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I hang up and shove my phone into my back pocket. Inspecting my reflection in the bathroom mirror, I comb my fingers through my hair and adjust my blouse. I haven’t been on a proper date in goodness knows how long, and I haven’t had a boyfriend for longer than I care to admit.
My seduction skills are rusty, to say the least.
Thankfully, Luka hasn’t been shy about eyeing me up like candy all night, so maybe I have that working in my favor. It’s time I take control. A little candlelight dinner, some wine… By the end of the night, Luka Antonov won’t be able to keep his hands off me.
By the time I return to our table for two, I see the waiter approaching with a pitcher of iced water. I’m about to plop down in my seat when Luka rises from his own, pulling out my chair like a gentleman.
I giggle demurely. “And they say chivalry is dead. Who taught you how to impress a lady?”
His grin is slight, but it makes my heart skip a beat anyway. I wonder how handsome he could be if he smiled for real. “I’m not sure,” he answers. “I learned from watching my brothers, I think.”
I hold my breath. This is the first time Luka’s mentioned his siblings, but I can’t afford to get too excited, or he’ll know something’s up. “You have brothers?”
“Three of them.”
I’m surprised he didn’t lie about it. “What are their names?”
Luka holds my gaze. I can’t tell what he’s thinking. Surely that wasn’t a strange question to ask, right?
“I don’t feel like talking about them,” he answers. Classic deflection. “I’d rather know more about you. Do you have any siblings?”
“No.” My answer is immediate. There’s no way in hell I’m bringing Tabitha into this.
“So you’re an only child, huh? Must have been pretty lonely.”
I force a smile. “I was about to say, three elder siblings must have made for pretty chaotic Christmases.”
His face darkens briefly. “I never said they were older.”
Oh, fuck.
Panic has me in a chokehold, but I hastily rip a page out of Pritt’s book and manage an easy, dismissive laugh. “Okay, you’ve got me. I’m a little ashamed to admit that I looked you up while I was in the bathroom.”
“Why?” he asks.
“Like I said before, in this day and age, you can never be too careful. You mentioned you worked for CyberFort, and your last name sounded super familiar. A quick Google search and…” I let out a shaky exhale. “I’msoembarrassed. I swear, I’m not a crazy stalker or anything. I totally understand if you want to bail.”
His silence makes my heart pound. Dear God, what have I done? How could I have made such a terrible error?
To my surprise and utter relief, Luka leans back in his seat and chuckles. “Don’t be embarrassed. It’s natural to want to know more about some random guy who invited you out.”
Holy shit, I can’t believe he bought that.
“To be fair, I looked you up, too.”
I gulp. “You did?”
Luka nods, pulling out his phone. My fingers itch to reach out and grab the device. “Willa Jones,” he says slowly. “I couldn’t find anything on you. You’re a mystery to me.”
My heart beats loudly in my throat. Gomez assured me he had all my fake profiles set up for this exact reason. “Really? That’s so strange. Did you spell my name right?”
Luka hands me his phone. It takes all my willpower not to scream with excitement. Access to his phone could mean access to his contacts, messages, emails, files… How much incriminating evidence is on this thing? I have to remind myself to take a deep breath. I’ve got to be cool about this.
Blessedly, the waiter shows up with a bottle of wine. “This is our 2018 Hugo Coonawarra Cabernet Sauvignon,” the waiter says proudly, presenting it to Luka.
He’s distracted.
Now’s my chance to pounce.
