Worth the Challenge by Karen Erickson Read Free Book Online

drunk.
    Had she ever been full-blown drunk? She didn’t think so.
    “They have the best cheesecake in the world.” Oh, he was a devil, tempting her with cheesecake, her absolute favorite dessert. His blue eyes twinkled and his smile was full of mischief. He must’ve been a hellion as a boy, probably got away with anything and everything, what with how he exuded so much natural charm.
    Charm she was falling for, though she was a fool to even consider it.
    “I hate cheesecake,” she lied.
    His smile grew, a faint dimple appearing. Oh, he was cute. Handsome. Sexy. “I think you’re lying. Who hates cheesecake?”
    She sighed. “Fine, you twisted my arm.” He hadn’t twisted anything, she’d caved way too easily and his wicked grin told her he knew this.
    With her luck, he’d use it against her later. Maybe hold his body against her too…
    Ella slapped her hand over her mouth, covering her unwanted gasp. Where did that thought come from?
    “You won’t regret it,” he said just before he stopped the waiter from passing by. “One slice of cheesecake, please, and we’ll need two forks.”
    “We’re going to share?” Oh, dear. That felt even more intimate. This bogus dinner meeting was more like a date. Not that she’d been on a lot of dates, considering the guys she’d been with in the past had been friends that morphed into relationships. She’d been younger then and terribly broke, as her past boyfriends had been too.
    “It’s a huge piece,” he explained, sounding perfectly logical. “It’s smarter if we share.”
    “Oh.” Well. She couldn’t protest that, could she? “Listen, I don’t know what’s happening between us here.”
    He arched a brow. Wow, he was good at that. “What do you mean?”
    “This dinner meeting we’re having.”
    “I thought it went well.” He paused and studied her, as if carefully gauging her mood. “We’re still in agreement, aren’t we? You’re not going to back out.”
    “No,” she said vehemently, shaking her head. “Of course not.”
    “Then what’s the problem?” He sounded genuinely perplexed.
    Which in turn, filled her with doubt. Was she overreacting? Maybe the wine had gone to her head faster than she thought. “Never mind.” She waved her hand. “I’m being silly.”
    “No, tell me. What’s bothering you?”
    The waiter magically appeared, brandishing a plate with the most heavenly looking slice of cheesecake she’d ever seen. “Enjoy,” he said once he set the plate between them, resting each fork on either side.
    “Wow.” Ella eagerly reached for her fork, thankful for the interruption. Crisis avoided, thank goodness. The last thing she needed was to make an utter fool out of herself. “This looks amazing.”
    “Dig in,” he encouraged, and she did, though she noticed he held back. He watched her, making her incredibly self-conscious, and she hoped he wouldn’t bring the uncomfortable subject back up.
    But the moment the bite of cheesecake hit her taste buds, all thoughts of embarrassing admissions disappeared. “Oh, my God,” she groaned, trying her best to savor the bite before she swallowed. The slight tartness of the cheesecake combined with a hint of lemon, the sugary graham cracker crust and the homemade whipped cream…
    “You like it?” His voice was tight, as was his expression.
    “Yes,” she practically purred, forking up another bite. A bit of cream stuck to the corner of her mouth and she darted out her tongue, licking it away. Caught sight of Rhett’s heated gaze locked on her mouth.
    The breath left her body when she saw that look. His lids were lowered, but they didn’t disguise the desire she saw flaring in his eyes. Maybe this weird is-it-a-date/are-we-attracted-to-each-other thing she was feeling wasn’t so off after all.
    Reaching for her virtually untouched glass of water, she took a few swallows, then waved her fork in Rhett’s direction. “Have some. There’s no way I can finish it.”
    “Are