Page 62 of Hate to Crave You
“You’re distracted,” Moira said softly. “Thinking about Roman?”
“Trying not to worry,” she admitted.
“Let’s go ahead and order,” Moira suggested. “If he doesn’t show up soon, the two of you can talk about my proposal and you can get back to me. I don’t know if your head is going to be completely on straight until you hook up with him and assure yourself that everything is okay anyway.”
Julianna agreed and searched the menu for something that sounded appealing.
She chose the steak tartar, barely noticing how Moira wrinkled her nose at her selection.
As Moira ordered, Julianna skimmed the crowd and eyed the entrance, hoping to see a familiar dark head appear.
But no such luck.
“Has your mother said anything to you since you two ran into each other earlier?” Moira asked, cutting into the flaky white fish on her plate after their entrees had arrived.
Julianna shook her head. “I haven’t heard from her. I’m sure I’ll get the third degree the next time I’m home, though.”
A smile bowed Moira’s lips upward. “And did you take the necklace off before you went back to the office so your father wouldn’t see it?”
“He wasn’t in the corporate offices today. He was visiting the flagship store and making a trip to the lab.” Julianna touched the necklace and made a face at her friend. “But no, I didn’t take it off. I wouldn’t have, either. Sooner or later, I’ll have to tell him about us. I wanted to talk to Roman first.”
“The two of you can’t hide it forever. Even the way you look when you say his name makes it obvious there’s something going on,” Moira said gently.
“Really?” Julianna found herself smiling a little.
“Yes.” Moira rolled her eyes. “You get a smile just like the one you have on your face now. It’s like a billboard announcing…I’m in love! You ought to be modeling for some of the engagement ring spots your family does.”
“Whatever.” But the smile on her face widened.
She glanced up then, her senses going on red alert in that very moment.
A tall, dark-haired man was heading in her direction.
“Ah…no.That’sthe smile of a woman in love. The other smile was just a hint.” Moira sat across from her, head cocked and a grin on her face.
“Oh, shut up.” She rose to greet Roman.
He was stiff as she pressed her lips to the corner of his mouth, rising on tiptoe to do it.
“Everything okay?” she asked, lowering herself back to stand in front of him.
“What is this?” Voice stilted, he looked from her to Moira then back.
“Moira wanted to talk to us both—”
“Can I talk to you?” Roman caught her by the elbow without waiting for her to answer. He guided her out of the dining area to the lounge and over to one of the high-top tables. Neither of them sat down.
“What’s going on, Roman?” She smiled, a little uneasy at the expression on his face.
“What are you doing here with Moira Templeton?” he demanded.
“Having dinner,” she replied. “She wants to talk to us about something. That’s why I’ve been trying to get in contact with you. We had lunch together earlier—”
“You hadlunchwith her? Are you trying to get a leg up on me, Julianna? I thought we were past that.”
“What in the world are you talking about?” she sputtered. “We hadlunch. We talked about friends from college andyou—”
He cut her off. “You know why I haven’t been in contact with you today? I had a fight with my father. Aboutyou. He found out about us and he’s threatening to remove me from the company, Julianna. I’ve been fighting for us and you’re running around behind my back, trying to curry favor about this fucking deal. How could you do this to me?”
