“Don’t mention it.”
I take my seat across from her, a grin tugging at my mouth. “Sometimes I can be a gentleman and behave myself.”
“So miraclesdohappen.”
I laugh without thinking about it. “You gonna spend the rest of our lives busting my balls like that?”
“Wit and wordplay are my only weapons in an arranged marriage like ours,” she answers smoothly.
Our server arrives, pouring us each a glass of red wine. I wait ’til she’s gone before I lean forward.
“What do you mean by that?”
Simone gently folds her cloth napkin in her lap, suddenly unable to meet my eyes. “You know what I mean.”
“Hey,” I say, reaching across the table and grabbing her hand. The gesture forces her to go still and her gaze to flick up to mine. “I get this hasn’t been easy. Neither of us exactly had this on our bingo card. We’re still adjusting. Marriage is a pretty serious step… and we got married right after hello.”
She releases a rare, small laugh—the first time she’s ever laughed at anything I’ve said. The sound is soft and genuine, and it draws me in.
It makes me even more certain I want to do it again. I want to earn more out of her.
“That’s probably the understatement of the century,” she says finally. “One day I wasn’t even sure I’d ever get married. Twenty-four hours later, I was engaged. Then married within the week.”
I lean back in my chair, releasing her hand and steepling my own. Our server has delivered us some Caesar salads, and Simone has taken another sip of her wine.
An idea comes to me to address the issue we’ve identified.
“So… tell me more about yourself.”
She raises a brow. “You’re serious?”
“Pretend this is our first date,” I say. “And we’re not even married. We’re meeting each other for the first time. Again. What would you say to me?”
“Ronan…” she shakes her head as if finding the prospect ridiculous.
“Humor me.”
“Okay,” she says with a small sigh. “Um… well, I’m Simone Ashante Langston. I’m twenty-five. I graduated from NYU and majored in communications and marketing. It’s what I do for a living—I’m the Public Relations Director for Langston Defense Solutions.”
I nod, taking a drink from my wine. “You’re that lady who finessed the press when they had all those questions about the recent embezzlement scandal.”
It’s an off-color remark, but it’s enough to earn my second real laugh out of her. Her eyes light up, and her expression softens.
“I guess I did finesse them, didn’t I? Call it a talent.”
“Youdohave a talented tongue,” I say, unable to resist.
She rolls her eyes, but she’s still smiling. “I walked right into that one. Okay, your turn. What about you? You’re meeting me for the first time. Tell me about yourself.”
I take my time answering, relaxed in my chair, scrubbing a hand at my jaw to fight off a grin. “I’m Ronan Callahan, and I’m a businessman.”
“What kind of business?” she asks, playing along.
“Don’t ask me what business,” I say, my tone mock-serious. “Because it’s none of your business what’s my business. But what I can tell you is I enjoy spoiling a beautiful woman like yourself. Which is all that matters.”
She almost chokes on the mouthful of salad she’s eating, trying to fight off a laugh. “Do you normally use those kinds of lines on women?”
“Honestly? No. Most women in my world already know who I am. They’re ready to drop their panties as soon as we’re alone. But for a woman like you? Yes.”