Gramercy Nights (The Argo Press Trilogy Book 1) (20 page)

I laugh, pushing Sebastian playfully, but he doesn’t release me. If anything, his hold on my hips tightens as he drags me closer, and I can feel his arousal through his pants.

I push up onto the balls of my feet and place a kiss to Sebastian’s lips. “As lovely as all that sounds, I need coffee.”

Sebastian’s whole body shakes with laughter and finally, he releases me, but not before kissing me one last time.

“Take a seat.”

Sebastian rounds the kitchen counter and goes to a sleek black machine completely unlike any coffee maker I’ve encountered before. And trust me, I’ve seen my fair share of coffeemakers.

“Large or small?” he asks, glancing up at me and for a second, I’m just lost in his beautiful green eyes. I don’t know what I’d been expecting when I woke up this morning, what I expected after last night, but it certainly wasn’t this. This just seems so normal.

“Like you really need to ask,” I answer when I finally get my voice back.

He grabs a jewel colored capsule and places it into the machine and suddenly, the delicious aroma of freshly brewed coffee fills the air and I let my eyes close, inhaling deeply.

God, there’s no better smell on earth.

“Do you have plans today?” Sebastian asks, sliding a dainty coffee cup in front of me.

“
This
is large?” My forehead comes together and I look up at him questioningly. “No plans that I can think of,” I say, picking up my coffee and glancing at Sebastian. He’s watching me carefully and suddenly I’m nervous that he’s about to ask me to leave. We haven’t done the whole morning after thing before, and I have no idea what’s expected. Should I excuse myself before it gets awkward and he has to ask me to leave?

“I have some work to do this afternoon,” he starts, running a hand through his thick dark hair, “but do you want to stay?”

My mouth drops open in surprise. I was really expecting something more along the lines of, ‘Finish your coffee, my driver will take you home.’

“I’d like you to stay,” he insists when I don’t respond and you’d think from the expression on his face he was asking me to whack him upside the head with a 2X4 instead of spend the day with him. He shifts nervously before adding, “I’d like to get to know you better.”

“Are you sure?”

He nods.

I find myself smiling. “That sounds great.”

Because the truth is, I really would like to get to know Sebastian better.

I can see the relief on Sebastian’s face and he smiles, suddenly relaxing. “I let my assistant know you’d need some clothing, but she won’t be here until later. In the meantime, take this,” he says, pulling his sweater over his head and tossing it to me. “I thought we could have breakfast upstairs.”

The soft heather grey sweater is still warm from Sebastian’s body as I pull it on, inhaling the soothing smell of Sebastian that clings to the material. I glance down at myself and laugh. “I look ridiculous.” Sebastian is a good foot taller than I am and the sweater grazes my knees.

Sebastian looks up, a smile spreading across his face. “You look adorable,
petitona.
”

I frown. I don’t know if adorable is exactly the way I want Sebastian to see me, but there’s something oddly comforting about wearing a man’s clothing. It reminds me of being little. Of sharing sweatshirts on cold fall nights.

I shake my head.

“Will you be warm enough?” Sebastian asks, and I can see the concern in his eyes.

“You worry too much,” I say with a smile. For a moment, Sebastian looks relieved and I watch as he gathers breakfast together on a wooden tray. Pastries. Coffee. Fruit salad.

By the time he’s ready, my mouth is watering and I’ve almost forgotten that we’re going upstairs. I’m ravenous.

Sebastian grabs the tray and glances over his shoulder at me. “Come on.”

I never explored Sebastian’s properly. I was a little too distracted by the man himself to concern myself with the apartment where he lives, but I’m amazed that I managed to miss the cast iron spiral staircase tucked away next to the guest bedroom.

I follow Sebastian up the stairs and then outside. Cool autumn air washes over me and I’m speechless. It’s stunning. Absolutely stunning.

I turn to Sebastian in awe. “This is your roof?”

He lifts his shoulder in a sheepish shrug. “Do you like it?”

“Do I like it?” I laugh. “Are you kidding? What’s not to like?”

We are surrounded by lush greenery. Planters overflowing with plants. In one corner is an iconic New York City water tower, wood and iron giving it the appearance of something from another era. Then again, Sebastian’s building was likely built more than a hundred years ago. They just don’t make buildings like this any more.

I can see the pride in Sebastian’s eyes. “I love it up here. It’s the reason I bought the apartment. Sometimes I just come up here and sit, trying to get away from it all. I can just pretend I’m somewhere else. In a world all my own.”

“How long have you lived here?” I asked, surprised by Sebastian’s candor.

“Seven years or so,” he says with a shrug.

“What were you doing in London before that?”

“Working for my father,” he answers, his tone suddenly chilly, and it’s clear he doesn’t want to talk about it. “Come on,” he says, smiling and dismissing whatever melancholy usually drives him up here. And I can’t help but wonder what made him come up here that first night we were together.

He said it was a phone call. But now I wonder.

We snake through the planters. The garden is wild. Free. Natural. It’s stunning. If I lived here, I’d be hard-pressed to pick which I loved more: the garden or the library.

Sebastian sets the tray down on a small circular cast-iron table and pulls out a chair for me.

“After you,” he says, running his hand across my shoulders and I shiver. Because even the most innocent of caresses from Sebastian has my body suddenly on high alert.

“I could get used to this,” I say, regretting the words the second they leave my mouth. There’s no getting used to this. This is a fantasy I get to live in only for a few short months, if that, and I can’t forget that. None of this is real, at least not for me.

Sebastian is standing behind me, massaging my shoulders and I feel his hot breath on my neck. I wish I could see him. Wish I could know what he’s thinking.

“Good,” he whispers, “because I don’t want you going anywhere.”

There’s an edge beneath Sebastian’s light hearted tone and I shudder, suddenly afraid. Except, I don’t know what I’m afraid of.

Sebastian? Or the way I feel when I’m with him?

He takes a seat across from me and stretches out his long legs. He looks perfectly content and relaxed as he sips his coffee and watches me, a ghost of a smile crossing his lips.

“What?”

He shakes his head. “Nothing. I’m just glad you decided to stay. Come on, eat. These are the best chocolate croissants in the city.”

“The best in the city? That’s a lot to live up to.”

Sebastian raises one eyebrow and I can see the amusement glittering in his eyes. “I happen to be quite the expert in croissants.”

“Of course you are,” I say, grabbing one off the tray. Something tells me that if Sebastian says they are great, they’ll be out of this world. “What do you have to do this afternoon?” I ask before sinking my teeth into the flaky pastry. Buttery layers dissolve on my tongue.

Yup, he was right. It’s definitely something else.

“There’s a manuscript I need to read.”

“Anything interesting?”

“Ever heard of Malcolm Renault?”

My eyes widen in surprise. Of course I’ve heard of Malcolm Renault. Everyone has heard of Malcolm Renault. Playboy author whose first book was published when he was only twenty-five, causing a huge uproar. Because even though it was published as a novel, everyone suspected most of the exploits it depicted came straight from his life.

Sebastian laughs. “I’ll take that as a yes,” he says, spearing a piece of melon on his fork and plopping it into his mouth. “He’s looking for an American publisher to reprint his first novel. I want to see what he’s been working on recently.”

“That’s fantastic.”

“Malcolm’s a bloody nightmare to work with.” Sebastian shrugs. “But I don’t want to talk about work. All I do is work. I want to hear about you.”

I laugh nervously. “There’s not much to say.”

Sebastian frowns. “We both know that’s not true.”

“Trust me, my life is supremely boring. I work. I translate. That’s about it.” I shrug my shoulders. “I wish it were more interesting.”

“Danielle, don’t sell yourself short.” Sebastian leans forward, his full attention centered on me and I can feel my pulse quicken. There’s something terrifying and yet wonderful about being caught in Sebastian’s line of sight, his undivided attention focused entirely on me. I find myself holding my breath as I wait for Sebastian to say something.

His eyes sparkle mischievously. He leans back, his posture relaxed but I can see the strong muscles beneath his shirt and it doesn’t take much to imagine him undressed and I find myself licking my lips.

“Where did you grow up?” Sebastian asks, knocking me off-guard and I find myself laughing.

“Long Island.”

“Apartment or house?”

“House. But it was small so it was more like an apartment.”

“Did you have any pets?”

“You’re kidding?”

He shakes his head. “I said I wanted to get to know you.”

“No pets. My father was allergic. And then, we just didn’t have time.”

“Did you want pets?”

My eyes narrow on Sebastian suspiciously, but he seems completely open. “Not particularly. I mean, I probably wanted a dog when I was little. Everyone wants a dog when they’re little, but I don’t remember it being some big trauma. What about you? Any pets?”

Sebastian smiles with childish delight. “A dog. Named Cuqueta.”

I laugh. “You named your dog little bug?”

I try to imagine Sebastian as a little boy but somehow the imagine just won’t coalesce.

He shrugs. “Don’t laugh. It’s a great name.”

By the time we go back downstairs, Sebastian’s personal assistant has come and gone, the only evidence of her presence the shopping bags next to the door.

“This is way too much,” I say, laughing at the pile of bags on the floor. “I would have been more than happy with a pair of leggings and a t-shirt.”

“My assistant loves any excuse to shop. And trust me, I’m sure it will be worth it seeing you try everything on.”

I blush, turning away. No one has ever looked at me the way Sebastian does and it’s unnerving. I’m not used to being seen as a sex object. Sure, I’m attractive, but Sebastian acts like I’m the most desirable woman alive. It’s unnerving and arousing and just a tad bit confusing because I don’t know what he sees in me.

I dig through my bag, looking for my phone and blanch the moment I see the number of missed calls.

Fuck.

Connor has been calling all morning, only my phone has been on silent. I curse, remembering my promise to call him when I got home last night.

“Is everything okay?” Sebastian asks and I just nod my head distractedly as I hit call.

“So she’s alive,” Connor says when he answers on the first ring. “Next time you let a strange man drive you home, please call me so I know you’re alive.”

I grimace. “Sorry, I totally blanked. I was so tired when I got home I just fell asleep. My phone was on silent.”

Connor sighs heavily but I can tell he’s relieved. I feel guilty for worrying him. Especially given what I was doing last night. And I feel worse about lying to him. Unfortunately, I don’t think the truth would be any better received.

I glance up to find Sebastian watching me closely. “Who is it?” he mouths and I cover my phone with my hand. “Connor.”

Sebastian’s eyebrows come together but thankfully, he keeps his mouth shut.

“Do you want to grab dinner later?” I hear Connor asking and I tear my eyes away from Sebastian.

“I can’t. Maybe tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow’s perfect. And Danny, next time just call.”

“Yes, dad.”

Connor laughs and hangs up the phone and then I’m faced with Sebastian.

“How’s Connor?”

I smile weakly. “He’s good. Just worried is all.”

“Why?”

“Because last night I disappeared with a strange man. Haven’t you ever heard don’t get into cars with strangers?”

Sebastian frowns. “I’m not a stranger.”

“I know that,” I say patiently. “But Connor doesn’t.”

“He has nothing to worry about.”

I stare at Sebastian for a moment before whispering, “Are you so sure about that?”

And for a moment, Sebastian just stares back and I can see the hurt in his eyes, the confusion and I regret my words, but then he takes my phone from my hand and puts it aside before tugging me close, hugging me to his strong chest.