Free Damek's Redemption: Legacy, Book 6 by N.J. Walters Page A

knew when a man was setting the stage for a seduction, and this had all the earmarks of one—a quiet dinner, a limo, soft music, champagne on the way to the restaurant.
    The sound of a quiet pop brought her attention back to Damek. He’d opened the bottle and was already pouring some of the golden liquid into a crystal champagne flute, which he’d pulled out of a velvet-lined drawer next to the fridge.
    “Try some. You don’t have to finish it if you don’t like it.” Like the most practiced sommelier, he handed her the glass.
    It would be a shame not to at least try it. After all, he’d opened the bottle just for her, and on her salary she wouldn’t be buying a bottle of the stuff anytime soon. She had her fingers clutched tight around her purse so she disengaged them and set her bag on the seat beside her. She licked her lips and reached for the glass, trying not to notice how her hand trembled as she took it. She hoped he wouldn’t notice but had a feeling he was the kind of man who didn’t miss anything.
    She brought the glass to her lips and took a sip. The bubbles tickled her tongue and the golden liquid flowed down her throat. “Oh, this is wonderful.” She’d never tasted anything quite like it and knew she would never forget it. On the sinful scale, it rated right up there with dark Belgian chocolate.
    “I’m glad you like it.”
    His low voice set off tiny explosions in the nerve endings in her body, making all of them come alive with anticipation. It was then she noticed he wasn’t drinking champagne. He’d poured himself a dark red wine instead. He swirled the liquid in the crystal glass, the blood-red color glinting off the interior lights.
    “You’re not having champagne?”
    Damek shook his head. “It’s not to my taste. I prefer a full-bodied drink.” He put the wineglass to his lips and drank. His throat rippled as he swallowed and her gazed followed the strong column of muscle until it disappeared into the neck of his shirt.
    She’d seen men drink before, but never had she found it such an erotic activity. Sonia took another sip of champagne, touched that he would open the bottle of such an expensive vintage just for her.
    Her eyes narrowed the more she thought about it. “I’m not sleeping with you,” she blurted out. Some men thought if they bought drinks and dinner it paid for their way into her bed. Better to rid him of that notion right now before their night went any further.
    Damek seemed startled by her declaration, then he threw back his head and laughed. Heat crept up her cheeks as it occurred to her he might not even be all that attracted to her. Maybe the flirting came natural to him. And how depressing was that.
    Obviously, he was a rich guy and used to things like fancy cars and champagne. Just because she dreamed about him and thought he looked like sex on a stick didn’t mean he felt the same way about her.
    Sonia was mortified and bent her head to study her shoes. “Maybe you should drop me off at my hotel.” Better to leave now than to keep humiliating herself.
    His laugher ceased and he caught her chin between his thumb and forefinger, applying pressure until she looked at him. “I am not laughing at what you said, Sonia, but at your spontaneity. It is so refreshing.”
    “I’ll bet,” she groused. He probably had beautiful, sophisticated women throwing themselves at him all the time. No wonder an ordinary academic amused him. She was different from what he was used to.
    He ran his thumb over her cheek and shook his head. “Make no mistake, my sweet. I want you.” She gasped as his thumb traced her bottom lip, leaving it tingling in his wake. “But when you come to my bed it will be of your own free will and not because I expect it or bought you dinner or plied you with expensive champagne.”
    Struck speechless once again, a feat that would no doubt shock her family to their core, Sonia said nothing. Her hands clung to the delicate stem of her champagne