Now, however, I’m going to see the beautiful woman again, and I’m nervous. Ha, imagine that. Me, Todd Sales nervous. I haven’t been nervous since my sixth grade Sadie Hawkins dance, but that’s what Bridget does to me. She turns the world on its nose, and now as I approach Le Cou Cou, my anxiety rises.
“Mr. Sales,” the hostess greets with a charming smile. “Your guest is already here.” Then, she leads me into the bistro, and from a distance I spot the long golden waves flowing down the shoulders of a familiar woman. God, she’s gorgeous. Bridget hasn’t spotted me yet, so I stop in my tracks to get a good look at her before she does. Seeing that this is Sanctum, she’s dressed in a way that’s hot and slutty at the same time. Her dress falls to the top of her thighs and hugs her curves, the décolletage daringly low. High black heels emphasize those long legs and I nod with approval. She’s gorgeous as always, and already, my body’s going hard.
Suddenly, she senses my presence and turns.
“Todd! You came!”
I nod, sliding into the seat across from her. Those plump pink lips are just as I remember, and her clear blue eyes strike me to the heart.
“Of course, I did,” I growl. “Melissa reached out to let me know.”
Bridget blushes. “Yes, I just wasn’t sure if you’d show up, but I’m glad you did. Thank you for coming,” she murmurs.
At that moment, the waiter bustles over.
“Madame, Monsieur. Can I get you anything to drink to start with?”
I nod.
“A bottle of the house Cab. You know what I like.”
He bows, nodding immediately.
“Absolutely, sir. I’ll be back with that in a few minutes.”
Then, Bridget and I are alone again and we stare at one another. There are two spots of color on her cheeks, and I want kiss her and spank her at the same time. She’s so infuriating, but what am I going to do? This woman has me tied around her little finger, and there’s no way to save myself at this point. But still, I have to try.
“So,” I begin. “How have you been?”
“Pretty good,” she murmurs. “How about you?”
“Busy.”
It goes silent again, and I fiddle with my napkin. Fuck. I’m not a fiddler because I don’t get nervous, but something about the way Bridget is looking at me has me on edge.
Fortunately, the wine shows up at that moment, and I immediately down my glass. Meanwhile, Bridget barely touches hers even as I pour another glass and drink half of it. Look at me. I’m such a fucking lush. But then, Bridget inhales, her big breasts rising, and looks me in the eye.
“Well, since I invited you here, I figure I might as well get started. I know it’s awkward, but I hope you’ll listen.”
My black brows raise.
“Shoot.”
She takes another big breath, her eyes sliding away for a moment.
“The thing is, I owe you an apology, Todd. I’m sorry that I freaked out about the nail polish colors because I shouldn’t have. They were just names.”
I stare at her.
“Really? You seemed pretty pissed the last time we talked.”
She nods, looking ashamed.
“I was pissed because I thought the names were insulting. But the thing is, I took it way too far because you weren’t trying to insult me with those colors. Instead, I should’ve seen it for what it was: a well-intentioned, if somewhat misdirected, gesture.”
My black brows go up.
“You know that Sugar Glaze does billions in business every year, right honey? And that I’ve been in this industry for a long time now.”
Bridget blushes hotly, looking down at the table.
“I know,” she says in a low voice. “And that’s part of why I’m sorry. You were letting your creative juices fly, and again, you’ve been at the helm of this business for a long time. You know what you’re doing, Todd, and I was the one who flew off the handle for no reason.”
I reach forward to take her small hand in mine.
“Not for no reason because I can see how you’d be offended by those names. But the thing is that you inspire me, sweetheart. You’re incredibly gorgeous both in and out of bed, and I just wanted to pay tribute to you. No, I wasn’t thinking, but never in my wildest imagination did I think you’d react the way you did.”
Bridget’s lower lip starts trembling again as she looks down.
“I’m sorry, Todd. Really, truly sorry. All my friends said it wasn’t a big deal because it’s not like my likeness was plastered on the nail polishes. Plus, a lot of them found the gesture kind of sweet.”
I nod.
“And you know that those names never made it to market, right? They were only samples, and we even pulled those from the Sanctum spa, so they no longer exist.”