Ultimate Love Read Free

he had another thought. There was a new restaurant a block away and it would provide a more intimate setting.
    What was he thinking! He brought himself up short. Was he losing his mind? She had such an effect on him! It was not like him to cancel meetings on a whim with little notice, but the fire and passion in her voice and body was calling to him on a deep animal level. She was absolutely stunning, with fire flashing in those green eyes, and the lift of her chin exposing a long slender neck with tendrils of chestnut hair falling softly over her cheeks. Her flesh beneath her dress was burning into his palm, and it was all he could do to not let his hand fall lower, over the exquisite curve of her hip.
    Jared forced his mind back to their surroundings and steered her confidently across the street and down a small side alley towards the new restaurant. He thought that this was just a man enjoying lunch with a beautiful woman. Nothing to get upset over. He would use the experience to sharpen his business sense, that was all. He would enjoy the view over a good lunch and be revived for the afternoon ahead. He had a very important business deal to broker later on in the day, and a little visual stimulation over lunch would fire up his appetite for the negotiations ahead.
    While Jared was convincing himself that she had not unduly affected him, Dinah was trying to focus on the thoughts in her head. But the feeling of his hand on the small of her back was making all coherent thought difficult. Her mind was turning to wondering what it would feel like if his hand was on her bare skin, but with extreme effort she managed to marshal her thoughts. She had this opportunity over lunch to show him how much her business meant to her, and how he had to allow her to stay in the premises. A whole lunch hour was more than she had dreamed she'd get and she had to make the most of it!
    The maître-d showed them to a small intimate table towards the back of the restaurant. The lighting was subtle, making them feel like they were the only two diners in the room. It was a small Italian restaurant, unique for its intimate atmosphere unlike most restaurants in the area that were loud and open places for people to see and be seen.
    Dinah forced herself to smile as she sat down and looked over into the deep blue eyes of Jared Knight opposite her. She had to focus on her business! It was in trouble and she couldn't let her hormones forget that! No matter if he was the most gorgeous man she had ever seen. No matter that he exuded sheer masculine energy. She had to convince him not to cancel her lease!
    "I'm sure that if you take a look at these figures you'll agree that keeping my lease open is a good business measure. You'll get so much more for the property with a tenant able to pay the lease than with it empty!" she said as she fished out a small sheaf of papers from her bag and handed them over the table to him. He took the papers and glanced at the top sheet before dismissing them with a casual wave of his hand.
    "That may be, but when I redevelop the block it will produce a better return than undeveloped as it is," he replied. "Be assured Miss Luxford, I've crunched the numbers and it has to be done."
    "Oh no! But you can't! Most businesses can't afford to pay much more than they're paying already! We're all reliant on the permanent population and the people who live there don't have lots of money to throw around like you do down here in the city!" she snapped back at him. "In fact, some local businesses have gone under recently. They can't cope with these tough economic times, and you raise their leases! They'll never be able to pay it!"
    He had to admit that she was beautiful when she was angry! Fire flashed in those green eyes, and the heightened color in her flushed face made her look sexy and tousled. He thought he had never before seen a mouth quite as ripe for kissing as hers. He could vaguely smell the fruity lip-gloss she wore, and