Ethan made the introductions. “Dillon, my wife, Brynne. And this fellow here, my darling, is Dillon Carrington.”
“How do you do, Brynne. Lovely to meet you in person. I have only seen pictures of you in the gossip rags.” He extended his hand and I offered mine. There was something very familiar about Dillon Carrington but I couldn’t put my finger on it, even though it was obvious he and Ethan were well acquainted.
“Nice to meet you as well, Dillon. Thank you for the wine. I’m sure it will be delicious, but I feel as if I’ve seen you somewhere. Have we met before?”
Dillon shook his head, laughing. “No, never. I would definitely remember meeting you, Brynne.”
“Ethan?” I looked to him for some help but he apparently was having too much fun at my expense because he only winked at me.
“You know, Dillon, it’s funny because Brynne and I were just having a conversation about teaching her to drive British, being she’s a Yank by birth.”
“Ahhh, loads of fun that is. Righty learning lefty. You want to borrow my crash suit, mate?” Dillon asked him.
Crash suit? I had no idea who this guy was but knew that I definitely should know him, especially since he knew who I was. I seriously needed to pay better attention to the gossip mags. Ethan knew a lot of famous people, and our engagement and wedding had been splashed all over British media.
“Would you like to join us? Are you on your own tonight? Ethan offered out of courtesy.
“No, no thank you. I don’t want to interrupt you, but I saw you when I came in and wanted to say hello, and give my congratulations of course. I am meeting someone in a minute, actually.”
“Ahh, right, well, I’m glad you did. We missed you at the wedding, but I know you were just a tad busy that day.”
Dillon laughed at that comment. “Yes, slightly. They had me driving ’round in circles the whole weekend. I come down here for a little R & R afterward when I can manage it.”
“Congratulations on your win. I watched the highlights and you tore it up. Brilliant performance.” I could tell Ethan was suitably impressed by whatever Dillon had won.
“Thanks. And for the sponsorship, too. I hope you got the signed gifts I had them send out.”
“Seriously, money well spent all the way ’round. Seeing Blackstone’s logo on number eighty-one was quite the defining moment for me. Truly.”
I took a stab at a guess and interrupted. “Are you a race car driver, Dillon?”
“I am in racing, yes.” He tilted his head. “I could get you driving lefty in no time, Brynne,” he answered, a charming smirk lighting up his eyes as he teased me. “You just say the word if you ever want a driving lesson.”
“Fat chance of that happening, Dillon. I believe I’ll do the honors
of teaching my wife to drive British, thank you very much.”
“Well, we’ll just have to see how well you’ve come along with your lessons by the time we meet up again in October for Neil and Elaina’s wedding, because I will be checking in with Brynne,” Dillon challenged with a wink in my direction.
“Oh, you will be there?” I asked him.
“I will be.” He gave a slow nod. “Neil and I go back to our school days. Elaina’s brother, Ian, too. Good mates of mine.” Dillon looked over his shoulder in the direction of his table. “My guest is here, so I should go and leave the two of you in peace. So lovely to have met you finally, Brynne.” He bowed his head to me. “And you, Blackstone, have done very well, you lucky bastard.” He shook his head with a devilish grin.
“Astute as always, Carrington. Thanks again, for the wine, and we’ll see you up in Scotland very soon.”
Dillon gave us a wave and returned to his table, his striking looks grabbing the attention of the other patrons in the restaurant as he greeted his date, an exotic, leggy brunette with obvious enhancements of the silicone variety, staring our way quite intensely, probably annoyed at us for monopolizing her boyfriend.
“He seems nice,” I said. “He’s really famous, isn’t he?”
“Ah, yeah, slightly. You were just offered driving lessons by a Formula One World Champion, my darling.”
“Wow. He is legendary. I knew I’d seen him before, I just didn’t realize it had been on TV and at the newsstand.” I glanced over at Dillon’s table. “I don’t think his girlfriend liked him talking to us though, because she’s throwing off some pretty toxic vibes.”
“I don’t think that’s his girlfriend.” The sarcasm in Ethan’s comment was impossible to miss.
“Why do you say that?”
“Baby…” The censuring look he set on me spoke volumes. “I can say it because I know the man. Dillon Carrington doesn’t have girlfriends. He has dates.” Ethan nodded his head toward their table. “And that is a date.”