by Emily Bex
Kate blushed at her outburst, hoping he hadn’t overheard. “Shh, stop that! What do I do now?”
“Well, acknowledging the gift might be appropriate.” Shannon poked at Kate’s arm. “Kate! Look at him. Do something.”
Kate glanced over her shoulder and caught his eye, he was staring at her. She smiled, but immediately felt her face turning a bright red, and quickly turned away.
She turned back to Shannon. “I...see...I told you...good, lord. He's on the other side of the room and already I can't talk.”
Shannon grabbed the menu and held it up in front of her face. “Get a grip, girl! He's coming over.”
Kate gave a startled reply. “He’s coming over?” No! Oh, god… She felt her mouth go dry.
Shade walked up behind Kate and slid his hand across her shoulder. Taking her hand in his, he kissed it gently, not letting go. “I hope you do not mind the intrusion. I only wished to enhance your meal, and wish you a good evening.” He turned to her friend. “Buonasera.”
“Buonasera indeed, and thank you for the wine. My name is Shannon. Would you like to join us? My friend here seems to have lost her ability to speak, but I'm sure if she could, she’d say she would welcome your company.”
Kate kicked Shannon under the table. She couldn’t believe she asked him to sit down.
Shannon felt the sharp kick against her shins. “Ouch!” She started laughing. “Really, she’d love your company.”
Shade smiled and his eyes went back to Kate. “I do not wish to intrude on your dining. I would never do such.” He let go of her hand as he flagged down the waiter, and slid a large sum of money into his hand. “Would you please make sure the ladies have whatever they wish to eat or drink with my compliments, and of course, your finest service.”
Kate sat perfectly still when he leaned down to her, his lips a mere inch from her ear, his breath hot against her skin, the smell of wine on his breath. Her heart was beating out of her chest, as she realized if she turned her head ever so slightly, his lips would touch hers. She felt the blush creep up her neck and face. Leaning into her, Shade kissed her cheek softly and whispered in her ear, “No need to thank me, and I will decline the meal, for your beauty is feast enough for me to live on for eternity.” He straightened and nodded to Shannon. “Enjoy your evening, ladies.” He turned and walked away.
Shannon reached across the table and grabbed Kate's hand. "Seriously? Get his number. Go after him. Do something!”
Kate stared back at her with her mouth slightly open. “I can't, Shannon... He just... I can't even think when he gets close to me.”
“Men like that don’t come around often. You need a game plan. How many chances do you think you're going to get with him?”
Kate shook her head and downed the glass of wine before re-filling it. "I don't expect to have any chance with him. I mean, what a fluke he’d be here tonight. And I blew it...again. It’s like my brain shuts down. I can't speak. I can't think. I can barely breathe."
Shannon handed Kate the menu. “Here, drink that down and let's order. He left us more money to spend than we can possibly eat tonight. Don't know about you, but I'm ordering take-out for when we leave.”
The waiter took their order and left the table.
“Kate, all kidding aside, I’ve never seen you come so unglued around a man before. And he’s clearly interested. What are you going to do?”
“I don't know. I really don't. I mean, you saw me. Did I even say anything? I don't think I said anything. Last night, at least I could stutter.”
Shannon laughed at her. “This better be one patient man is all I can say. I don't know, girl, I think you might have blown it with this one. So, let's just finish this expensive wine, and eat all this food.”
As they wrapped up for the evening, the waiter brought Kate another bottle of the wine, to cover the balance of the money the gentleman left behind, and the very generous tip the girls left for him.
Shannon gave her a hug as they stood up from the table. “Go home and drink your wine, Kate. It may be your last memory of tall, dark and dangerous.”
The valet brought Kate’s car around, she hugged Shannon one last time and climbed in to head back home. She pounded her hand on the steering wheel. What is wrong with me? Why do I get so dumbstruck around him? The voice in her head answered, you mean besides the fact he is so handsome he takes your breath away? Or the fact that every time you see him, you get an ache deep in your belly, a primal ache that is your body screaming for him?
Pulling into the underground garage, she went up to her condo. Shedding her clothes, she kicked off the shoes, and pulled on her robe. She found a corkscrew in the kitchen, opened the wine, filled a glass, and carried the bottle with the glass back to her bed. She set the bottle on the nightstand, and piled all her pillows against the headboard before flopping down. She sipped at the wine while looking at the D.C. skyline.
“Where are you, Shade Medici? Please don't give up on me.”
Kate finished off the glass of wine and picked up the bottle. Shannon said this was expensive wine. She looked at the label...Medici Moonlight. Wait, what? Medici? Italy? This wine is from Italy? Is this…he owns a vineyard?
She sighed as she poured more wine into her glass. And why, exactly, would a rich Italian vintner be interested in you, Kate Reese? He probably doesn't even live in the States. You'd be nothing but another notch on his bedpost.
She grabbed the remote and turned on the TV. True Blood...great, I'll watch Eric bang Sookie. That should take my mind off things.
***
Shade watched her leave the restaurant, then teleported to the rooftop across from her condo. She was different from all the others, she wouldn’t chase him. He’d had females play hard to get before, but this one wasn’t playing games. She found him intimidating. He was going to have to win her over.
Taking out his cell, he ran through the list of numbers Alec gave him in case Shade needed to contact him. Finding Rissa's number, he dialed her.
“Hello?” she answered.
“Rissa, Shade Medici. Need you to do something for me.”
Rissa sounded annoyed. “How did you get this number and what could you possibly want from me? Seriously, I have no time for this.”
“Relax, woman. Alec gave me your number in case I couldn’t find him. Look, you will make time for this. I want Kate Reese to be invited to all these damn events you are having. And I need a schedule of them. All of them, Rissa.”
“Have you had too much Midnight? Who in hell do you think you are? I told you to let it go. She’s nothing. She’ll never be anything. But if that’s what you want, fine. I don’t have time to argue with you right now. It’ll be fun to watch you crush her soppy little heart anyway. I’ll send you the list and I’ll make sure the skinny ass redhead is invited.”
Hearing what he wanted to hear, he smiled and ended the call. Deed is done. Don’t worry your head over my bel rosso, Rissa, she will never be crushed again. Once I work my magic, she will be mine. But damn, I have to get her to talk to me first.
5
Kate woke to the incessant beeping of her alarm. The TV was still on and she’d slept in her robe. Sitting up in bed, she rubbed her eyes. Him, in her dreams, again. She looked at the bedside table and the wine bottle was half empty. Ugh, no wonder she felt so sluggish. She climbed out of bed, showered and dressed for work.
Walking to the Pentagon City Metro station, she rode the subway into work. D.C. traffic was always insane, but the traffic during rush hour was impossible, so unless it was pouring rain or snow, she’d take the subway. That was just one more thing that freaked her family out. She jumped on the orange line and rode into L'Enfant Plaza, then walked the few blocks to the Brunswick Agency on 7th Street. She and Shannon had taken jobs there after working for Brunswick, as unpaid interns while still students at Georgetown University. She grabbed a coffee at Starbucks on the corner and headed to the office building, scurrying to her cubicle, late again.
Kate looked up and had to stifle a laugh. "You mean something other than the half bottle of wine I drank after I got home, on top of what we drank while we were still at the restaurant?”
Taking off her jacket, she removed her laptop from her bag, and slipped it into the docking station to power up. As she waited, Shannon moved into her cubicle. “Sooo…I guess since you still don't have his number, phone sex is out.”
“Shh! We don't exactly have a lot of privacy here.”
“You know I'm not going to let this go. That man is interested in you, and you’re interested in him. Call your friend Rissa. Get his number.”
“Yeah, okay. I will.”
“No, I mean call her now, while I'm standing here. Otherwise, you’ll just talk yourself out of it. Call!”
Kate fidgeted with organizing papers on her desk. “It's too early, Shan. It's only 8:30.”
“Well, actually it’s 8:45 because you're late, as always. But Rissa runs her own business. I'm sure she's up by now.” Shannon grabbed Kate's cell from her purse and started scrolling through her contacts.
Kate made a grab for the phone, but Shannon turned away. “Wait...Shan...give me my phone!”
Shannon saw Rissa's contact info and hit dial, listening as the phone began to ring, then handed it back to Kate. “Talk! Get a number, or I'll beat you with this phone."
Kate took the phone in time to hear Rissa answering. “Benneteau Beautiful, Larissa speaking.”
"Rissa, hi, it's Kate. I'm sorry to bother you so early, I just wanted to call and thank you for a great evening Saturday. That was such an elegant cocktail party. I really had a great time."
Shannon was mouthing to her to 'get his number' and Kate slapped at her arm.
Rissa responded, “Kate? Sorry, I’m just going through some client lists at the moment and my mind is elsewhere. I’m glad you enjoyed it. I have a few more events coming up. I’d love it if you could join us. I love having different classes of people to mix and mingle, keeps things interesting. It’s so good for Alec to be seen as a man of the people.”
Kate didn’t miss the ‘different classes of people’ dig. She’d never been quite high-brow enough for Rissa.
“Oh! Of course. I’d love that. Just give me a little notice. I travel in my job sometimes, but if I'm in town, I’d love to come. And listen...uh...I was wondering if you might have a phone number for someone, one of your guests.”
“Well, I can try, depends who it is. I mean a lot of my guests are Congressmen, Senators, you know the type. I can’t give out their private numbers and besides, the way you ran out of there I’d have guessed you didn’t have a very enjoyable evening. So exactly whose number did you want? Is this a potential client for Brunswick Agency, perhaps?”
“I...uh...yes, he could be a client. His name was Medici? Shade Medici?” Kate heard Rissa actually laugh out loud.
“Oh, sorry, but I don’t think that would be a wise decision. Shade Medici is European aristocracy, and when I tell you he’s a player, I do mean player. The man has women at his feet. He picks and chooses who he’ll play with. Haven’t you learned your lesson from your last player? Shade has them lined up, three a night. And seriously, to be honest, I think he’s a bit much for you to handle.”
“Oh, I didn't realize.”
Kate was aware Shannon could overhear the conversation. She was yanking on Kate’s arm and mouthing, 'Get the fucking number!’ Kate felt torn between the information Rissa was sharing and Shannon tugging at her arm.
“But...it’s not personal...I, uh, thought our agency could benefit him. It's purely business. So, if you don't mind sharing his number…”
“Kate, when it comes to Shade Medici, where there’s business, there’s fucking, and he’s not exactly into safe vanilla stuff. But if you want to step off the ledge and fall flat on your face, who am I to tell you different? Oh, and don’t forget, keep your date book open for our annual Halloween Party. I have so much planned for it. Hang on a sec. I have his number here somewhere.”
Kate heard the rustling of paper. Rissa finally repeated Shade’s number for her and issued a last warning, “Don’t get caught up in his bullshit, I’m serious, Kate. Don’t let his big blue eyes and charming accent fool you. I’m going to email you the next party invite I’m having. Check your mail.”
Rissa had given her Shade’s number, and enough bad news about him to make her want to run for the hills. She wrote the number down as she repeated it back, and then signed off.
Shannon grabbed the paper and her phone, and programed the number in right away, then handed it back to her and said, "Call!"
Kate looked at her incredulously. "Did you hear what she said about him? Seriously, I’m setting myself up for a big fall here.”
“Look, every guy you date doesn't have to be husband material. Sometimes you can actually just date someone for fun. Get it? You just have to know what you’re getting into. This man likes you. He has money. Who cares if it goes anywhere? Go out with him. Have fun, and when it's over, it's over. Now call!”
“Yeah, okay. I'll call.” She slipped her phone back into her purse.
“No, call now! I know you.” Shannon grabbed the phone from her purse and handed it to her. “Call!”
Kate took the phone from her and hit dial, listening to it ring several times before it went to voicemail. She ended the call without saying anything.
“You didn't leave a message? Oh my god, you didn't leave a message? Kate, you’re hopeless.”
“I didn’t know what to say. What kind of message would I leave? ‘Hey…I’m that girl who ran away from you at the party. The girl you bought dinner and wine for who couldn’t even talk?’ I'll call again later.”
“No, you won't.” Shannon sighed. “Don't let him get away. Do something!”
“I will. I said I'd call later. Now get back in your cubicle before we get in trouble.”
Kate returned to her desk and started working, but he stayed in her head. They got through the work day and she stuck around until about 6:30, trying to get caught up, before catching the metro back home. It was dusk out and she scurried through the few blocks to her condo, getting upstairs and changing clothes. The evening felt cool, so she started a fire in the gas fireplace and curled up with a book. She thought of him, but Shannon was right, she didn’t have the nerve to call.
***
Waking from his death slumber, Shade rose and threw his legs over the side of the bed, sitting there waiting for the cobwebs to clear from his head. He checked the clock and knew it was safe for him to venture outside. He decided to shower and teleport over to Kate’s humble abode to protect her, unawares of course.
He’d taken a luxury penthouse suite in a complex just across the street, where he could see clearly into the large windows of her bedroom and living room. He had a direct line of sight, and with his exceptional immortal vision, he could see everything. He could be close but not on top of her, watching over her until she fell into her slumber.
He stood up and grabbed his phone and saw he had a few missed calls. He checked them quickly, and recognized them all except for one that came early in the morning hours, shortly after he fell into his death slumber. It was a northern Virginia exchange. Walking to the window, he saw some low lighting in her living room. She sat in front of a fire reading a book. Could it be? Only one way to find out. Hitting redial, he watched as she picked up her cell phone... Cazzo, it was her! He saw her answer the phone without checking the caller ID. "Hello."
“Buonasera, mi amore. You called?”
"I, yes, I did call. I hope that's okay."
“It is more than okay, Kate. I hope there wasn’t a problem with your meal or the wine. That would surely break my heart.”
He stood at the window and watch
ed her. She looked relaxed and cozy. She was wearing a large sweater that hung off one shoulder. Her legs were bare and curled under her. Her bulky white socks were only a few shades lighter than her lily-white skin. He almost laughed watching her twirl those crimson curls around her finger in nervousness. Even dressed like this, in an oversized sweater, she was beautiful and sexy. Cazzo, what in the hell is the tiny sexy female doing to me? He could see her take a deep breath to calm herself.
Kate felt less intimidated by him when talking to him on the phone. “No. The meal was wonderful, thanks to you and the wine. That was quite generous. I wanted to thank you. I should have thanked you then, I apologize. But…” She ran her hand through her hair. “I don’t know, Mr. Medici, there’s something about you that leaves me... undone. I'm not sure I'm in your league.”
Shade picked up on the unspoken thoughts in her head. Rissa! That bitch was already trying to ruin her for him. He should have known she’d run her mouth.
“Ah, please Kate, will you call me Shade? Mr. Medici is much too formal, and I do not think we need such formality now that we have met several times, si? Please do not let my wealth, or being at the Canton party, give you false impressions of me. I am a simple man. I oversee my family business of producing wine. I am quite harmless. Might I have the pleasure of knowing your occupation? It would interest me greatly.”
He could see her relax back in the chair as she answered him. “Oh, nothing as exotic as owning a vineyard in Italy, I assure you. I work for the Brunswick Agency. It’s an ad agency. We handle big accounts, luxury cars like Bugatti, some big jewelry houses like Harry Winston. Oh, and Jimmy Choo! Love that one, we get a discount. We create advertising campaigns, arrange for photo shoots, magazine spreads, and do commercials. That type of thing. I was lucky to get on there. I did an unpaid internship with them when I was in college at Georgetown, and it paid off in the long run. How about you? What brings you to the States?”
He listened to her chatter and watched her from his window, seeing her relax. He could sense she was more at ease speaking with him over the phone than in person. He wanted to teleport over there, ring the bell, walk in, and cuddle her on his lap while having this conversation.