settle for treating him like her personal slave tonight.
“I’ve been on my feet all day,” she evaded his husky one-word question. She lifted her lids and collided with his blue eyes gazing at her. Her heart stuttered. She’d barely looked at him when she’d arrived, trying to keep the temptation of touching him to a minimum, but now that he pinned her with his eyes, the obvious couldn’t escape her attention.
“Your injuries are gone!”
Ari shot up from the backrest and ran her eyes over every square inch of his skin, but there wasn’t a single bruise on his face, no cut, no blemish, and no swelling. How was that possible? Last night he’d looked like his entire face had been bashed in.
Dio shrugged and grinned. “Guess I heal fast, huh?”
Her mouth still gaped open. “That’s not medically possible.”
“Told you I didn’t need a hospital. It was probably all blood from whoever attacked me and made me look worse than it was.”
Sure, some of the blood could have been the other guy’s, but that didn’t explain why the swelling around his eye was gone and his formerly split lip was unmarred. “Did you put some ice on it last night?”
“Like you told me to.”
She nodded. “Maybe it wasn’t quite as bad as it seemed after all.” Yet she still couldn’t believe it. She had expected his face to be swollen for at least four or five days, considering the way he’d looked when she’d found him in the parking lot.
“See, there was nothing to worry about.”
She snorted. “Says the man without a memory. Any news on that?” Ari tensed instinctively. What if he’d already started to remember things? She eyed him from under her lashes, trying to read him.
“Nothing whatsoever. That’s why I’m glad you’re here now. I figured you could tell me a little about me. Maybe it’ll make me remember things faster.”
She swallowed. Did she really want to help him gain his memory back when her entire plan relied on him being clueless as to who he was—or more importantly, what kind of jerk he was?
“I don’t really know where to start.”
Dio’s hands stroked leisurely along her ankles. “How did we meet?”
In order not to trip herself up in the future, she decided to stick with the truth, or at least a version of it. “At my shop. You came to buy wine. And then you asked me out.”
“Just like that?”
She smiled. “You’re very persuasive.” He hadn’t given up until she’d agreed to a date. And she’d loved that about him. He’d made her feel wanted.
His fingers trailed higher up her calf, the touch still light. Nevertheless, it sent a wave of warmth rolling up her legs.
“Am I?” He rewarded her with one of his devastating smiles and bent closer. “How persuasive?”
She frowned. It figured that he’d turn the whole situation toward sex. She could feel it in her bones. The glint in his eyes was a clear sign of desire, and the way his hands now moved up to her knees mirrored what she read in them. She pulled back slightly. “Not that persuasive.” Then she took a deep breath, trying to block out his touch. “We started dating. And then we got engaged.”
“That simple? How long were we dating?”
“Seven months.” She hoped her answer was convincing. Did people get engaged that quickly?
“Sounds fast.”
Ari shrugged. “It’s all relative.”
“I guess that means we’re very much in love?” His hand suddenly left her knees and moved higher up under the seam of her skirt.
She had to stop him before it went any further and put her hand over his to halt his progress. “Very much. And we respect each other. That’s why we decided to wait.”
Dio’s eyebrows drew together, and his mouth tightened into a thin line. “Yeah, you said that last night. But I don’t get it. If we’re that much in love why wait? I can’t imagine that I ever agreed to that.”
“You did,” she said hastily, her mind scrambling for a convincing explanation. What had she
“I’ve been on my feet all day,” she evaded his husky one-word question. She lifted her lids and collided with his blue eyes gazing at her. Her heart stuttered. She’d barely looked at him when she’d arrived, trying to keep the temptation of touching him to a minimum, but now that he pinned her with his eyes, the obvious couldn’t escape her attention.
“Your injuries are gone!”
Ari shot up from the backrest and ran her eyes over every square inch of his skin, but there wasn’t a single bruise on his face, no cut, no blemish, and no swelling. How was that possible? Last night he’d looked like his entire face had been bashed in.
Dio shrugged and grinned. “Guess I heal fast, huh?”
Her mouth still gaped open. “That’s not medically possible.”
“Told you I didn’t need a hospital. It was probably all blood from whoever attacked me and made me look worse than it was.”
Sure, some of the blood could have been the other guy’s, but that didn’t explain why the swelling around his eye was gone and his formerly split lip was unmarred. “Did you put some ice on it last night?”
“Like you told me to.”
She nodded. “Maybe it wasn’t quite as bad as it seemed after all.” Yet she still couldn’t believe it. She had expected his face to be swollen for at least four or five days, considering the way he’d looked when she’d found him in the parking lot.
“See, there was nothing to worry about.”
She snorted. “Says the man without a memory. Any news on that?” Ari tensed instinctively. What if he’d already started to remember things? She eyed him from under her lashes, trying to read him.
“Nothing whatsoever. That’s why I’m glad you’re here now. I figured you could tell me a little about me. Maybe it’ll make me remember things faster.”
She swallowed. Did she really want to help him gain his memory back when her entire plan relied on him being clueless as to who he was—or more importantly, what kind of jerk he was?
“I don’t really know where to start.”
Dio’s hands stroked leisurely along her ankles. “How did we meet?”
In order not to trip herself up in the future, she decided to stick with the truth, or at least a version of it. “At my shop. You came to buy wine. And then you asked me out.”
“Just like that?”
She smiled. “You’re very persuasive.” He hadn’t given up until she’d agreed to a date. And she’d loved that about him. He’d made her feel wanted.
His fingers trailed higher up her calf, the touch still light. Nevertheless, it sent a wave of warmth rolling up her legs.
“Am I?” He rewarded her with one of his devastating smiles and bent closer. “How persuasive?”
She frowned. It figured that he’d turn the whole situation toward sex. She could feel it in her bones. The glint in his eyes was a clear sign of desire, and the way his hands now moved up to her knees mirrored what she read in them. She pulled back slightly. “Not that persuasive.” Then she took a deep breath, trying to block out his touch. “We started dating. And then we got engaged.”
“That simple? How long were we dating?”
“Seven months.” She hoped her answer was convincing. Did people get engaged that quickly?
“Sounds fast.”
Ari shrugged. “It’s all relative.”
“I guess that means we’re very much in love?” His hand suddenly left her knees and moved higher up under the seam of her skirt.
She had to stop him before it went any further and put her hand over his to halt his progress. “Very much. And we respect each other. That’s why we decided to wait.”
Dio’s eyebrows drew together, and his mouth tightened into a thin line. “Yeah, you said that last night. But I don’t get it. If we’re that much in love why wait? I can’t imagine that I ever agreed to that.”
“You did,” she said hastily, her mind scrambling for a convincing explanation. What had she
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