Total pages in book: 160
Estimated words: 164263 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 821(@200wpm)___ 657(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 164263 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 821(@200wpm)___ 657(@250wpm)___ 548(@300wpm)
Ring, ring, ring, ring…. The hotel phone bellows through the room.
Huh? I haven’t heard one of these things ring in years. “Hello,” I answer with a frown.
“Bonjour, Miss Sorenson. This is Annika from the front reception.”
My eyes widen in horror, oh no. “Hello.”
“We have a Thomas Stone here to see you, can we send him up?”
Fuck, fucking, fuck.
Oh hell, he mustn’t have got the message, I can’t not let him up. I’ll just tell him I don’t need him when he gets up here. Shit, what if he’s angry that I wasted his time?
“Um…sure.”
“Merci.” I hang up and jump up and down on the spot in a silent freakout. Oh my god, you idiot Alora. I’ve had some hare brained ideas in my life, but this has to take the cake. Five of the slowest minutes later, my worst nightmare comes true.
Knock, knock.
I put my head into my hands, this cannot be happening.
Knock, knock, sounds again.
Argh!
I open the door in a rush. “Hello.”
“Hello, Alora.” He smirks. He’s wearing a sports coat and jeans. His hair has a curl to it and he has big blue eyes. “Tried to cancel on me, did you?”
Oh no…he’s cute. Like really cute, hot even…and I want the earth to swallow me whole.
Help!
“I’m so sorry to waste your time, but I don’t—”
“Yes you do.” He cuts me off before walking past me into my room.
“No, really, I honestly don’t need you anymore.”
“Let me guess.” He flops onto my bed. “You are going to a function and someone you know is going to be there and you need to make them sweat.”
I open my mouth to reject his claim but nothing comes out.
“I do this for a living, Alora.” He smiles. “You have nothing to worry about, and we are going to make whoever it is squirm.” He looks me up and down. “You are absolutely gorgeous, by the way.”
I puff air into my cheeks as I look him over. “You are not what I expected.”
“What did you expect?”
“I don’t know.”
“More Fabio?”
“Maybe.” I smile.
He has this fun playful air about him.
“Well, a little about me. I’m a doctor. American.”
“A doctor?” I gasp.
“But I don’t practice anymore because I make a shit ton more money dating beautiful women.” He raises his eyebrows. “Which is satisfying in many more ways.”
I giggle at his front. “I imagine.”
“And I’m here to meet a client tomorrow and you’re in luck.”
“Look, honestly I don’t need you anymore. It was a dumb idea.”
He gets up and goes to the fridge and grabs a bottle of champagne and two glasses. “Tell me your dumb idea.”
“Well, there’s this guy.”
“There always is.” He smiles as he fills our glasses and passes me one. “Cheers.”
“Cheers.” I take a swig.
“Go on.”
“Anyway, we met a few years ago when I was in Switzerland for the weekend and we had a….”
“Great time.” He finishes my sentence.
“We didn’t exchange details and we knew nothing about each other, but I’ve recently run into him.”
“What happened when you saw him again?”
“We were at a charity auction and the next minute we rushed upstairs and kissed, which is a complete nightmare because we are with other people.”
“Hmm, I see.” He sips his champagne.
“I mean…we were with other people but we’ve now both become single.”
“Because of each other or….”
“Well.” I roll my eyes. “Maybe on my behalf but not on his. I came to Paris for the weekend to try and forget about him but he showed up today at a work meeting and was flirting with our co-worker and he’s taking her on a date tonight.”
He listens intently.
“And I wanted to leave, so I told a lie that I came to Paris to meet a man.”
He smiles into his glass as he listens. “Nice.”
“But it’s not nice because he called my bluff and said we should go on a double date tonight and I panicked and said yes.”
“And that’s when you called me.”
I take a huge gulp of champagne and slosh it around my mouth. “This story sounds worse when I hear it out loud.”
“Alora.” He smiles calmly. “I do this for a living. You are in safe hands.”
“I don’t want to have sex with you,” I blurt out.
He chuckles. “Well, that’s a shame, you’re hot as hell.”
“Thomas.” I widen my eyes. “Be serious.”
“It’s fine, we go meet him and his date. We get on great and put on a little show. We leave and then boom.”
“Boom?”
“Suddenly you have control because he knows that someone else is in the arena and maybe he should man up before you get snapped up.”
My eyes hold his.
“Trust me on this, it works every time.”
“I don’t know.” I twist my lips as I think. “This guy isn’t a normal guy.”
“What, is he like a vampire or something?”
“Probably.” I sigh. “He’s just very…dominant and bossy and….”
“I can handle him.”
My eyes search his.