Page 22 of Billionaire Romantic
Once he’s gone I check my watch. 7:05.
A waitress brings two glasses of water. “Can I get you a drink, Mr. Steel?”
“We’d like a bottle of Moët on ice.” Might as well get the ball rolling.
She winks at me. “Of course. Coming right up.”
She leaves and I have nothing left to do but wait, checking my watch every thirty seconds.
What if she doesn’t show up?
Is she nervous? Scared? Is she okay?
A flash of golden blond glides past the window below me.
It’s her.
She’s wearing a blue dress that’s one shade lighter than Lucky Irish’s eyes in the photo.
And the sapphires in my pocket.
She stands in the doorway for a few seconds, like she’s thinking twice about coming in.
Even from this distance, I can see that the photo hardly did her justice. She’s cute but also gorgeous. Her eyes are blue even from across the room. The bright colors of her hair, her dress and the pink bag she’s carrying are eye-catching on their own, but it’s her face that has me riveted.
I’m quite literally starstruck. My mouth feels parched. And my heart aches as though I’ve been missing something monumental and here it suddenly fucking is.
Holy fuck.
She’s sobeautiful.
The maître d’ approaches her and she introduces herself. He points toward our booth and they both glance in my direction. At that moment, her eyes meet mine.
11
One hour earlier
“Stop fidgeting and hold still.”
Grace insisted on glamming me up for my date. It’s been a very long time since I glammed upthismuch. In fact, I can’t remembereverglamming up this much. “It’s just a first date, Gracie. I’m not running off to Vegas with him.”
“Ninety-eight percent compatibility is no joke, Luck. He could be theone. We need to prepare you for that.” Grace applies more glossing product to my hair.
“Just because you got lucky doesn’t mean I will.”
“That’s not the attitude we need right now, girlfriend. If LuckyIrishcan’t get lucky then we’re all doomed.”
“He might not even show up. Then all your efforts will be wasted.”
“Oh, he’ll show,” Grace says. “He’s not going to stand up his perfect match. And then when he takes one look at you, he’ll have no choice but to fall head over heels in love with you. Not that you’re not gorgeous in your corporate power suitsoryour sweat pants, but damn, girl, you should do this more often.” Shestands back from my hair and make-up, surveying her work. “I’m a genius. And you, my friend, arestunning. Noah Steel won’t stand a chance.”
I look in the mirror at my perfectly defined waves that now frame my unusually-glamorous face. I look…good. Maybe better than I’ve ever looked.
I’m generally a keep-it-natural kind of girl, which Grace gets, but she’s definitely taken things to the next level. The smoky eyes are sexy, my cheeks look smooth but my sprinkling of freckles still shines through. My lips look full and glossy, a shade somewhere between hot pink and Taylor Swift red.
“Okay, I concede you might know what you’re doing. I look like I’m almost worthy of a private box at a Chiefs game.”
“I told you a make-over wasn’t a terrible idea. Okay, go put on your dress. You’ve only got half an hour until your Uber gets here. I booked one for you so you can’t change your mind.”
