Page 25 of Just One More Affair
“Hi, Charlotte.” The smooth way he said her full name set butterflies in her stomach.
“Jared.”
She smiled at the formalities, amused when his deep chuckle reverberated through the phone, no doubt for the same reason. “What can I do for you?” she asked.
“Well, first off, how are you feeling?”
“I’m feeling better today. And you’ll be happy to know I’m taking it easy. I was napping when you called.”
“Shit. Sorry to wake you.”
She’d glanced at the time when she answered the phone. “That’s okay. I was out for two hours. I’ll be lucky if I sleep tonight.”
“Then maybe this is the perfect time to ask. Are you free for dinner?”
She pushed herself upright against the pillows and headrest. “Actually, I am. What did you have in mind?”
“I’d like to take you to Le Ciel Etoile in the Flatiron District.”
French, translated to The Starry Sky in English. “That sounds amazing. I read about the restaurant in a travel magazine on my way home from Egypt.” The place had a nod to the owner’s native country, but was a steak restaurant with a French take on the classics.
“I’ll pick you up at eight?”
“Sounds good,” she said.
“Great. I’ll see you soon.”
“Yes,” she murmured. “Bye.” She disconnected the call and stared at the phone in her hand, the reality of her situation just now hitting her. A dressy dinner and she only had the late afternoon to figure out what to wear and to get ready.
She mentally crossed her fingers and called the salon downstairs, thrilled when they had an appointment for highlights, a trim, and a blow-dry. She hadn’t had her hair touched since returning from her dig. They squeezed her in for a manicure as well.
She had twenty minutes before she had to be downstairs and she put her thoughts to her clothing. She wasn’t certain what to wear, unsure if this were a date. Or was he taking her somewhere nice to discuss the baby? Her stomach gave a flutter at the possibility of a date but he hadn’t specifically said. Still, it didn’t hurt to look good either way.
She had a little black dress, but would it fit? Her waistline had popped and she doubted the garment would give her a sexy appearance, like she wanted.
Sexy?
Yes, she thought, sexy. If she was going out with Jared, she wanted him to look at her and like what he saw. There was a boutique in the hotel. She didn’t know if her good luck would continue but she intended to find out.
An hour later, a short red dress was being sent to her room along with a pair of strappy sandals. Her nails were now a matching color, and she sat with foils in her hair. The stylist insisted caramel-colored highlights would go well with her skin tone. When the timer beeped, her hair was washed, trimmed, and styled. Her luck continued to hold and the in-house makeup artist had a cancelation.
She walked out of the salon feeling like a different woman. One that would, hopefully, take Jared’s breath away.
***
Jared had tocall in favors to rent out the private room in the restaurant. Normally the smallest room seated ten, but he’d requested the space be emptied out and they put in a table for two.
The limousine he’d hired for the night stopped in front of the hotel. Though he’d planned on meeting Charlotte at her room, he walked into the lobby to find her waiting downstairs. She was looking at something in a store window, giving him a chance to take her in.
Red strappy sandals adorned her feet and she wore a short red dress with glittering material that wasn’t fitted tight but draped her thighs and had him drooling. He couldn’t see the swell of her stomach yet but she looked different to him.
She glowed and from the sonogram they’d seen, she was carrying his baby. The size of a bean, the heartbeat made it all so real, affecting him on a primal level. He felt possessive, both of the little bean and its mother.
As if she knew he was watching, Charlotte turned to face him, causing him to stop in his tracks and stare. Her hair fell to her shoulders in soft waves and caramel-colored highlights shimmered under the ceiling lights. The low-cut dress gave him the perfect view of ample cleavage but the coverage was still enough to tease not over-reveal.
It didn’t matter that he’d seen her naked before. She left enough to his imagination to be sexy and his cock thickened in his pants. She’d always been gorgeous but knowing she was carrying his child made her irresistible.
She watched him approach, a smile on her red lips.
