dutch treat, so just put it right out of your mind! And that reminds me . . . I found a wad of cash in my desk drawer yesterday morning. I thought I must have left it there and forgot about it, but now I’m wondering. You wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”
“That’s money for rent—”
“Rent! You don’t owe me for any rent!”
“. . . and that black cocktail dress you bought me.”
“That dress was a present. Don’t you even think about giving me money for it.”
“I’m not in a position to accept presents from you.”
“We’re engaged!”
“We’re not engaged. I pay my own way, Bobby Tom. I realize this may be a hard thing for you to accept, but it’s very important to me and I want your promise that you’ll respect my wishes, especially now that we’ve slept together.”
He gritted his teeth. “That’s the most ridiculous thing I’ve ever heard of. If you believe I’m going to touch a cent of your money, you can think again.”
“What you do with it is up to you, but I pay my debts.”
“They aren’t debts!”
“They are to me. I told you from the beginning. I’m not taking anything from you.”
He stalked away from her, cursing under his breath. As he reached the car, he drew off his hat and smacked it against his leg. She had the distinct impression that he would rather have smacked her.
Their flight back to Telarosa took place in silence. She didn’t like the fact that the good mood of the day had been spoiled, but he needed to understand that she wouldn’t be swayed about this. By the time they got home, he seemed to have settled down a bit. She thanked him for showing her such a wonderful time and headed up the stairs to her apartment, where she shed her clothes and stepped into the shower.
When she came out, she caught her breath to find him sitting on the only chair in her bedroom, naked except for his jeans.
“I locked the door,” she said.
“I’m your landlord, remember? I’ve got a key.”
Her fingers tightened on the white bath towel she’d wrapped herself in. He wasn’t smiling, and she didn’t know what to expect.
“Get on the bed, Gracie.”
“Maybe— Maybe we should talk about this.”
“Do it!”
She got on the bed.
He rose from the chair and lowered his zipper. She dug the fingers of her free hand into the mattress, feeling an uneasy combination of nervousness and excitement. He came toward her.
Her heart thudded so hard in her chest she could feel it resonate in her throat. He reached down and stripped her towel away. “Are you going to pay me back for this, too?”
