Captivated by the Greek. Julia James

one” would be the ideal answer to my predicament,’ he finished, keeping his gaze steady on Mel’s face.

      He paused. His eyes rested on her with an unreadable expression that Mel could not match.

      ‘You fit the bill perfectly,’ he said. And now, suddenly, his expression was not unreadable at all...

      As she felt the unveiled impact of his gaze Mel heard her breath catch, felt emotion swing into her as if it had been blown in on the wind from an opened door. He was offering her an experience she’d never had in her life—a glittering evening out with the most breathtakingly attractive man she’d ever seen.

       So why not? What are you waiting for? Why hesitate for a moment?

      She thought of all the reasons she shouldn’t go—he might be the most ridiculously good-looking and most ludicrously attractive man she’d ever seen, but he was also the most infuriating and arrogant and self-satisfied man she’d ever met.

       But he’s apologised, and his self-satisfaction comes with a sense of humour about it, and he’s given me a cogent reason for his out-of-the-blue invitation...

      But he was a complete stranger and could be anyone.

       I know his name—and, anyway, he’s talking about a posh charity bash at a swanky West End hotel, not an orgy in an opium den...

      But she had nothing suitable to wear for such a thing as a posh charity bash at a swanky West End hotel.

       Yes, I have—I’ve got that second-hand designer evening gown I bought in a charity shop that was dead cheap because it had a stain on it. I can cover the stain with a corsage...and I can make the corsage from that over-the-top bunch of lilies he’s just sent...

      But she ought to be working—she made good tips on a Friday night at the restaurant.

       Well, I can work an extra shift on Sunday lunchtime instead, when Sarrie’s is closed...

      One by one she could hear herself demolishing her own objections against accepting Nikos Parakis’s invitation. Heard herself urging on the one overwhelming reason for accepting it.

      A little thrill went through her.

      She was about to start a new life—her own life. She would be free of obligations to anyone else. Free to do what she wanted and go where she wanted. Free to indulge herself finally!

      And when it came to indulgence what could be more self-indulgent than a gorgeous, irresistible man like the one standing in front of her? It was just too, too tempting to turn down.

      If anything could herald her new life’s arrival with the sound of trumpets it must surely be this. So why not grab the opportunity with both hands?

      Why not?

      ‘Well,’ she heard him say, one eyebrow quirked expectantly, ‘what’s the verdict? Do we have a deal?’

      Her eyelids dipped briefly over her eyes and she felt a smile start to form at her mouth.

      ‘OK, then,’ she said. ‘Yes, we have a deal.’