Take the Money and Come

Chapter 5: Reigniting Desire

Chapter 5: Reigniting DesireStunned, Sarah almost dropped the bouquet. And that's when she saw the card tucked into the side of the simple, elegant ribbon binding the flowers together. The man had said the flowers were from Nico. The stranger who took off on her last night just spent thousands of dollars on a bouquet of flowers? And how on earth did he find out where she was staying...or what her last name was, for that matter.

“What the hell, Sarah?” Callie asked, a mixture of amusement and “I told you so” dancing in her eyes.

Sarah slid the note out from the ribbon carefully, moving to place the bouquet on the dining table. She opened the card, reading the short note inside.

“I have to see you again. Join me tonight. 8pm.”

Below the hand-written note was the name and address of a restaurant.

“Dinner?” Sarah thought, feeling more than a little panicked. She had sought out Nico for s*x last night, not dinner. And when the evening was cut short, that was supposed to be the end of it—as unsatisfying as it was. She wasn't looking for a relationship. Hell, less than thirty minutes ago, she'd recommitted herself to a life of celibacy. And why the hell was Nico spending thousands of dollars on a bouquet of flowers? He'd spent less than an hour with her! She had absolutely no doubt he could get laid without having to dole out a ridiculous amount of money. And he couldn't possibly be interested in her for any other reason...he didn't know anything about her.

“What does it say,” Callie asked, remaining quiet for long enough.

“He wants me to have dinner with him,” Sarah answered, and the look on her face no doubt spoke volumes as Callie's expression changed to one of empathy rather than excitement.

“Give the guy a chance,” she replied, rubbing Sarah's back soothingly. “If he's gone to all this effort for one dinner date, you never know, he could be worth something.”

“What guy spends thousands of dollars on a woman he didn't even sleep with? And how exactly did he go about finding my name and where I'm staying? Doesn't that sound a bit creepy to you?”

“Actually, it sounds rather romantic. And none of the guys you've known up to now would have spent money like that, but maybe this one is something different. Would that be such a bad thing? If you've ended up with nothing but total jerks, and this guy isn't like any of the guys you've dated...” Callie trailed off, her insinuation making her point.

Sarah wanted to argue against Callie's logic. She really did. But, much more of her was busy reminding her just how aroused she'd been in Nico's arms the night prior. But dinner? If he'd sent a note asking her to join him on the beach to pick up where they'd left off, it would have been much less complicated. She didn't want dinner with a side of witty conversation...and messy emotional baggage. She had wanted nothing but pure, unadulterated pleasure. Perhaps though, he was using “dinner” as the polite term for what he really wanted. After all, not many women would have responded positively to a note asking for a booty call. She could make it through one dinner to get to the most enticing dessert imaginable, right? As an image flashed through her mind, Nico licking whipped cream off every inch of her body, she knew she would join him that night. And then tomorrow it would be over with, and she'd get back to taking in the sights of Boca Raton.

Nodding her head, Callie actually clapped her hands in excitement. “Jeez, you'd think I'd just arranged for you to go out to dinner with the guy,” Sarah spoke dryly but a smile curved up the corners of her lips.

“What can I say? I'm a romantic,” Callie teased. “OK. You don't have time for an afternoon of staring at boring art exhibits when you have a dinner tonight with a guy who could probably afford to buy you the whole gallery,” Callie's look turned serious. “I'm going to call down to the spa and see if we can slip ourselves in there for facials, manis and pedis.”

Sarah nearly opened her mouth to object, but since the alternative was to spend hours at the art gallery, she remained silent as Callie picked up the phone. Sneaking off to shower, she moved quickly, all the while doing her best not to think about Nico every time her soap-slick fingers grazed across her sensitized n*****s or made contact with her clit. Failing miserably, she thought about her vibrator once again as she returned to her room, but she knew it still wasn't what her body was after. Slipping back into the cerulean blue halter dress, she opted to skip the bra and thong, feeling deliciously naughty knowing she was completely naked beneath the dress. Returning to the living room, Callie was already there, standing impatiently by the door.

“Let's go. I got us both appointments in twenty minutes.”

Smiling, Sarah rolled her eyes and grabbed her purse on the way out the door. And not five minutes after entering the spa facilities, she was certainly glad Callie had opted to spend the day there. The rejuvenating facial relaxed every muscle in her face, and the manicure and pedicure incorporated hand and foot massages. When it came to choosing the color for her nails, she pointed out a dazzling metallic blue that matched her dress, an unusual change from the sedate pale pinks she wore back at home. She would never admit it aloud, but she imagined Nico's eyes on her naked body and pictured driving him wild by having him watch as her own brightly decorated finger tips disappeared inside her wet slit.

By the time they were finished at the spa, it was long past lunch hour. Callie directed them toward the onsite restaurant, filling the time with a light lunch and conversation that sounded suspiciously similar to a high school pep rally. Ten minutes through, Callie was silent for a moment with a look that suggested she was trying to figure out how to best phrase what she wanted to say next.

“Sarah, the guy sent you Shenzhen Nongke orchids. I know I can't talk you into proposing to him tonight—or throwing him in your suitcase to bring home with you. But, the kind of flower a guy sends a woman says a lot about what he thinks of her. Roses say 'I have to impress you—or I screwed up and need to fix it.' Lilies, daisies and tulips say 'I think you're a sweet girl and I'm trying to be original here.' Orchids on their own say 'I think you're...special.' But these orchids send a whole different message, especially in this case, like 'I barely know you but something about you tells me you are so unique, so invaluable, that I've got to do whatever I can to hang on to you'.”

“Jeez Callie. I had no idea flowers could talk. Are you sure you shouldn't get your head examined,” Sarah teased, not wanting to think about the implications if there was any legitimacy to what Callie was saying. “Maybe they just say 'I have way too much money and I don't want to bother investing effort into finding a partner tonight, so here, let me wow you with these so you'll agree to warm my bed'.”

Callie and Sarah both laughed. Given that Sarah wasn't looking for a long-term relationship, she was just fine with Nico using the orchids to get laid.

With lunch finished and a few hours left to spare, the two women opted to spend the rest of the afternoon exploring the area around them on foot, stopping into interesting looking boutiques, walking along the water's edge and staring out over the marina of expensive-looking yachts. Returning to the hotel at seven, Sarah had just enough time left to get dressed and ready for dinner. She'd talked to the concierge about the particular restaurant, finding out that it was a rather upscale establishment. Pulling open her bedroom closet door once she reached her room, she pulled out the only semi-formal clothing she'd brought—a strapless, cream-colored sheath that fell to the floor but was slit open to her upper thigh on one side. Golden twine wound around the dress under the bust, making it reminiscent of a Greek goddess. The dress wasn't nearly as revealing as Callie's ivory pick, but when she glanced at her reflection in the mirror, she couldn't help but feel like it accomplished the same goal. She pulled her long, auburn tresses up into a pile at the crown of her head and pinned them in place, allowing soft tendrils to fall at random and gently frame her face.

Callie walked in a moment later, and Sarah knew the dress was a success, garnering an even bigger response from her friend than the sexy little ivory thing had the night prior.

“OK. I guess I'm off,” she said, glancing at the clock on the wall on her way out to the living room. It had just passed seven thirty, and she still had to take a cab to the restaurant. Waving goodbye at the door, she headed downstairs and out the front door of the hotel before coming to an abrupt halt. There about ten feet in front of her was the limo she'd watched Nico slide into the night before and leaning against the passenger door was Nico, smiling appreciatively as he watched her take in the scene in front of her. He was dressed quite differently than he had been last night, wearing a dark blue suit. He looked just like a male model, his suit jacket slung over his shoulder. The top buttons of his dress shirt were undone, leading her gaze down the open V. He started forward, crossing the short distance and not stopping until there were just a few inches remaining between them.

“I'm glad you decided to come. You look incredible.” The husky timbre of his voice immediately sent tremors of arousal coursing through her.

“I had presumed I'd be meeting you at the restaurant,” she told him, not certain what else to say.

“I was just heading back from a meeting,” he explained, a disdainful look flashing through his eyes as he spoke and it immediately caught her attention. But, in the next moment, his eyes had cleared and he was reaching out, pulling her forward to wrap his arms around her. His mouth descended on hers a moment later, gently at first, as if he had only intended his lips to be pressed against hers briefly. But within seconds, he was pulling her closer and his kiss became more fervent. Her hands moved to encircle his neck of their own volition and she completely forgot that they were standing out in the open, a multitude of people coming and going past them. Nico pulled away, groaning as he broke the kiss.

“We won't make it to dinner if we keep this up,” he whispered.