“Hello, Ms. Tanner.”
“You.” She didn’t know if she wanted to laugh, cry, or scream at Damen Leventis for nearly giving her a heart attack.
Damen asked silkily, “Did you think it would be Ioniko Vlahos?”
The question startled her --- until she realized what those words implied. “I---” Conscious of Rose’s presence on the other side of the room, Mairi said carefully but sincerely, “I am so glad to hear from you, Auntie.”
She was not alone then, Damen thought as he poured himself a shot of whiskey. “What are your plans for tomorrow?”
“N-nothing?”
“Then there shouldn’t be any problem if we meet?”
He wanted to meet up with her. He couldn’t get enough of her. He must feel the same way about her. It was the logical conclusion – right? Mairi said breathlessly, “None.”
“What time?”
“After class?”
“Fine. Where?”
She asked, “May I, umm, have Cousin Agatha’s email address so I can check her flight details?”
He gave her his email address. “Email me your number so I can call you.”
“Yes.” She was doing her very best not to sound dreamy but it was hard, even with Rose’s eagle-eyed stare focused on her back.
“Later then…and Mairi?”
“Yes?”
“Your voice sounds lovely over the phone. It makes me imagine just how lovelier it would sound when you start screaming my name in bed.”
Mairi was red-faced by the time she put the phone down.
Rose was frowning with concern. “Is everything okay at home?”
“Umm…yes. I’m…just worried because my cousin – it’s, umm, her first time to fly long-distance alone.”
“Oh. Well, I’m sure she’ll be all right as long as she takes the necessary precautions.”
Damen’s phone beeped less than five minutes later. In a few seconds, he had dialed Mairi’s number and when she answered with barely-hidden excitement, something inside him relaxed.
Whatever it was Mairi felt for Ioniko Vlahos, it clearly had not mitigated her desire for him – and it was a desire Damen was determined to fan until it became an obsession.
“So,” he purred. “Where should we meet tomorrow?”
She collapsed on her bed, Damen’s voice alone enough to make her shiver. She named the place, a dirt road that led to nearby public beaches but was rarely used. “I can be there around four-thirty.”
He frowned, disliking the idea of having to wait nearly an entire day to see Mairi again. “That is too long.”
“I know,” she agreed morosely. “I’m already missing you too much---” Mairi stopped speaking, realizing what she had once again let slip.
Damen’s low sexy chuckle traveled down the line like the most sensual touch, making her swallow audibly.
The sound of Mairi swallowing nearly made him groan. Just like that – just that f**king sound and it was more than enough to have Damen hard as a rock.
“Tomorrow won’t come soon enough for me either,” he grated out.
Mairi bit back a sigh at the words. He really did feel the same way she did. The thought had her happily snuggling under the covers.
Damen came to his feet, checking his watch as he did. There was still enough time to have a drink downstairs. It would be a good way to pass the time and perhaps finish some of his work, too. But before he could say a word, Mairi had spoken again.
“Damen?”
She sounded incredibly shy using his name. Even though he knew now it could just be an act, it still made his c**k swell. “Yes?”
“Tell me more about yourself.” Mairi waited for Damen to speak, but when the silence continued she said hesitantly, “Damen?”
He cleared his throat. Had he f**king heard her correctly? Did she really say something as impossibly juvenile as that? What kind of game was she playing, wanting him to act like an inexperienced boy on his first phone call with a girl?
Why wasn’t he speaking? Perhaps he was too busy and was just too nice enough to tell her the truth? Wincing at the realization that could very well be true, Mairi mumbled quickly, “I’m sorry. You must be really busy and tired---”
“No, of course not.” Damen was just as swift in his negation, lowering himself back on the couch positioned next to the hotel suite’s scenic windows. She was probably f**king playing with him, making him think that if he did not humor her now she would immediately move on to her other Greek boyfriend.
No f**king way would he let that happen. Mairi Tanner was his until he tired of her.
“Are you sure?”
“Of course.” He reached for the shot glass he had recently filled and downed it in one gulp. “What do you want to talk about?”
“Well…I just really want to know more about you.”
Know more about him in what way, Damen wondered cynically. Know more in the sense that she wanted the password to his safe? Exact figures of his current net worth? How many homes he owned?
“Ask me anything and I will do my best to answer you.”
Her eyes widened. “Anything?”
“Anything.”
“Then…what’s your favorite color?”
Damen stared at the phone. Did she just f**king ask him what his favorite color was?
“Damen? Are you there?”
Fuck, f**k, f**k. He wanted to laugh out loud but managed to rein in his amusement. He had no f**king idea what game Mairi Tanner was playing, but right now it didn’t matter. All Damen knew was that she kept surprising him, and her unpredictable ways just made him want her more and more.
Clearing his throat, he managed to answer with a straight face, “Black.”
“Oh.”
He raised a brow. “You sound disappointed.”
“Oh, no, no---”
“Mairi?”
She stopped, the sudden curtness of Damen’s voice scaring her more than a little bit. “Yeah?”
“Never lie to me and I promise you that I will not hold anything against you, whatever you tell me.”
She sighed.
Damen was beginning to wonder if he just happened to be sexually infatuated with a woman with serious mood swings. His words were meant to be a warning. He already had enough of women lying to him, and he had wanted Mairi to know that. And yet, while Damen had expected her to perhaps be overwhelmed or even offended, Mairi had instead sighed like he had recited a f**king poem for her.