Warren calmly finished eating while watching Donnie compose himself with some degree of success. "Look, Cochran, it's not that serious. She was a pretty lady and she seemed to have a good sense of humor. I'm not trying to get busy with her, yet," he added, just to rile Donnie. "But there really is a charity event for the college of medicine this week. It's at that new gallery and it should be fun. A major exhibit, an auction, good food and wine and you can come along and chaperone, if you think she's that bad. And she might surprise you; she might be nicer than you think. Sometimes you just need to see someone in a different light in order to appreciate them fully."
Donnie's skepticism was plain but he refrained from answering because his mouth was full. Warren waited until Donnie had picked up his drink again and said in a voice of total innocence, "She must be one great kisser, Cochran."
After another choking spell, Donnie gave him an answer that was both profane and hilarious, if Warren's loud laughter was any indication.
***
Paris looked Angelique over carefully before letting her go downstairs to wait for Warren. Angelique turned around and struck a sultry pose. "Well? Will I do?" she drawled.
She was wearing a simple long-sleeved dress made of merino jersey. The hem was mid-calf and, in deference to the cold January night, she wore sexy black boots with high heels. The dress had a deep surplice neckline that stopped just short of showing any cleavage, but looked exquisitely sexy all the same due to the close fit of the supple knit, as well as the vibrant red color. Her hair was done in a soft French twist with careless tendrils along her nape and surrounding her face. Her only jewelry was a pair of big gold hoop earrings. She looked exciting, fresh and utterly lovely with die soft scent of her signature fragrance surrounding her and a red lipstick that matched the dress.
"Girl, you look wonderful. As Aidan would say, I have three words for you: Fab. U. Lous! You're gonna knock that Warren off his feet, I promise you!"
Angelique made a face as she pulled a big, warm wool scarf in a beautiful paisley print out of her drawer. Taking it and her small leather bag, she turned to Paris. "I'm not trying to turn anybody's head," she said earnestly. "He was just so nice and pleasant, I couldn't say no. And I'll be honest with you, the fact that Adonis was standing there looking like somebody's warden made me say yes, too. He hasn't spoken a word to me since New Year's Eve and he had the nerve to look at me like I was trying to pick his friend's pocket! Believe me, Warren could have been a lot less attractive and I would've still said yes. But he was so nice," she said with a little sigh. "Wait till you meet him; you'll see what I mean."
About forty-five minutes later, Angelique was still smiling over the look on Paris's face when she met Warren Alexander. Warren had arrived promptly, smelling divine and looking like the cover of a Gerald Levert CD in a beautifully made charcoal-gray cashmere coat. He was also wearing a crew-neck cream sweater with black pleated slacks and a jacket that looked custom tailored. He'd presented Angelique with a dozen deep-red tulips that matched her dress, and after the introductions Paris had taken the flowers into the kitchen to put in a vase. When Angelique followed her to let her know what time she planned on coming back, all Paris could do was nod and wave weakly. "He's too pretty, girl. Way too pretty. Dang."
Warren was indeed handsome, but he was also funny and warm and an entertaining person to be with. To her delight, she ran into A.J. at the showing and happily introduced him to Warren as her dearest friend. The two men looked each other over swiftly but thoroughly as they shook hands. Angelique was having a ball walking around, looking at the pieces on display. Warren, it turned out, knew quite a bit about art and was a wonderful person to chat with as they strolled around. There was only one thing that kept the evening from being perfect and that was the presence of Donnie, looming around like a vengeful wraith. He seemed to be watching her every move as though he truly believed she was going to try to take Warren's Rolex or pocket his wallet or something. Even when he was talking to other people, she could feel his eyes following her. She was idly contemplating revenge at a later date when she became aware that someone else was staring at her, too.
This time it was a woman, a very attractive woman, petite in stature with a very pretty head of hair worn in a tousled bob. She was wearing a long leather skirt, low-heeled boots and a beautiful cream angora sweater with a huge cowl neck worn off the shoulder. Every time Angelique looked up, the woman's eyes were on her, and it suddenly occurred to her that she wasn't the target of the woman's scrutiny. It was Warren who had her eye. After the auction started, Angelique lost track of the lady, but Donnie was never far away. To her intense irritation, he had latched on to her and Warren and seemed determined to be a part of their date. Even after they left the gallery and went to an afterglow at a fashionable restaurant, Donnie was still there.
They were all seated at a nicely secluded table; Warren was the most comfortable of the group. He was being charming and attentive without being grabby and Angelique was really enjoying herself, or she could have if that lanky, overgrown Adonis would find himself something else to do. Surely he had a woman of his own to torture. Despite her efforts to be a perfect lady, there was something about the way he was staring down her throat that made her want to scream. He looked handsome as always, in a midnight-navy suit that had a nice casual look to it with the gray band-collared shirt he wore as well. Every so often he'd be close enough for her to catch the expensive fragrance she always associated with him, which for some reason increased her irritation. After his terse greeting back at the gallery, he hadn't said another word to her, but he stared all night. She had reached the limit of her endurance and was about to get vocal with him when the mysterious woman from the gallery stopped at their table.
In a low, sexy voice with the slightest hint of an accent, she greeted them. "Hello, everyone. Pardon the interruption, but I wanted to say hello to Warren. I haven't seen him in such a long time," she said sweetly.
Warren gave a deep, genuine smile and stood up to give the woman a brief social hug. "Hello, Lisette, it really has been a long time. Everyone, this is Lisette Francois. Lisette, this is Angelique Deveraux and Donnie Cochran," he said graciously.
Lisette nodded and smiled at everyone at the table. "So nice to meet you all. I don't want to keep you from your friends, Warren. It was nice to see you again." She was about to leave when Angelique spoke up.
"Are you here alone? Would you like to join us?" she asked warmly.
Lisette stared at her for a moment and seemed to sense her sincerity. "Well, thank you, I'd love to if no one minds," she replied.
In no time most of the people at the table were chatting away like old friends. The one exception was Donnie, who was uncharacteristically quiet. He would speak when spoken to, but for the most part, he was watching Angelique as though he expected her to levitate out of her seat or something. It had been a most trying evening altogether for Donnie, starting with the gallery. He'd managed to get there before Warren and Angelique and from his position could see Warren helping her take her long black topcoat off. She also removed a brilliant paisley stole and handed it to Warren, a move that caused Donnie pain. He'd never seen her with her hair up, nor was he expecting what seemed to him to be a plunging neckline. There was no denying it: she looked wonderful. Beautiful, sexy, and happy. How one evil little woman could look so delicious and be so mean was beyond him.
He loitered around and watched with great interest as the couple encountered A.J., who was there with a date. To his astonishment, Angelique not only didn't seem upset, but she and A.J. had exchanged pecks on the cheek like siblings and introduced their dates to each other. Okay, so maybe she's not really dating the guy. That didn't change the fact that she had played him on New Year's Eve, however. The auction turned out to be a complete waste of his time, although it gave him an additional opportunity to check the couple out. Warren was being the perfect gentleman, it seemed; whatever he was doing had Angelique smiling for all she was worth and looking even more radiant