“Oh, please,” Zandra scoffed. “We both know you could step out that door right now and have thirty women scratching and clawing one another to go out on a date with you.”
He cocked a brow. “Only thirty?”
Zandra wasn’t amused. “I’m not setting you up with one of my girls.”
“Why not?”
Good question. “Because I’m not.”
His lips twitched. “That’s not an answer.”
She swallowed hard as he sauntered toward her, his unbuttoned shirt exposing his beautiful bare chest.
“We’re friends, Remy. I don’t set up friends and acquaintances with my escorts.”
He smirked. “You had no problem setting up Roderick and Lena.”
Busted. Damn.
“Is that what you’re worried about?” he taunted. “That I might fall for one of your girls and make her my wife?”
The blood drained from Zandra’s head.
“Of course not,” she managed to croak out. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
Remy stopped before her, those penetrating dark eyes searching her face. “Is it ridiculous, Zandra?” he challenged softly.
She couldn’t breathe. She held his gaze for one heart-stopping moment, then turned away and stalked to the door, appalled by how badly her legs were shaking.
“It’s time for you to leave,” she said coldly.
He regarded her in silence another moment, then shook his head and met her at the door.
“Set up that date, Zandra.” It wasn’t a request, and she knew it.
She glared up at him. “Go to hell.”
A sliver of some emotion flickered in the molten depths of his eyes. “I probably will,” he murmured.
With that, he walked out the door.
Chapter Eight
Three days later, Zandra met Lena for lunch at NoMI, an upscale restaurant perched high above Michigan Avenue inside the Park Hyatt. When Zandra arrived, Lena was already seated at one of the tables that overlooked downtown and Lake Michigan.
“Hey, girl.” Lena stood and hugged Zandra, then drew back to admire her eyelet linen skirt worn with an ivory button-down top and Gianvito Rossi sandals. “You look gorgeous. As usual.”
“So do you,” Zandra said warmly. “Not only are you wearing the hell out of that pantsuit, but you’ve still got the glow of a blushing bride.”
Lena grinned, her dark eyes twinkling. “Well, there might be another reason for that glow.”
“What do you mean?”
As Lena reached down and coyly rubbed her flat stomach, Zandra’s jaw dropped. She stared at Lena. “Are you...?”
“Preggers?” Lena beamed. “You betcha.”
“Oh, my God!”
The two women squealed excitedly and hugged, drawing curious stares from the other patrons.
As they pulled apart, Zandra gently cupped Lena’s cheek in her hand. “I’m so happy for you and Roderick. You’re going to make wonderful parents.”
Lena’s expression softened with gratitude. “Thank you, Zandra.”
“I meant every word. Now sit, sit. I want details. Not those details,” Zandra snorted at the wicked look Lena sent her. “Everyone already knows you and Roderick can’t keep your hands off each other. Hell, it’s a miracle you didn’t get knocked up sooner.”
Lena tipped back her head and laughed.
When the waiter appeared, they ordered their meals—ni?oise salad for Zandra, chilled buckwheat soba salad with prawns for Lena, and the signature sushi platter for both.
“Excellent choices, Mrs. Brand and Miss Kennedy.” The waiter beamed, clearly delighted to be serving two customers who frequently appeared on the society pages of the Chicago Tribune.
After he departed, Zandra draped her linen napkin across her lap and smiled at Lena. “So when did you find out you were pregnant?”
Lena grinned. “I just got the results yesterday, but I’ve suspected for the past two weeks now. It was so hard for me not to tell Roderick during our honeymoon, but I wanted to wait until I knew for sure. You should have seen how ecstatic he was. He picked me up and swung me around, and he actually got teary-eyed. Can you believe it?”