Love in the City, an erotic romance novel

by Hall, Heather

  She gave him a big smile, cheering up considerably, and leaned closer to him. “You would cook for me? You’re gorgeous, sexy, successful and you cook as well?”

  He laughed. “Yeah, my mom taught both my brother and I to cook when we were young. She thought it was important for us to be able to take care of ourselves.”

  “Wow, you are too good to be true,” she said. “It’s like I’ve won some kind of man lottery or something.”

  “Kind of you to say, but I can’t take credit for most of it. My parents were good to us. They raised us well, plus, we’ve had a lot of advantages and help along the way.”

  “And modest,” she added, admiring his handsome features and attractive physique. “Definitely too good to be true.”

  “Except I’m not. I’m real. This,” he said, looking down at her small hand in his, “this is real.”

  *****

  Giorgio dropped her off at work. He reminded her to call him once Raquel had spoken to her about the Tsar campaign. He also said that he’d be hanging out with Nikolas tonight, helping him to sort things out and offering moral support, but that she was welcome to call him anytime.

  Anabelle headed into the office on pins and needles. She said good morning to Jennifer and then went to her desk, waiting for some news.

  Finally, around 10:30 a.m., Raquel called her into her office.

  “Anabelle,” she said, not bothering to offer her a seat, “I wanted to let you know that we won the Tsar Enterprises deal. It’s a great opportunity for Kinetic.”

  “Great,” Anabelle replied flatly, just looking at her. She’d wait and see what Raquel would say next.

  Raquel paused for a moment. She looked almost queasy, but she managed an obviously fake smile. “In fact, they chose your ad campaign. Congratulations. I’ll see to it that you get a bonus for winning this job.”

  “Thanks,” Anabelle replied, not showing any emotion.

  Raquel regarded her carefully. No surprise. No reaction. She knew. Giorgio. They were still together. She cleared her throat and looked down at her desk. “Well, that’ll be all then. Good work.”

  Anabelle gave her a half smile in response and left. She spent the rest of the workday updating her resume and searching for headhunters and other marketing agencies that had openings. She wouldn’t be staying any longer than she had to.

  Chapter 28

  Friday came and Anabelle couldn’t wait for the day to end. She was breathless with anticipation.

  At 5:30 p.m., Giorgio came to pick her up in his Jaguar. He wore a casual indigo blue button-down shirt and dark denims. His shirt was open at the collar, showing a bit of his dark chest hair. His thick hair was casually tousled. That and his hint of facial hair made him look at once model-handsome and sexy as anything.

  He came over to give Anabelle a hug. His cologne was intoxicatingly masculine. He whispered in her ear, “I’ve missed you.”

  She hugged him back, loving the feeling of being in his arms again. Time apart from him was now feeling like an eternity to her. “Me too.”

  “You look beautiful,” he said, admiring her sleeveless, form-fitting dark red cocktail dress. “Very sexy, if I may say so.”

  “Why, thank you,” she said, happy that he had noticed. She had wanted to make that impression on him tonight. Show him that she could be a little more va-va-voom when she wanted to.

  Her backless dress had a tastefully sexy V-neck in the front and fell a couple of inches above her knees. She accessorized it with the diamond heart pendant he had given her, along with the Versace watch. The dress complemented her hourglass figure and coupled with the black high heels she wore, gave her a very elegant and alluring look. She was carrying the black blazer she had worn over the dress for the day to make it more appropriate for the office.

  “Shall we?” he asked. “I’m looking forward to having you over to my place finally.”

  “Let’s go,” she said. Even all dressed up, she was nervous about this. It was easier to forget how wealthy he was when they were hanging out at her place or in a restaurant together. She was still somewhat fighting back the feeling that she didn’t belong in his world. She kept that to herself as Giorgio drove them to his place in Central Park West.

  After making it through Manhattan traffic they had arrived. “Wow,” she said, as they drove up to the front of the condominium complex. “Nice building.”

  Giorgio smiled, then turned the car off as the valet came up to the door and took the keys from him. He got out of the car. “Thanks, Carson.”

  “Of course, Mr. Tsarkopolis,” the young man nodded. “Have a good evening.”

  Giorgio smiled at him, then came around and got Anabelle’s door for her.

  The formally attired doorman opened the entrance door for them as they walked into the building. They walked across the huge stylishly designed and decorated lobby to the elevators. Giorgio swiped a security card and pressed the button for the restricted 41st floor. The penthouse suite.

  Anabelle grew even more nervous. Giorgio’s building was like nothing she’d seen in person before. It was a stunning piece of architecture. They exited the elevator, which was a quick and smooth ride, and he unlocked and opened his door for her.

  “I’ll give you a tour once we get settled, if you like,” he offered.

  “I’d love that,” she said, as she took in the huge space before her.

  He showed her into his place. She was in awe. It was like something she had only seen in magazines. He took her blazer and hung it up. “Would you like a drink?”

  “Just water at the moment,” she answered. “Thanks.” She followed him across the gleaming hardwood floors into the bright, spacious kitchen.

  The kitchen had a large island in the middle, oversized stainless steel appliances, a wine fridge, and slate grey granite countertops complemented by dark wood cabinets, with polished stainless steel handles. They both sipped on glasses of filtered water he poured for them, and then he gave her a tour of his two-story, 3800 sq. ft. penthouse apartment. It was accented in warm wood, with brushed silver fixtures. It had clean lines, soaring ceilings, and was immaculate.

  “Wow, nice place,” Anabelle said. “It looks so spotless. Do you even live here?”

  “Well, I work a lot, eat out or at the office fairly often, and my cleaning lady is in once a week, so I can’t really take all the credit for it.”

  “It’s stunning,” she said, as they headed into his spacious living room. “That’s a great painting, too. Very bold, striking.”

  “Thanks,” he said, looking up at the large abstract painting hanging above the sectional sofa. “I thought so, too. It’s by Ben Passano. I bought it at an art gallery opening a few months ago. I thought it would look good in here.”

  “You have really good taste in décor and furnishings,” she said, looking around.

  “I can’t really take credit for most of that either,” he said, as he came up behind her and gave her a hug. “I hired an interior decorator to help me. He was a friend of Bernard’s. This place was too big for me to figure out what to do by myself. Us bachelors need a lot of help, you know.” He kissed the back of her head.

  She wrapped her arms around his, leaning back into him.

  He then showed her the sweeping, wraparound deck. They took in the sights and sounds of Central Park from his front row view.

  “This is all just incredible,” she said.

  He smiled. “I’m going to start prepping dinner. You’re welcome to stay out here if you like, or relax on the sofa, or…”

  “I’d like to come with you,” she said, “I can give you a hand.”

  “You don’t have to do that, but I’d love the company. You can watch me prepare some of my mom’s favorite recipes.”

  “Ooh, I can’t wait.”

  They headed back in and Giorgio turned some music on. “A little Greek music, while I prepare a Greek meal for my beautiful girl.”

  She beamed at him.

  He took
out the ingredients for the meal he had planned and explained each of the dishes to her. He was making Horiatiki Salata to start, a tomato, onion, cucumber, and bell pepper salad, topped with Greek feta cheese and accompanied by Greek olives. Next would be the Patates Tiganites, a crispy fried potato for a side dish. And then, Melitzana Skharas, grilled eggplant bowls and vegetables.

  “Sounds delicious,” Anabelle said. “Your mom must be a great cook. What’s her name?”

  “Alesia, and yes, she’s the best Greek cook I’ve ever known. She taught my brother and I lots of recipes. She thought at least that way her sons wouldn’t be malnourished and could fend for themselves. I miss her. So does Nikolas.”

  Giorgio told her how his mom left to go back to Greece after his father died from prostate cancer last year. She’d been heartbroken over the loss of her husband of almost 40 years and since she hadn’t been involved in the business and missed their relatives back home, she returned to their homeland.

  “You need to go back to visit her,” Anabelle said.

  He nodded. “Yeah, Nikolas and I have been talking about it.” He looked up at her as he was washing the produce. “Maybe you could come, too,” he said.

  She was momentarily stunned by the suggestion. She didn’t know what to say.

  He saw her reaction. “When the time is right, of course. When it would work for you. No rush or anything. I just remembered your Dream Board.”

  She smiled and nodded. “Greece has been high on my list forever. I’d love to go there.”

  “Greeks make great tour guides there, you know,” he said, winking at her.

  “I’ll have to keep that in mind,” she replied, grinning at him.

  He offered her a glass of Retsina, a popular and unique-tasting Greek white wine, with a history dating back 2000 years.

  “Mmmm,” she said after taking a sip. “That’s really good, different, but good. It has kind of a pine needle flavor.”

  “Not everyone likes it, so don’t feel bad if it’s not your taste.”

  She shook her head. “No, honestly, I love it.” She watched as he chopped up the ingredients and started preparing their dinner. As things started to cook, it smelled heavenly to her. He wouldn’t let her help, so she sipped the wine and they talked.

  Anabelle mentioned that she had given Sarah an update last night over the phone on where things were at between her and Giorgio and that Sarah was supportive of her. She was planning to meet Sarah at Painter’s Cove Saturday night to catch up more in person. Giorgio told her that he was glad that her relationship with him wasn’t a source of friction for her and her friend. They agreed the four of them should go on a double date soon and get to know one another. Anabelle also mentioned how close Sarah and Barry were becoming, and that she thought they were a really good match. She said she could see them staying together over the long haul. Giorgio looked forward to meeting them.

  When dinner was ready, he refilled her wine, lit a candle on the table and served them up.

  “This is wonderful, Giorgio, thank you so much for going to all this trouble.”

  “It’s my pleasure. It’s nice to have someone to cook for. I actually enjoy doing it.”

  Anabelle placed her napkin on her lap.

  Giorgio lifted his glass. “A toast,” he said, “Stin ygeia mas. It’s Greek for ‘To our health’.”

  She smiled and clinked his glass. “To our health.”

  Over their intimate candlelit dinner, which Anabelle remarked was delicious, they continued talking and getting to know more about one another’s work and families. Giorgio again congratulated her on her work at Kinetic winning the Tsar bid. They toasted to her success. He reiterated how impressed they had been with her vision and message and how it was exactly on point with what his company needed right now.

  In spite of that, Anabelle told him she was putting her resume out to look for a new job. He understand why she wanted to and agreed it was probably for the best. Raquel had treated her extremely poorly and had acted unprofessionally and inappropriately.

  Giorgio also shared more with Anabelle about his fairly new role as his company’s CEO. How things had gotten off to a rocky and uncertain start. He explained how it was a much harder role than he had ever realized, since his father had made it look so easy, having been the company’s founder. He said he was glad to have Portia gone now and hoped things would start looking up.

  Anabelle told him that she recognized how difficult things must have been for him with his engagement ending the same year as his father died prematurely and the company being handed over to him at the young age of 35. Then his mother left the country. He was only 36 now and had huge burdens on his shoulders. She asked him how he handled so much pressure and stress all at once, including the unraveling of things due to Portia’s betrayal. He said that he was relying on Nikolas a lot and that he had pretty much turned into a workaholic since his father died.

  Her heart went out to him, thinking about how much he was dealing with in addition to their recent relationship troubles. She wanted to find a way to help him somehow.

  As they finished their meals, Giorgio suggested something. “I’d also like to introduce you to my brother. He wants to meet you.”

  “That sounds great,” she said. “How’s he doing with everything that happened?”

  “It’s been pretty rough. The divorce will be proceeding pretty quickly and we’re working on the business end of things. Portia’s been pretty quiet. Thankfully, she hightailed it out of town for now. We’ll only be communicating with her through lawyers from here on in.”

  Anabelle nodded and sipped her wine.

  “We’re actually getting ready for his move this weekend,” Giorgio said, “maybe we could get together for a drink or dinner after that? I could introduce the two of you then.”

  Anabelle thought about it for a moment. “I can come and help you guys, you know,” she suggested. “I wouldn’t mind.”

  “Really?” he asked, surprised. “You don’t have to do that. We’re hiring movers for the big stuff. We’re just taking care of the smaller, personal things he doesn’t want lost or damaged and organizing everything for the movers to handle.”

  “I’d be happy to, I’m pretty good with packing and organizing,” she said. “Unless it’s intrusive, I don’t want…”

  He shook his head and reached out for her hand. “Not at all,” he said, smiling. “It’s very thoughtful. I’m sure Nik would love the help.”

  “Excellent. I think it would be a good bonding experience, too. We can get to know one another a bit more.”

  “It would be a good way to just hang out together for a few hours,” he said.

  “Yeah, plus I feel really bad for him with everything he’s been through, that you’ve both been through. I’d really like to help out however I can. We’re kind of all in this together,” she said, shrugging her shoulders.

  Giorgio looked at her for a moment, his blue eyes soft and warm. “You are a very special person, Anabelle Parker. I’m going to hang onto you, if you don’t mind.”

  She squeezed his hand. “I don’t mind at all. I was hoping you would.”

  Chapter 29

  “That was one of the best meals I’ve ever had,” Anabelle said. She leaned forward over the table to take his hand. “It was absolutely delicious. You are an amazing cook.”

  He cleared his throat as he tried to avert his eyes from her low-cut dress, trying to be a gentleman. He looked into her eyes, admiring her beauty in the candlelight. “I’m glad you enjoyed it. My mom would be proud of me if she heard you say that.”

  “You know, Mr. Tsarkopolis, you are just full of surprises.” She smiled and stroked his hand, feeling the effects of the wine. “There are just so many interesting things you do that I enjoy.”

  He raised his eyebrows, caught off guard by her suggestive comment. He smiled, blushing. “Dessert?”

  She grinned at him, but then shook her head. “I’m way too full right now. But
I’d like to be able to exercise that option later, if I may.”

  “Of course,” he said, “it’ll be waiting for you whenever you’re hungry enough. Just let me know.”

  “I will.” Her hazel eyes sparkled with mischievous intent.

  He gave her sly smile. He got up and went over to kiss her, his hand brushing against her hair and the skin of her back as he did. “You’ll like it when you do,” he whispered into her ear.

  She felt her temperature spike.

  As Giorgio got up to clear the table, Anabelle went to freshen up in the main floor bathroom. He watched her walk away, admiring her feminine form, her shapely behind and the way her soft-looking hair fell down her bare back. He whistled to himself.

  A few minutes later, she came back and joined him in the kitchen as he was finishing up putting things away.

  Provocatively, she leaned over on the kitchen island on her elbows, her full cleavage once again catching his eye. The two glasses of wine had emboldened her a bit and she was feeling like being fairly direct with him. “So, since we’ve been getting to know one another more tonight, I have a question I’d like to ask you,” she said, looking up at him. “It’s been on my mind since we first met.”

  Distracted by her assets, he replied, “Go right ahead.” He was thinking how she could ask for anything from him looking like that.

  “Why was a guy like you interested in a girl like me?”

  He looked surprised. “What do you mean?”

  She pressed her lips together, a little embarrassed at the subject, but she needed to know. “Well, I don’t exactly look like…most of the women you must come into contact with working in Manhattan.” She looked over at him, a bit worried about what his answer might be. She stood up and tucked her hair behind her ear. “They’re so slender, so perfectly put together, so polished. And I’m, well, not exactly skinny.” She motioned down her frame. “I’m a little…curvier, I guess is the polite term…” She turned beet red.