Total pages in book: 63
Estimated words: 57407 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 230(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 57407 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 287(@200wpm)___ 230(@250wpm)___ 191(@300wpm)
“I’ve been waiting all week to kiss you again,” he said huskily.
His words thrilled her. Emboldened her. “You can kiss me anytime.”
He groaned. “You’re making it very difficult for me to restrain myself,” he warned.
This weekend, she didn’t want him to hold back. She wasn’t brave enough to voice those thoughts just yet, but she was definitely going to take her sister’s words to heart and enjoy her weekend, and whatever it entailed, with Drew.
Very reluctantly, he released her. “Ready to head out?”
She nodded. “I am.”
She grabbed her purse, he picked up her suitcase, and together they walked to his car—a silver, sporty Audi. He put her luggage in the trunk next to his own, then opened the passenger door for her—which she appreciated—before sliding into the driver’s seat.
He started up the vehicle and glanced at her. “It’s about a two-and-a-half-hour drive to where we’re going,” he said, still keeping their destination a secret. “I thought we could stop at a pizza joint I know on the way for dinner. Does that sound okay to you?”
She nodded, her stomach rumbling at the suggestion. “Sounds perfect.”
They headed out of the city, their conversation light and easy and mainly revolving around what their week at work entailed. An hour and a half later, he turned into a parking lot and stopped his car near a brick building. It was dusk by now, but she could see that the place, Otto’s Pizzeria, was well-maintained and fairly busy on a Friday evening.
The inside décor was old school with rich wooden tables and chairs, red and white checkered tablecloths, and soft lighting. Signs boasted authentic Sicilian pizza, and she loved that he didn’t pick anything fancy or expensive to try and impress her. He was a man who was confident in his choices, no matter what they were, and that in itself was sexy and remarkable.
Surprisingly, they were able to secure a table fairly quickly, and after agreeing on a sausage and mushroom combination, and their two sodas were delivered, they were left alone.
Georgia realized that while she’d divulged quite a bit about herself when she’d danced with him at the banquet—her job with Future Fast Track, and even giving him a glimpse of her family dynamic—he’d been vague about himself. Most of their conversations about him had been superficial, and she was curious to know what shaped Drew into the man he was today.
Glancing across the table at him, she braced her elbows on the surface and laced her fingers beneath her chin. “So, you know all about me and my non-profit work. What made you want to practice law?”
A sexy grin tipped up the corner of his mouth. “Growing up, I watched a lot of old episodes of Boston Legal, Suits, and Law and Order with my dad, and I was always fascinated by the courtroom scenes and deliberations. I was also captain on the debate team in high school, and we won the state championship in my junior and senior years. Being a lawyer just seemed like a natural fit.”
She arched her brow and took a drink of her soda. “So, you like to argue and win.”
He chuckled, his green eyes gleaming with amusement. “I think my brothers would agree with that statement.”
“And out of all the areas of law you could choose from, you went into mergers and acquisitions. Interesting choice.”
“Looks like someone has been doing her homework,” he drawled, clearly impressed with her knowledge.
“I’ll admit, I Googled you,” she said with a shrug, then rattled off a few more details she’d learned. “You work at McKenzie Goodwin, which is a competitor to my father’s firm, as you probably already know.”
He nodded, but said nothing, so she continued.
“And quite impressively, you made partner a year ago and you’re only thirty-four,” she said, smiling. She’d read about the huge, lucrative deal that had most likely contributed to that promotion. “That’s quite an achievement.”
“It is,” he agreed, but didn’t brag about that major accomplishment, as most men might.
Unlike Elliott, this man had nothing to prove to anyone but himself. He was confident without being arrogant. Assertive in his work life—a requirement for most attorneys—but without an overblown ego. Drew was completely unpretentious despite his successes, and it was those traits that she found so attractive and appealing.
Their pizza was delivered, and after they’d enjoyed a slice and went for seconds, Georgia contemplated why Elliott was so hostile toward Drew when she couldn’t find any outward indications that the man sitting across from her was untrustworthy, as Elliott had suggested the night of the banquet. They both practiced the same type of law, but that still didn’t explain Elliott’s animosity.
“What’s going on between you and Elliott?” she asked as they finished their meal and the bill was delivered. She hoped Drew might shed some light on things.