Page 13 of Never Too Late

Cillian glanced my way, but continued to pet the cat with no signs of him getting up off the floor. “You’re a handsome boy, aren’t you? Yes, you are. It doesn’t matter that you’re missing one ear. It just gives you character. Yes, it does.” The cat was purring so loudly I could hear him, even from a distance.

“I didn’t know you liked cats,” I said.

“Love them,” Cillian said. “I grew up with three.”

“You don’t have one.”

He pulled a face. “I spend too much time at work. It wouldn’t be fair.”

“You could keep one at the office. It would even have a bed to sleep on.”

He angled a sly look my way as he compromised by climbing to his feet, but bringing the cat with him cradled to his chest. It seemed happy to nestle in as Cillian rubbed a spot just under his chin. “How do you know I’ve got a bed in my office?”

“How do I—?” And then I remembered the game we were supposed to be playing, that we’d only just met and this was our first date. “Right… Lucky guess.”

Now he was vertical, Cillian’s gaze slid over me appreciatively. “You look good.”

“Thank you.” It seemed churlish not to offer something in return. “You don’t look half bad yourself.”

Cillian returned his attention to the cat. “I’m sorry I can’t take you with me, buddy, but I’m trying to impress a new man I met and threes a crowd. Maybe we take you home first.”

“He doesn’t have one. He’s a stray. One that shouldn’t be in the building. He must have sneaked in with someone. You have to be careful not to open the door too wide or he’s in here like a shot.”

“He just wants to be somewhere warm. Don’t you, buddy?” The cat purred louder and looked like he’d happily spend the rest of eternity in Cillian’s arms if it was on offer.

The empathy in Cillian’s voice made me feel bad for every time I’d shut the cat out without a second thought. Of course, it would rather be inside than out at this time of year. We might have hit early spring, but temperatures were still low most days. “I suppose we could leave him inside, rather than throwing him out on the street. It’s not like he can do much harm roaming round the building.”

Cillian deposited the cat gently on the floor and it scurried off down the corridor. “What cat?”

I rolled my eyes as I followed him to the exit. I guess I’d officially taken leave of my senses and I was doing this. There was no other way to describe going on a first date with your ex-boyfriend.

Chapter Six

I’d gone way past second thoughts and all the way to sixth and seventh before we even reached the restaurant. This must be how Cillian landed all the big advertising contracts. He found an unusual angle and persuaded the other person that it was in their best interests to go along with it. And I’d fallen for it. Pretend we didn’t know each other and simply start again? Yeah, right? How ludicrous was that?

One glance at where Cillian was taking me and all those thoughts coalesced into one massive hell no. Guy Savoy was the most exclusive, and therefore, the most expensive, restaurant in Paris. I’d never been, and I’d had no inclination to do so. I assumed it was all tasting menus and making foods that weren’t remotely flower-like look like a rose. Foie gras and sweetbreads when I was more of a simple steak man. Actually, even that was pushing it. Nine times out of ten, I’d settle for a burger.

And it wasn’t just the venue, it was like being catapulted back to a time where I’d let Cillian shepherd me wherever he wanted to go, too grateful for the breadcrumbs of his company to makeany complaints about it or to tell him I’d rather go somewhere else. Well, I’d left that person in London, and there was no way I was turning back into him. “No!” I said, coming to a grinding halt a few meters from the door. “Because I already know how this will go.”

Cillian turned with a frown. “How what will go?”

“This!” I waved a hand at the restaurant, the doorman discreet enough to pretend he hadn’t noticed our approach. “I’ll order food I don’t like because it’s the best of a ridiculously complicated menu, and while I’m trying to convince myself it’s not that bad, you’ll be on the phone and I’ll have no one to talk to. I may as well have stayed home and eaten the microwave dinner for all the enjoyment I’ll get out of the evening.”

A multitude of emotions flickered across Cillian’s face, like he couldn’t decide which one to settle on. “I don’t have a phone.”

“Pfft… right? Like you didn’t go out today and buy a new one.”

“I didn’t.” He held his arms out to the side. “Check if you don’t believe me.”

An unshakable conviction about being proved right had me stepping forward without considering whether it was a good idea. He obviously thought he could call my bluff. Well, I’d show him.

I realized my mistake as soon as I lay hands on him, warmth seeping through the silky fabric of the suit, and Cillian’s hard muscles beneath the fabric making my palms tingle and a certain part of my anatomy sit up and take notice.

My instinctive reaction was to let go and step back. Yeah, he’d love that, wouldn’t he? His new phone going undetected just because I didn’t have the balls to go through with what I’d started. It was for that reason that I ignored my traitorous body’s reaction and gave him a good going over.

His left jacket pocket was first, my search revealing nothing but a hotel keycard. The right jacket pocket only containedan opened pack of mint chewing gum. “Fresh breath,” Cillian said with something that sounded suspiciously like amusement. “Very important on a first date.”

I shoved the chewing gum back into his pocket with more force than it required and moved onto his trousers where my search unearthed his wallet and, as my fingers moved too close to the swelling behind his fly, a sharp indrawn breath that said he enjoyed being pawed far too much for my liking.

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