Kiss a Frog (The Book Club Series 1)

by Jade, Scarlett

  “See you!” she called, and Olivia’s head jerked up.

  “Woo woo! Hot mama!” Olivia whistled, and Lily laughed as she left the mall and ran for the parking lot.

  Her hands shook as she fumbled with the keys and opened her door, tossing everything into the passenger seat as she clambered in and started the car. She drove fast through the city, breathing a sigh of relief as she pulled into the parking lot of the illustrious Chateau Parisienne. She turned on the light inside the car and checked her reflection in the rearview mirror.

  You’ll do. She scrambled out of the car and across the street to the restaurant. A maître d’ opened the door for her. “Mademoiselle.”

  Lily froze as she looked down at her feet. She still wore her sneakers. “I-I’ll, be back!” She choked, turning to stumble down the stairs like a drunk person and dodge cars as she sprinted back to the car and got her heels. Slipping them on, she blew out a slow breath and forced herself to calm down. According to her phone she was now ten minutes late for her date. Bile rose in her throat as she crossed the street and climbed the stairs again.

  The man opened the door again, a funny little smirk on his face. “Mademoiselle?”

  “I’m good now,” Lily whispered.

  She stepped inside the opulent restaurant and felt her mouth open slightly. She’d heard of the beauty of the restaurant but had never seen it in person, only pictures. Rich velvets hung from the windows in shades of sapphire and scarlet, and the tables dripped with iridescent ivory table coverings. Gold chandeliers with fountains of crystals hung over each table. The place was beyond swanky, it practically oozed money.

  She finally took everything in and closed her mouth so she didn’t look like a fish out of water. As she scanned the opening to the dining room, she saw a man standing near a fireplace that looked vaguely familiar. He was absolutely beautiful, breathtakingly so, and as her ovaries exploded inside her, she realized she knew exactly who it was. It was the man she’d thrown up on, and he was staring right back at her with brilliant whiskey covered eyes.

  Oh shit. She clamped a hand over her mouth and ran for the bathroom, her heels clacking on the tile floor. He’s not my date, he can’t be my date. No! He’s here for someone else. But he’s here! Lily skidded into the bathroom and barely closed the door before she puked into the pristine toilet. With a shaky hand, she wiped at her mouth and flushed the toilet. Shifting to the sink, she surveyed her face. Her makeup was firmly in place.

  Turning on the cold water she cupped her hand and rinsed her mouth out. Digging into her purse she found a breath mint and popped it in her mouth. She smoothed her hair and checked the front of her dress for chunks of puke. Once she was satisfied with her appearance, she blew out a slow breath and opened the bathroom door. He stood just outside the bathrooms in the crimson hallway, nursing a tumbler of something to drink.

  “Lily?”

  Shit. Lily froze in the doorway of the bathroom, jumping with a squeal as the door slapped her ass. “Yes?” she choked out.

  “I’m Luca. Olivia’s brother.” He smirked, and she groaned.

  “No, you can’t be.” Lily breathed, squeezing her eyes closed as if it was all a terrible, horrible dream.

  He chuckled softly. “I’m Luca. I do believe we’ve met before.”

  “I puked on your shoes,” Lily wailed.

  “Yeah, luckily though, they weren’t my favorite shoes.”

  “I can’t do this,” Lily whispered.

  “Sure you can. We’ll forget about the shoes. In fact, I’ll never mention the shoes again. The shoes are inconsequential. Oops, I mentioned them. I’m sorry. Okay. Look, let’s get out of the hallway to the bathroom and start again, okay?” Luca’s emerald eyes twinkled merrily.

  Lily pressed a hand to her stomach and nodded. “Okay, let’s do that.” She followed the broad shouldered man out into the foyer of the restaurant and nearly ran into him as he stopped abruptly and turned. She backed up a step, wavering on her heels. “Oops,” she murmured, her cheeks hot.

  Luca laughed again, and he held out a tanned hand. “Hello, I’m Luca De Soros.”

  Lily swallowed and stared for a moment at his hand before sliding her own into his grasp. “I’m Lily Halloway,” she gasped out, the sensation of his hand touching hers more than she could bear. If she’d thought Charlie’s hand had felt amazing, Luca’s was beyond compare. Heat simmered through the very pores of her skin and it was almost as though he was swimming amongst her DNA just with the simple, innocent handshake.

  “You’re absolutely adorable, Lily Halloway, even when you do puke on my shoes.” Luca winked, bringing her knuckles up to his succulent, firm mouth for a kiss. Her knees buckled slightly as his lips brushed against her fingers.

  “Oh!” she moaned out, her face flaming with embarrassment. She snatched her hand from his grasp and tried to wipe the heat of his hand off on her dress. “Um, we should sit,” she finally managed to splutter out.

  “Absolutely.” Luca grinned, offering his arm like a chivalrous gentleman for her to take. Lily wanted to melt into the floor and die as she tucked her hand into his elbow. He was gorgeous, and here she was, a bargain bin reject. I should’ve gone to get another dress!

  He led them through the packed restaurant, and Lily kept her eyes down until they got to their table. She moved to pull out her chair, and he stopped her. “Please, Lily, let me.”

  “Sure,” she garbled out, stepping back as he pulled out her chair. She sat carefully, and he pushed her closer to the table before sitting across from her. They sat in a quiet alcove of the restaurant with a spectacular view of the water. “I’m so sorry I was late.”

  “It’s no problem, my nosy sister let me know you’d be a bit late.”

  “Oh. Olivia is a good girl.”

  “She is. I can’t believe it’s really you!” Luca exclaimed, setting his tumbler on the table and leaning back in his chair. “I felt so bad about leaving you at the coffee shop, but your friends were swarming and they said they had you. Are you okay?”

  Lily blushed hot again, and she ducked her chin. “I’m fine, only my pride was wounded.”

  “I’m sorry. Please, forgive me. My mother would be beating me with her purse right now if she knew I was embarrassing such a beautiful woman on our first date.” Luca pleaded, his eyes soft.

  Lily would have given him anything he wanted in that moment as lust clouded her brain. “Of course, all is forgiven.”

  At that moment the waiter came to their table. “May I get you something to drink this evening?”

  Luca raised his dark eyebrow and asked, “Lily, what would you like?”

  “Ah, maybe a little champagne would be nice.” She really wanted something harder to ease her nerves, but champagne would do for now. She had to be coherent enough to drive.

  “A bottle of your best champagne.” Luca relayed to the waiter.

  “Very good, I’ll return promptly.” The young man skirted away.

  Lily blurted before she could stop herself, “The best?”

  “Absolutely.” Luca winked. “Olivia would kill me otherwise.”

  “Sounds like the women in your family keep you in line.”

  “They do. I love them. I just wish I could convince stubborn Olivia to let me give her a job.” He sighed, rolling his eyes in irritation.

  “Oh? What do you do?” Lily asked, her interest piqued.

  “I’m an FBI agent. Olivia wants to do just meaningless beat work in some rinky dink cop job after college, and I can’t let the kid do that. She’s too smart. But she’s stubborn.” Luca explained.

  “Ooh, an FBI agent? That’s awesome!”

  “It has its perks, I guess. I was in the military, and I was good at what I did. I just decided the military wasn’t something I wanted to make a career out of. So I applied at the bureau and worked my way up.” Luca vaguely explained.

  “Is what you do considered classified?” Lily murmured softly.

  He didn’t respon
d as the waiter came back with their champagne and popped the cork. After two glasses were filled, Luca waved him away. “A lot of it is, yes,” Luca finally answered.

  “Are you dangerous?” Lily couldn’t stop images from flashing through her mind of Luca taking down bad guys.

  “To you?” Luca laughed then, his white teeth flashing in his swarthy face. “Maybe, but not for the reasons you’re thinking of.”

  Lily flushed at his words and her eyes dropped to the shimmering tablecloth. “Oh my.”

  “Again, my mother would be beating me with that purse. Tell me about you, Lily. I’m not going to take over the conversation.”

  Lily shrugged and fingered the edge of the fabric on the table. “Me? I’m unremarkable.”

  “I seriously doubt that,” Luca murmured, his warm, rough finger somehow under her chin as he tipped it up. Lily drowned in the heat of his eyes, and she swallowed nervously before pulling away.

  “Oh, ask my best friends, they’ll tell you I’m a sassy mouthed klutz with a crappy job.” She giggled nervously.

  “I like sassy mouthed klutzes.” Luca sipped his champagne.

  “What if I puke on another pair of your shoes?”

  Luca grinned, the smile slipping slowly over his face. “I’ll just have to make sure you’re not nervous around me, won’t I?”

  “That’s going to be impossible,” Lily blurted.

  “Why?” he asked innocently, twirling the stem of the champagne flute between his thumb and forefinger.

  “Because you-you’re gorgeous,” Lily stammered, her cheeks hotter than they’d ever been.

  “But I’m calm around you, and you’re stunning, so you’ll have to come up with another excuse, because frankly I haven’t been able to get you off my mind since the coffee shop. I’ve been in there almost every night about the same time, hoping to catch a glimpse of you again, but no luck. It was like you just disappeared, Lily.”

  “Oh. I was embarrassed.”

  “Well, it wasn’t exactly the most graceful meeting, but it was memorable,” Luca drawled as he finished his champagne and placed the flute back on the table. “I frankly didn’t care if you were my date or not tonight, I was going to have you one way or the other. Lucky me, you were her.”

  Heat pooled between her legs, and she clenched them together, hoping to quell the ache at his words. I was going to have you one way or another…oh, sweet baby Jesus. Lily chugged back her champagne and was grateful for the waiter coming back to their table.

  “Are you ready to order?”

  Luca took command of the situation. “What would you recommend? Lily, is there anything you don’t like?” He paused, waiting for her response.

  “Escargot is a no,” she replied.

  “Your recommendations, please?” Luca asked the waiter.

  “I would recommend a lovely steak with bleu cheese and a scallop risotto.”

  “How does that sound?”

  Lily felt her stomach rumble, and she licked her lips. “Sounds delicious.”

  “Then make that two of those,” Luca ordered. “Thank you.” As the waiter walked away, he poured them both more champagne. “Thank God you didn’t order a salad.”

  Lily patted her rumbling belly. “I didn’t get this sexy just eating salads.”

  “Well, you’re certainly sexy, there’s no denying that,” Luca agreed. Lily flushed again, and she sipped at her champagne, eying him over the rim of her glass. “You’re even sexier when you’re blushing,” Luca continued, running the tip of his finger around the edge of his flute. “Because it makes me wonder what else I can do to keep you blushing.”

  “Blushing is close to nervous, which is close to puking.” Lily reminded him.

  “Ah, good to know. Maybe we should steer back to safer waters. So tell me more about yourself. I believe there’s a lot more to Lily Halloway than just being a sassy mouthed klutz.”

  Lily shifted in her chair. “Well, my parents are socialites. They are horribly offended because I didn’t go to college.”

  “Why?” Luca wondered.

  “I was dating a guy at the time and chose to travel instead. Did I mention I was headstrong?”

  “Headstrong is a good quality.” Luca assured her.

  “Mmm, so a sassy mouthed, headstrong, klutzy woman is what you’re after?” Lily giggled, the two glasses of champagne already going to her head.

  “Sounds perfect to me.” Luca’s gaze bored into her, and she swam in the whiskey colored depths.

  Gulping nervously, she sipped at her champagne. Oh boy.

  Chapter Nine

  The Date (Part Two)

  Their food came a few moments later, and Lily was grateful to be spared from embarrassing herself further. The steak was a perfect medium rare, with a thick pat of butter and bleu cheese on the top. The risotto was creamy and perfect.

  “It looks incredible!”

  Luca opened his napkin with a flourish and settled it across his lap. “It does.” The waiter paused at their table.

  “Will there be anything else?” he asked.

  “Yes, can I have some water?” Lily opened her napkin and placed it on her lap, mimicking Luca’s motions.

  “Absolutely, one moment.” The waiter seemed flustered as he hurried away.

  “See, even the waiter thinks you’re stunning.” Luca pointed out.

  “Oh, stop. You’re just trying to win points now.” Lily giggled.

  “See, if you were with a normal guy, he might be trying to ply you with pretty phrases to get in your pants, but you’ll come to understand, Miss Lily Halloway, if you stick around me too long, I’m not most normal men.”

  Lily lowered her lashes and stared at the plate of food in front of her. “Tell me, Luca De Soros, what kind of man are you?”

  “I’m the kind who knows what he wants, and like I said, I wanted you, whether you were my date tonight or not.”

  Lily gasped and flicked her gaze back to his. “I knew you were dangerous.”

  “Kind of, I guess.”

  “Explain that to me.” Lily took the glass of water the waiter brought her and took a sip.

  “It’s hard to explain, Lily. What if I told you I can read people?”

  Lily cut into her steak and popped a bite in her mouth. “So you’re a psychic FBI agent? That should be a TV show.”

  Luca’s eyes twinkled as he cut his steak. “Not quite like that. But I watch people. It’s fascinating to watch how people give themselves away. Even right now, as much as you’re trying to control yourself, I know you want me.”

  “Cocky, aren’t you?”

  “Tell me I’m lying. You’re flushed, your pulse is fluttering in your throat, and your nipples are delineated against the front of your dress. I’d even be willing to bet that your panties are wet right now. But if I’m wrong, please correct me.” Luca picked up a sliver of steak with his fork and slipped it between his lips.

  Lily reached for her water and drained the glass dry. She held it up and shook it at the waiter. As it was refilled, she drained it again. “More.” The waiter filled it, and she placed it back on the table, ignoring Luca’s words.

  But Luca seemed hell bent on not allowing her to forget his smoky, sensual words. “Tell me I’m wrong, Lily.”

  “You’re wrong.”

  “Ah, another tell, your voice just got high and shaky. Your pupils dilated in your lovely eyes and you bit your bottom lip. You’re a terrible liar, Lily.”

  “So? You’re an attractive man,” Lily admitted.

  “And I get under your skin. I make you nervous.”

  “Because you’re dangerous,” Lily lied.

  “I’m probably the safest guy in here tonight, sweetheart.”

  “What does that mean?”

  “It means a lot of things. I’m the safest guy in here tonight. I won’t hurt you.”

  “Well it’s not every day I go out with an FBI agent. I mean what if you’re on some kind of mission and I mess everything up by
telling someone the wrong thing?” Lily giggled.

  Luca coughed, spluttering on a sip of champagne. He daubed at the corner of his mouth with a napkin and smiled tightly. “You keep your secrets locked up tighter than Fort Knox. You’re constantly on guard, I see it in your eyes. I’m not afraid you’ll spill my secret.”

  “I’m not guarded.”

  “You are. You keep looking down at your plate, you don’t want anyone to get a chance to figure out what’s going on in that pretty head of yours. It’s like you know those bedroom eyes give you away even when your mouth won’t.”

  Lily ate in silence, her emotions in an uproar. Luca wasn’t a safe kind of man, he was the best kind of bad boy, and she loved it. Loving bad boys had gotten her in trouble before, and a fleeting thought coursed through her mind. What if loving him gets me in trouble? Wait, whoa, no one is talking love yet. I’m just lusting after him. Maybe if I take him to bed just one time I can get him out of my system. Even as the thought went through her mind, she knew it was a lie. One time of Luca De Soros would never, ever be enough.

  They finished their dinner, and Lily wiped at her mouth and finished her water. “Dinner was lovely, thank you.”

  “Is the night over?”

  “Ah, what did you have in mind?” Lily asked, her mind instantly going to the gutter.

  “Feel up to a movie?”

  “Sure.” Lily watched him pay the bill and leave an exorbitant tip. She stood and picked up her purse, tucking her hand in Luca’s elbow as he offered it to her. They walked through the restaurant, and she felt him stiffen slightly as they passed a table. “Is everything okay?” she whispered, her voice low so only he could hear.

  “It’s fine, sweetheart. Don’t worry. What movie do you want to see? Want to ride with me?” Luca patted her hand.

  “There’s a new horror movie out…sure, I’ll ride you…I mean with you. With you.” She was grateful they were stepping out into the dusk and her crimson cheeks were disguised by the night.