“I don’t know how you are so slim with the amount of terrible food you eat,” he laughed as he grabbed another napkin to absorb the oil coating his fingers.
“Probably because I don’t usually get to eat this well. I survive on a lot of ramen noodles and canned soup. My mom is an excellent cook, but before her accident I was living in a dorm and religiously ate meals that were cooked in a microwave.” Ari winked. “Though my mother has always taken great care of me, money was still a concern, and on campus I needed to be careful. It’s a real treat having these fancy meals,” she said and took a bite, then swirled a long piece of cheese around her finger.
“I wouldn’t call pizza fancy,” he said, unable to take his eyes from her mouth as she sucked the gooey cheese from her finger.
“That’s because you’re a snob.” The twinkle in her eye let him know she was teasing him, but still, he couldn’t let her get away with a comment like that without at least a little retaliation.
“No more pizza for you. It’s caviar for dinner.” She glared at him as she took another bite and chomped extra hard on her thin-crusted treat.
“I don’t know why the egg of a fish is so special. Seriously! That’s so disgusting.”
“It’s an acquired taste,” he said with a laugh.
“Yeah, well, I prefer cheese to salty fish eggs. I promise never to call you a snob again if you won’t take me to another snooty restaurant that has foods I can’t even pronounce,” she pleaded.
The utter look of horror on her face had Rafe laughing. The comment was even funnier because of her utter seriousness. Not one of his other mistresses had preferred pizza or hot dogs to Beluga caviar and oysters. Who really had the right idea? Rafe found himself asking.
As they finished their lunch, and once again stepped onto the busy sidewalks of New York, Rafe took Ari’s hand and led her on a tour of some of the city’s amazing architecture.
“New York is known for its old architecture mixed among the sleek new skyscrapers. There are many hidden treasures in the city and numerous landmarks on almost any block you turn onto. When you add the creativity of the many people looking to break into show business or the art world, this is almost like one giant playground. I can’t possibly show you everything in only a couple of days, or even a couple of months, but I can at least give you a small taste of why the locals are so loyal to their home.”
How do you know so much about the area if you grew up in Italy and California?”
“My dad traveled a lot for business and we spent at least a couple of weeks each year in New York. I’ve spent a lot of time in Chicago, Seattle and Philadelphia, too. By the time I was eighteen, I was a frequent flier,” he answered.
“I can’t imagine how wonderful that would be. I’d never even left California until this trip. I think you’ve created a monster, though, because I am enjoying myself tremendously, even if my feet are killing me.”
“Do you want to go back to our room?”
“Not a chance. We haven’t even visited the Statue of Liberty or the Empire State building,” she replied with horror.
Rafe laughed as he hailed a cab and took her on a concentrated tour of the city. He wanted their night to end on top of the Empire State Building, though he called himself a fool for his romantic gesture. Nah; get real — he was doing it only because looking out at the lights of the city at night was an experience everyone should have, not because he wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her above all the twinkling lights. It wasn’t as if he’d become some slobbering love-struck fool who spouted off poetry in one of the many cafés catering to such a crowd.
For all his happily cynical thoughts, Rafe still took her into his arms as they stood at the top of the Empire State Building. His head moved downward involuntarily and he captured her mouth with his. His lips were tender as he caressed hers, coaxing her mouth to open to him so he could taste her on his tongue. His arms wrapped tightly around her waist, and he got lost in her sweetness.
No, this wasn’t good. It could be difficult for him to reinsert the distance he had always kept between him and his mistresses, but as he hailed a cab at the end of their night, he determined to do just that. If it required a valiant effort, so be it.
Chapter Eight
Shane
Shane pulled to a screeching halt at the emergency room entrance of the nearest hospital. He had barely turned off the engine before he was jumping from the car and rushing to the passenger door. Two paramedics hurried out as he was lifting Lia into his arms.
“She was at a party. I think they may have drugged her!”
“Lay her down on this gurney. We’ll get her in immediately.”
“Sir, come with me and fill out some paperwork, please.”
“Like hell! I’m going with her,” Shane told the nurse trying to stop him. It would take a lot more than a hundred-pound woman to keep him from staying as near to Lia as possible.
“Are you a relative, sir?”
It took Shane a few moments to figure out what the woman was asking him. Meanwhile, Lia was being led further away from him into a private room, where a doctor went in after her and began his examine.
“I’m a friend of the family,” he finally answered as he again tried to get past the growing number of medical members blocking his path.
“We can’t allow non-family members into the room,” the woman insisted while a guard appeared at her right-hand side.
“I’m the one who brought her here!”
“We still can’t break hospital policies, Sir. I’m sorry. If you can just fill out this paperwork and let us know what is wrong with her, we can get her treated.” The woman remained calm, which escalated Shane’s anger even further. She was keeping him from Lia.
Finally, he jerked the clipboard she was holding out to him from her hand and started filling in Lia’s information. He knew it by heart. The next couple of minutes seemed to be the longest in Shane’s life as he waited to hear what was wrong with Lia. He hoped he hadn’t arrived too late.
When the doctor stepped through the doorway, he pulled one of the nurses aside before coming over to Shane. It was a good thing he hadn’t delayed any further, because Shane was ready to start throwing punches.
“Hi, Mr. Grayson. I understand you brought Ms. Palazzo in?”
“Yes. Now I need to be with her,” Shane insisted as he tried to push through.
“I understand, sir. I’m very concerned about her right now. Do you know how we can get ahold of her family members?”