He shrugged. “This is a small community. It’s not too difficult to find out where a beautiful, young American girl spends her time. All you have to do is ask the right people. They said you like to come here a few times a week to listen to the music.”
River’s face flushed and she looked away, doing her best to keep the shy smile off her lips. Nobody had ever really called her beautiful before. There had been some boys back home who’d said that, of course. But they were only saying it because they thought by flattering her, she’d drop her panties for them. River had never had somebody call her beautiful with the sort of sincerity she heard in Nico’s voice. It felt… nice. It was unexpected and a little bit embarrassing. But it felt nice.
More than even that though, the thought that Nico had been asking around about her was kind of creepy. It made her feel like he was stalking her. Watching her. And for a man she’d met exactly once—and for only a few minutes at that—knowing he had been asking after her sent goosebumps of fear all along her skin. Knowing he had been looking for her made the hair on the back of her neck stand on end.
At the same time, that he had thought so much of her that he would seek her out after such a brief meeting was also kind of flattering. Plenty of guys had chased after River back in high school. Some of them because of who her father was and what they thought she could do for them, others who may have genuinely liked her, and still others who wanted to plant their flag as the first to fuck her. There was a difference though, between stupid, horny teenage boys and drawing the attention of a man like Nico.
Her stomach quivered and her body trembled as she looked into those dark, smoldering eyes. Her mouth was dry, and she swallowed hard, trying to work some moisture into it. She hated the fact that this man who she didn’t know the first thing about—other than he had a philandering cousin—had such a powerful effect on her. She couldn’t deny that he did though. But she would be damned if she let him see it.
“I do. I enjoy the music. It’s beautiful,” she said.
“I know the director of the school. If you’d like to go in and listen to the students, it won’t be a problem,” he offered.
She shook her head. “No. I like sitting out here with my coffee.”
He nodded. “Well, if you change your mind, just let me know.”
River offered him a small smile. “I will. Thank you,” she said. “But why were you looking for me in the first place?”
That smile that made River’s heart flutter crossed his face again. His gaze was so direct and so penetrating, she felt like he was looking straight into her soul. It felt like he could peel back all her layers and read her thoughts. That was perhaps even more disconcerting than the fact that he could get her wet with nothing more than a wink and a smile.
“I wanted to see you again,” he said.
“Why? You don’t even know me.”
“That’s something I’d like to remedy,” he said. “Come. Have a drink with me.”
“It’s not even noon yet.”
“Then come have lunch with me.”
River bit her bottom lip and looked away. Part of her wanted to accept his invitation and go have lunch with him. There was another part of her though, that wanted to get as far away from him as she could. River couldn’t say what it was exactly, but there was something about Nico that scared her. As charming and polished as he was, she could see that he also had an edge and felt like he had a dark side to his personality.
Why she thought that River couldn’t say. But when she looked deep into his eyes, past the heart-stopping smolder, she thought she could see something dangerous lurking behind them. That edge she saw was hard. It was rough. There was a dead-eyed gaze he hid very well. And maybe it was silly or just paranoid, but it made her think of criminals or serial killers. She thought it was the look of a man well-versed in hurting people.
She’d seen more than enough documentaries to know bad people could be very charming and charismatic, but they could never completely bury that side of them. They could disguise it and pass for normal, but they could never hide it entirely. It was always there. And most of the people she saw interviewed in those documentaries said these bad guys all had that same dead-eyed gaze if you looked closely enough.
Evie’s voice echoed through her mind, telling her she was making excuses. She could hear her best friend telling her she was dreaming up all these reasons to be afraid of Nico to avoid going to lunch with him. Evie would tell her that this was the time to live. That this was the time to make memories that would last a lifetime. Evie sure had. It was just lunch, not a marriage proposal, she heard her best friend saying and River felt those goosebumps crawling up her arms again and her heart skip a beat or two.
She gave him a shy smile. “Just lunch, right?”
He nodded. “Just lunch.”
“And no expectations.”
He chuckled. “None,” he replied. “If we have dinner though, I make no promises.”
She laughed and felt her face flush. Her entire body tingled as her emotions and her wants warred within her. River swallowed hard and looked up at him.
“All right,” she said. “Lunch. With no expectations.”
“You have my word,bella.”
4
Nico took a drink of his sparkling water, never taking his eyes off River. One of her conditions had been no drinking during their lunch together. Not having a glass of wine or a scotch with lunch felt strange but he was fine with it if it meant spending time with River. He sat across the table, as unable to take his eyes off her as he was powerless to stop that strange fluttering in his belly. It felt like butterfly wings were brushing the inside of his stomach. It was a feeling he couldn’t ever recall having. Especially about a woman.
Nico couldn’t explain why exactly, but he found her to be captivating. She was beautiful, of course. But it was something more than just her beauty that drew him to her. Not to say she wasn’t sexy as hell. She was. Just looking at her ignited the fires deep inside of him and he felt his groin tightening as his cock stiffened. He shifted on his seat and cleared his throat, his staff growing so hard it was uncomfortable.