With my expectations firmly in place, I grabbed my dress purse and headed for the door. I'd considered driving this time, as much to give me incentive not to drink so much, but I despised driving in heels so a cab it was. I winced as I thought of the fare, but my only other non-driving option was the train and there was no way I was doing that in a dress.
The cabbie was nice enough and didn't take any detours, which I appreciated. Sometimes, if they thought I was some naïve girl who didn't know my way around the city, they'd try to run up the meter. When we pulled up to the hotel, I couldn't help but stare. I'd seen it before, of course, but it was different getting out of the cab and knowing I was going inside. It was gorgeous.
I paid the cabbie, squared my shoulders and tried to look like I belonged at a five-star hotel. I walked slowly enough that I was able to find the restaurant without having to ask anyone and I headed inside. The hostess smiled at me as I came in.
“May I help you?” she asked.
“I'm meeting Cade Shepard,” I said.
“Wonderful.” Her smile widened. “Mr. Shepard is waiting for you. Right this way, please.”
I followed her as she made her way around the tables, most of which were full. It didn't take long for me to figure out that we were heading toward a more secluded section of the restaurant. The lights were dimmer, the tables a bit further apart for added privacy. Then the hostess stepped to one side and everything else faded away.
It was him. Right there. My mystery man was sitting at the table directly in front of me.
My jaw dropped and I darted a glance toward the hostess to see where she was going to point me. There was no way Adelle had found my savior and set us up on a blind date.
Then he was standing, his eyes brightening with recognition. He walked around to the other side of the table and pulled out the chair, the invitation clear.
“Your waiter will be here shortly with your wine selections.”
The hostess may have been smiling at us before she walked off, but I didn't notice. I couldn't stop staring. I did, however, managed to shut my mouth so I didn't look like a complete idiot.
“Well, isn't this a small world,” he said as he held out his hand.
I slid mine into his, still unable to believe this was real. He raised my hand to his lips just like he'd done last week. This time, I had no alcohol to blame for the way my stomach twisted and clenched as his mouth brushed against my knuckles. When he released my hand, my skin still tingled.
I sat down and let him help scoot in my chair before he walked back around to his seat. Before I could ask him how he knew Adelle, a waiter appeared with a wine menu.
He didn't even glance at it. “We'll have the Invictus Shiraz, two thousand four. And we'll need a few more minutes before we're ready to order.” He turned back to me as the waiter walked away. “Now, Miss Aubree Gamble. It's nice to have a name to put to your lovely face.”
“Likewise,” I said. “My friends call me Bree.”
“That’s a shame.” He smirked.
“Why do you say that?”
He ran his finger around the rim of his glass as he studied me. “Because Aubree is so much prettier. Suits you better.”
Heat bloomed in my cheeks and I blurted out the first thing that popped into my head. “You didn't know who I was.” I made it a statement rather than a question.
“When Adelle asked me to come here?” He shook his head. “No.” He smiled. “I don't need to ask if you knew who I was. The expression on your face said it all.”
I flushed and dropped my eyes.
“I admit it was a pleasant surprise,” Cade continued. “When Adelle mentioned that her friend was getting over a bad break-up and needed to be reintroduced to the world of dating, I expected someone... different.”
I raised my head. “Different how?” I tried to hide the hurt that went through me when I heard that Adelle had told him about what had happened.
He leaned back as the waiter returned with the wine. I resisted the urge to gulp half of mine just to calm my nerves. Once the waiter left, Cade turned his attention back to me.
“I assumed that Adelle's friend would be someone who was unable to find a date on her own, forced to rely on her friend's assistance. Shy, definitely. Most likely plain as well.”
I blinked at the blunt statements. “Excuse me?”
He continued on without an apology. Either he hadn't realized I hadn't appreciated what he'd said or he didn't care.
“Women who've been scorned by men react in one of two ways. They either completely swear off men until they find that they're tired of satisfying their own desires, or they jump right back in the dating pool and find a nice rebound man.” He gave me a once-over and I could see the admiration in his eyes. “Either way, the ones who rely on friends to find them men generally do so because they can't do it themselves.”
I opened my mouth to tell him that I could find a man if I wanted to, but the waiter returned and I looked down at my menu, wondering if it'd be too obvious to order the most expensive thing on the menu.
“We'll have the duck served with a lime glaze on a bed of watercress salad tossed in a light vinaigrette.”
“Very good, Sir.”
My head snapped up as I realized he'd ordered for us both.
He spoke as he turned back toward me. “Adelle mentioned that you liked duck but weren't able to have it often.”
I scowled. “Do you also know my bra size and bank account balance?”
His lips twitched like he wanted to laugh, but he didn't. “No.” He raised an eyebrow. “I seem to have hit a nerve. Tell me, are you annoyed at me, or at your friend for sharing personal details with me?”
I inhaled slowly. He was right. True, I was discovering that my white knight was the kind of confident that was two steps past arrogant, but knowing Adelle had told him personal things about me, that was upsetting.
“Shall we start over?” He extended a hand. “I'm Cade Shepard. I have some lovely red wine here and duck on the way if you'd care to join me.”
I shook his hand, trying to ignore the tingle that went up my hand and arm when we touched. This was a date to get Adelle off my back, nothing more. Okay, so I'd also met my rescuer, but I'd been telling myself for the past two weeks that I didn't want anything more than to thank him. I ignored the little voice in my head that reminded me how much I'd enjoyed that kiss.
“I'm Aubree Gamble. It's nice to meet you.” I gave him a partial smile.
“Now, Aubree, since I'm not the type of man to ask questions about his blind date so as to ensure a pleasant evening, I must ask if you like duck or if you'd prefer to order something else?”
My face burned at his words. I suddenly felt petty and stupid. Adelle hadn't spilled secrets about me. Cade had asked because he wanted to know more about the person she was setting him up with. I'd never even thought to ask about him. Ironically, it had been because I'd been too preoccupied with trying to learn his identity.
“Duck will be wonderful, thank you.” I put as much sincerity into my words as I could. I paused, and then apologized. “And I'm sorry for how I behaved. It's been a rough month.”
He nodded and topped off both of our wine glasses. “So Adelle mentioned, though not the details. I suppose I can let you off with a warning this time.” His eyes shone, but there was something in his voice that made me want to squirm. “After all, I witnessed firsthand part of the difficult month you've had.”