Billionaire's Island Bride(10)

She could hear the chuckles as she slipped outside. They must think her so pathetic. The ugly duckling, finally asked out on a date when they’d been out every night since they got to the island. While the girls made friends she would return to her room each night and curl up in the sofa with a good book. Not that she’d minded. Now, though, she had her chance to prove to them that she was just as desirable as they were.

The day flew by and before Erin knew it the sun had begun to slide down toward the horizon. Her heart did a bunny hop in her chest. This was it. Her first date while on spring break.

She dressed carefully, picking out a simple yet elegant black dress. She accessorized with a pearl necklace and matching earrings then slipped her feet into high heeled sandals. Now it was time for her hair and face. As she usually did when trying to look sophisticated she took a firm brush to her curls then pinned her hair up into a neat bun. The face was more challenging. She wanted to look good but doing makeup had never been her strong point. She tried some eye shadow and hated it. She had no clue what she was doing and didn’t want to ask any of the girls. She’d been humiliated enough for one day. In the end she gave up and settled for foundation, lip gloss and eyeliner. If her date didn’t like her that way then that was his problem.

Then it was time to go. She’d been finding all sorts of excuses to dawdle - she couldn’t find her purse, she needed another glass of water, she had to redo her lip gloss - until it was ten minutes before the hour. Now she’d have to hurry to make it to Michelangelo’s on time. She could see that Dare was not the sort of man who’d take kindly to being kept waiting.

When Erin stepped into the lobby of Michelangelo’s she took a deep breath and clutched her purse tightly in her hands. She peered down the dimly lit hallway toward the salon then breathed a sigh of relief. He wasn’t here yet. Her racing pulse began to decelerate toward normal.

“Good evening, Erin.”

She jumped then whipped round to peer into the darkness of the hallway. And there he stood, tall and imposing in an elegant dinner jacket of dark gray. Those piercing gray eyes glittered in the dim light and she felt as if his gaze stripped her bare.

“Dare,” she said, her voice breathless, “I didn’t see you over there.”

“I know you didn’t. Come.” He gave her his arm. “A table is reserved for us.”

She rested her hand on his arm and as she did so a shiver ran through her. Furtively, she glanced up at him through her lashes. Had he felt it, her body’s reaction to his? She hoped he hadn’t. That was just what she would need - her body making its response to him unmistakably clear. She breathed a soft sigh of relief when he gave no indication that he’d felt it. He simply kept on walking, her hand tucked into the crook of his arm.#p#分页标题#e#

The maitre d’ bowed low, showing extreme deference to Dare, then directed them to a private room adjoining the restaurant, an elegantly decorated room aglow with the soft light of a dozen candles shining through stained glass shades that lined the walls. In the middle of the table was what looked like a bouquet of flowers but turned out to be flower shaped candles from which an almost heavenly fragrance wafted.

Dare released her arm and pulled out her chair then he went to sit across from her, his eyes never once leaving her face. It was if he was seeing her for the first time, so intense was his stare. Or was there something more? There was a gleam in his eyes, one that she could not decipher. The only word that came to mind was ‘wicked’. She could feel her breathing grow shallow. Goodness, had she made a mistake in coming?

But then inexplicably his demeanor changed. Gone were the frown that had darkened his face, gone was the intense stare that was almost a glare, and in their place was a half-smile that, while not totally reassuring, made her breathing just a little bit easier.

Dare took charge, placing the order for both of them. He seemed familiar with everything on the menu so there was no need to question his recommendation.

In fact, just then Erin was feeling so out of her depth she doubted she would have been able to order anyway. She wasn’t even sure she’d be able to eat when the meal arrived. Dropping her hands to her lap she twisted her napkin with shaking fingers and pasted a bright smile on her face.

“Are you alright?” Dare’s frown was back. He was watching her intently, his gray eyes glittering like shards of glass in the candlelight.

“I’m…fine, thank you.” The words came out stilted and strained. She swallowed and tried again, hiding desperately behind her fake smile. “This is a really nice place. It seems to be the nicest restaurant at the resort.”