Runaway (Wolfes of Manhattan 3)

“Nothing personal. I call everyone honey. But if it bothers you, Riley, I’ll stop.”

It doesn’t bother me. In fact, I love it. It makes me want to melt into your arms and—

“It bothers me,” I said flatly.

If there was one thing my father taught me, it was how to lie convincingly.

The perpetual smile that had been on Matteo’s face since he arrived disappeared. “No problem.”

I hadn’t expected to feel any remorse. I turned my feelings off long ago for my own sanity. But sadness and sorrow slid through me. I’d hurt this man’s feelings.

I hadn’t meant to. Honestly, I rarely considered feelings, since I didn’t have any myself. On top of that, I lied. I liked him calling me honey.

I liked it a lot.

And that freaked me out more than a little.

“Potato peelings are the worst,” he said. “That’s why I’m using them to show you this. Plus, then you’ll have some potatoes to make for dinner tonight.”

“I don’t eat potatoes,” I said, again flatly.

“Okay… Then I’ll have some potatoes for my dinner tonight.”

I was being so damned rude. I couldn’t help it, and I hated myself for it. I liked this man. I was attracted to this man.

I’d come here to disappear. To be alone. Matteo Rossi made me want to not be alone.

I opened my mouth to speak but nothing came out. I could say so many things.

It’s not that I don’t like potatoes, but they’re so starchy that I never eat them.

But then he would ask why, and I would have to tell him I was a model on a strict diet.

I’m allergic to potatoes.

Yeah, he’d believe that. I was a very convincing liar. But I’d never heard of anyone having a potato allergy before. Peanut butter? Strawberries? Mushrooms? Yeah, but never potatoes.

I was attacked by a potato as a young girl.

Right. I was a convincing liar, but that was just too much.

“Thank you for bringing me the supplies.”

“I guess I’ll just take the potatoes home with me,” he said.

“It’s okay,” I said. “This is my vacation. I think I’ll throw caution to the wind and eat a potato.”

His lips quivered. Just a touch, but I noticed. He wanted to smile. And the fact that I had made him want to smile made me very happy. Very happy indeed.

“Go ahead,” I said. “I know you want to.”

“Want to what?”

“Smile.”

That split his face into a wide grin. “Thank you. I’d say the same, but I haven’t actually seen you smile.”

Oh, boy. That was harsh. Problem was that it was also correct. Right on the money.

I wasn’t a big smiler. Not a lot to smile about in my world, and of course, on the runway, we models were supposed to have that sullen look that top fashion designers found alluring.

Personally, I thought we all looked mad as hell.

Right now, though, I was so tempted to smile. The muscles in my cheeks itched to slide upward.

“Come on, Riley. You can do it.”

My God, he had a sexy voice. Low and husky and smooth as silk.

So I did what he asked. I met his ice-blue gaze, and I smiled.

“That wasn’t so hard, was it?”

How exactly was I supposed to answer that? It was a yes or no question. If I answered yes, I’d look like a hard-ass who never cracked a smile. If I answered no, I’d look like a silly little flirt.

I took the third option. I didn’t reply at all.

Matteo shook his head with a sigh. “You are a tough nut to crack, Riley Mansfield.”

He didn’t know how right he was.

“I’m really glad you’re here,” he said.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, I am.” He set the potato peeler down and looked me straight in my eyes. “I love this place. In fact, I live in a cabin almost identical to this one. Inherited both from my bachelor uncle who passed away a few years ago.”

“I’m sorry,” I said.

“It’s okay. He lived a good long life. But that’s not my point. My point is this place is magical. It helps a person realize what’s truly important in life, and for some reason, Riley, I think you need to be here right now.”

“That’s kind of why I booked this place.”

“Is it? Or did you just want to get off the radar for a while?”

“Well, I…” I…what? He was exactly right. I wanted to get off the radar. I wanted to disappear. I didn’t really give a damn where I disappeared to, just that I’d be off the radar.

“As I suspected. Something drove you here. Some need to escape something. That’s all fine and well, but you could’ve escaped to a spa.”

“Yeah, I thought about that.” Truth.

“What made you choose Montana?”

“My brother, actually. He used to live in a little biker town outside of Helena.”

“But he no longer lives there?”

“No, he had to move to New York for…work. He lives in Manhattan now.”