Page 10 of Close Encounters of the Hot Kind

The words spill out like a torrent. I never admit that to anyone - it feels like betraying Mom and Dad, who worked so hard to give me everything they could.

Charles leans closer, and starlight dances in his eyes. No - not starlight. Something else, something that pulses with an inner glow.

"There is so much more out there than you can possibly imagine, Aileen." His voice drops to a whisper that thrills me to the core. "Wonders beyond description. Places that would take your breath away."

The way he says it makes my skin tingle. Like he's not talking about Paris or Rome, but somewhere much further. His fingers trace patterns on the leather seat between us, drawing closer to my hand.

"I would show you the wonders of the cosmos, Aileen."

His hand covers mine. That strange silk-over-metal sensation returns, but I don't pull away. My heart pounds so hard I swear he must hear it. He's so close now, his cologne making my head swim. His perfect lips part slightly, and I catch myself staring at them. Is he going to-

The limo jerks to a sudden stop, throwing me forward. Charles's arm shoots out to steady me, strong and solid as a steel beam.

"Sorry Mr. V," our driver calls from the front. "There's some kind of commotion up ahead."

I clutch Charles's arm, my pulse racing for an entirely different reason now. Through the tinted windows, red and blue lights flash in the distance, painting the street in alternating colors.

Charles leans forward to speak with the driver. "How long until they clear the street?"

"Could be hours, sir. Looks like a building fire."

"Our reservation." Charles checks his watch, then turns to me. "Would you object to walking? It's only two blocks from here."

"Not at all." These heels might disagree, but I've worked twelve-hour shifts in worse.

The driver opens our door to a wall of noise and bodies. The sidewalks overflow with people craning their necks toward the commotion ahead. Smoke lingers in the air, acrid and sharp.

A crowd surges past us, nearly sweeping me away in their wake. My heart pounds. The thought of losing Charles in this chaos sends a spike of panic through me. Which is ridiculous - I barely know him. But something about him makes me feel...

His hand closes around mine.

The world stops.

That silk-metal sensation spreads up my arm, but different now. Warmer. Like sunshine on bare skin. Like the first sip of hot chocolate on a winter day. Like...

Focus, Aileen.

But I can't. Not with his thumb tracing circles on my palm. Not with that tingling heat spreading through my whole body. The crowd still pushes and shoves around us, but their faces blur into meaningless shapes. All I can feel is his hand in mine, all I can see is the way he looks at me - like I'm the most fascinating creature he's ever encountered.

"Shall we?" His voice cuts through the noise like it's meant for my ears alone.

I nod, not trusting myself to speak. He guides me through the throng of people, and they seem to part before him like water around a stone. That warmth from his hand spreads up my arm, across my chest, down to my toes. My skin hums with it.

What is happening to me?

CHAPTER 4

AILEEN

The doorman at Alinea bows so low I half expect his nose to touch his knees. "Mr. Varakian, welcome back."

"Table for two." Charles's hand stays locked with mine, that strange tingling warmth making my knees weak.

The maître d' materializes from thin air. "Right this way, sir."

My jaw drops at the sight of the restaurant's interior. Crystal chandeliers drip from the ceiling like frozen rain. A statue of Venus towers in the center, marble flesh gleaming in the soft light. The air smells of truffle oil and money - lots of it.

"Oh my god." The words slip out as we pass a wall of wine bottles that probably cost more than Papa's entire inventory.

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