She wasn’t sure if that meant Blake had asked for them or if Andy had merely improvised. Did it matter, she asked herself as he held her chair out just as she’d expected.
As she sat down, she glimpsed the tulips on the side table. That was probably why he’d looked at her strangely before going upstairs to change. He must think her so ungrateful.
“Oh, Blake, I should have said something earlier. Thank you so much for the tulips. They’re absolutely gorgeous.”
“You like them, then?” He looked pleased as he sat down opposite her.
“I love them.”
He considered her. “You getting hit on the head was very good for me.”
She blinked. “It was?”
“I learned two things about you. What your favorite flower is, and your favorite color.”
“Want to know my favorite perfume, too?” she joked, touched by his words.
Only he didn’t laugh. “It’s Paris by Yves Saint Laurent,” he said with an unexpected thickness to his voice that made her nerves tingle.
“You know?”
“You bought some the first time we went to Paris together, remember?” He made it sound like they’d been together in Paris for something other than business.
Surprised he remembered that time two years ago when she’d first gone to work for him, she dropped her gaze and fanned her napkin over her lap, though she rather felt like fanning her face instead. “This looks delicious.”#p#分页标题#e#
There was a slight pause. “Yes.”
She could feel his eyes on her as she picked up her fork and finally looked at him again. “So, what was the problem in Vegas that you needed to go there in such a hurry?”
A moment ticked by then he picked up his fork. “There was a problem with one of the chefs. He was being a bit too temperamental, and the kitchen staff was threatening to walk out. It was beginning to escalate into a big commotion with the union s. It started to get ugly.”
“And it’s sorted out now?”
“Of course.”
She had to smile. “Naturally. You wouldn’t have come back otherwise, right?”
Suddenly there was an air of watchfulness about him. “What happened to your date with Joel tonight?”
She’d wondered if he’d mention it. And then something else occurred to her. Could he have arranged to get Joel out of the way tonight? The thought made her pulse race. “His cousin’s in Aspen for the night and he wanted to spend time with her.” She tilted her head. “You didn’t have anything to do with that, did you?”
His brow rose. “Me? Am I that good?”
“Yes!” she exclaimed on a half chuckle.
A flash of humor crossed his face. “Believe me, I’m not that clever.”
It did sound silly now. Blake could make things happen, but this time he’d have to find Joel’s cousin and get that person to come to Aspen. Why would he bother? He knew he merely had to send her flowers and arrange dinner and she’d capitulate like every woman before her.
“Anyway, how are you feeling?” he asked.
“Terrific.”
He searched her face, then inclined his head as if satisfied. “At least you only worked half the day.”
Her eyes widened. “How do you know that?”
“I checked with Erica. She said you’d left at lunchtime.”
She smiled wryly. “Did she also tell you she checked on me nearly every hour after that?”
“She promised me she would.”
Why was she not surprised? “That was a bit over the top, wasn’t it?”
“I don’t think so.”
She tried not to look more into it than there was. He probably wanted her all better so he could get rid of her faster. Then she knew that wasn’t fair of her and she pulled her thoughts back into line. “You always were concerned for your staff, Blake. Thank you.”
He looked at her strangely, as if he couldn’t understand why she was putting herself in with the rest of his staff. But if that were the case, didn’t that mean he was thinking she was something more to him than she actually was?
God, she had to stop thinking so much!
She picked up her wineglass. “You know, Blake. Erica isn’t as bad as you imagine her to be. I suspect she’d still have kept an eye on me even without you asking her.” She took a sip of her drink but watched him carefully over the rim of her glass.
His brows furrowed. “I guess so.” As much as he appeared to concede the point, he didn’t look totally convinced about Erica’s intentions.
Samantha understood why. “You think she’s only doing something nice for a reason, don’t you?”