Even now, she couldn’t help but remember their first time a week ago. Despite all the bullshit she’d endured in her life, he made her feel feminine, desirable, like she’d never known a man before him.
How could she walk away from that?
“Can we be alone?”
He rose an eyebrow. “When? Now?”
“Now.”
Boss raised one arm to request the bill.
They walked toward the cars in the lot. “Did you drive here yourself?” she asked. “Or did Chains drop you off?”
“He’s a good man. I wouldn’t have sent him to pick you up if I didn’t trust him.” Boss pushed his key fob and a navy-blue BMW chirped a few feet away. “And I do drive myself at times.”
“You’re full of surprises today,” she said, stepping into the passenger seat of his car.
****
She hadn’t said yes. Boss felt like a schoolboy vying for a girl’s attention. He wouldn’t go to sleep tonight until he had his answer.
He drove them to one of his many properties. The penthouse suite of this hotel was where he did a lot of business. It also had the best view of the city.
“Where are we?” she asked, entering the luxury condo.
“One of my offices. You like it?”
He watched Graciella as she made her way to the floor-to-ceiling windows. The woman knew how to move, how to use her body to drive men crazy. He wasn’t immune.
“I thought my condo had a good view, but this … this is unbelievable.” She pressed a hand to the glass, taking in the views.
He came up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist. “I have a lot of things. More money than I can ever spend. Every toy and gadget a man could want. There’s one thing I’ve
learned during all these years.”
She turned to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “What’s that, Boss?”
“Money can’t buy happiness.”
Graciella narrowed her eyes. “So they say. That’s a common expression.”
“No, it’s true. Things can’t stave off loneliness.”
“How can the great Boss ever be lonely? You could be surrounded by new people day and night and they’d beg for your company.”
“Then they go home. I need more, Graciella. Life is empty without love. After watching so many of my men get married, I always wondered what the fascination was—until you came along.”
“I’m nothing special,” she said.
“You’re everything to me,” he said. He kissed her forehead. “You never answered my question.”
She shook her head. “My debt, Boss. It won’t go away.”
“I know you talked to Viko this morning.”
“Of course, you do.”
“He’s paranoid. Everything’s falling down around him.”