That seat at the very side of the theatre had been perfect, because while it had given him an obstructed view of the stage, it had also given him an angled view of her...though that little fact he was going to omit.
‘Oh, good. I’m so glad.’ A faint wash of colour bloomed over her face. ‘It was still very kind of you.’
‘Mmm...’ He still didn’t feel very kind right now. He felt achy. ‘It was my pleasure.’ He’d enjoyed watching the emotions flit across her face. ‘I get to go to the ballet a lot. The theatre, opera, sports fixtures...it comes with my job.’
‘You don’t enjoy it?’
‘Sure. Mostly.’ But when he had other issues pressing on his mind, not so much. And right now he had too much on his mind. It had been a miserable few months. He just wanted to forget it all for a while. Temptation beckoned. Maybe his method was standing right in front of him. And maybe, he just couldn’t resist.
He held his hand out to her. ‘Theo Savas.’
* * *
Leah didn’t want to keep staring but she couldn’t seem to tear her gaze away from him. ‘Leah Turner.’
A premonition warned her, but the urge for the slightest touch was irresistible and she put her hand in his. For a second they were locked together in a moment of physical intimacy that felt much more powerful than a mere handshake should.
As she stared into his eyes her thoughts jumbled. He’d just been kind earlier—hadn’t expected to see her again, hadn’t known she was going to be at this party. His gift had been just that, a simple gift with no strings—just a thoughtful, generous moment between strangers.
But the banked fire in his gaze now? The sizzle shooting up her arm? The electricity short-circuited her brain. She couldn’t look away from him. She couldn’t release him any more than he could seem to release her.
‘I should get going,’ she mumbled.
‘Why?’
She swallowed. ‘I have work tomorrow.’
‘So? I have a flight first thing.’
She couldn’t help smiling. ‘Is it a competition?’
‘You tell me.’
She shook her head. ‘I’m not a fan of competition.’
‘No?’ He nodded. ‘No one likes losing.’
So true but she doubted he’d ever lost much.
‘How about collaboration, then?’ He was somehow closer. ‘We’d work together to achieve a common goal...’
Her mouth was so dry she had to lick her lips before she could answer. ‘And that goal would be?’
His eyes were serious even as his mouth curved into a wicked smile. Intensity beneath the charm. ‘The best night of our lives.’
‘Wow. Setting a big goal.’
‘Always. If you don’t aim high...’ His smile faded as he studied her. ‘I didn’t expect to see you again.’
‘Are you sorry you have?’
‘I was sorry I didn’t stay earlier. I was sorry I let you go.’
Her heart trembled. So why had he? She couldn’t bring herself to ask. She still couldn’t move either. Someone pushed past behind her, jostling her in the throng. He released her hand only to wrap his arm around her shoulder and draw her closer against his side. Just like that the rest of the world faded.
‘You want to go somewhere quieter?’ he asked.
Leah had never gone ‘somewhere quieter’ with anyone ever. But she knew what it meant. ‘You barely know me.’
‘And I’m not going to.’ He smiled ruefully. ‘I go back to Greece tomorrow.’
He was in town for only the one night. Was he letting her know this would only be a one-time thing? Was she right in thinking there might even be a one time? She opted for diversion so she could process all the signals she was too inexperienced to be certain of. ‘You’re from Greece? Whereabouts?’
‘Athens.’ His gaze didn’t waver—it was as if he knew she needed a moment to process. ‘But I have a holiday home on an island.’
Of course he did. He probably had homes everywhere.
‘Have you ever been there?’ he asked, seeming to reach for the same delaying diversion she was.
She shook her head.
‘No interest?’ He looked aghast.
She laughed. ‘I’d love to go there one day.’
‘Sail around the islands, right?’ He smiled as if it was what everybody wanted.
‘I’m sure that would be amazing, but I’d really like to go to Delphi.’
‘You studied Classics? The Antiquities?’
She shook her head. ‘No, it’s silly, but one of my favourite books was set in Delphi.’
‘What book?’
‘You probably haven’t read it...’
‘I’m actually quite well read—what’s the title?’
She shook her head. ‘It’s an old paperback, you won’t know it...’ She’d found it in the reception of the doctor’s one time and smuggled it home and hidden it from her parents. A romantic suspense wasn’t on the prescribed list her parents had drawn up for her.
He smiled, guessing that she didn’t want to tell him. ‘You’ll have to travel there then, to see if it lives up to its literary imagining.’
‘I’ve only just moved to London.’ She shrugged. ‘Greece might have to wait a while.’
‘So you’re new to town and I’m just passing through...yet fate has made it so we meet twice in the one night.’
‘And you want me to...’
‘Yes.’ Something smouldered in his eyes. ‘You know what I want you to do,’ he said. ‘I want you to come with me. And yes, I mean exactly what you’re thinking.’
Yes, he’d changed. In the theatre, he’d held back for some reason. Now, he’d decided and he wasn’t holding back at all.
‘You’re...not shy.’ She bit her lip.
‘But you are. Don’t be afraid to go for what you want.’
She hovered—not indecisive, but insecure. ‘I’m not good at this,’ she confessed.
He didn’t laugh at her. His expression was both encouraging and strained. He lifted a hand and cupped her jaw, the soft touch silencing her.
‘I’m not going to give you a report card, Leah,’ he breathed, closer still. ‘Anyway, there’s no “good”, only amazing. And for the record—so as not to omit any important details—I have no intention of either of us being hurt.’
There was a tension within him—a cause of worry or concern. For her?
‘Want me to give you an example?’ he asked in a husky whisper.
Her pulse thundered. She should pull back and say no. But she didn’t want to and her body decided for her. She rose a half-inch on her toes and met his descending mouth.