NINE

Imogen Holland sauntered towards Ethan, stunning in a short, red dress that hugged her body and drew the eye of every red blooded male (and female) in the restaurant to an impressive cleavage and shapely ass.

Fully aware of the effect she had on men, she gave Ethan a smile that brimmed with confidence in her body and sex appeal.

Under the combined force of that body and smile, Ethan mentally revised his earlier plans for the evening. He let his gaze sweep boldly over Imogen, frank male appreciation glittering in his eyes, lips curved in a devilish smile.

"Wow!" He drawled out the word, rising from his spot by the bar, where he'd spent a half hour waiting and approached her, not missing the way her body instinctively arched towards him, as if offering him a taste of heaven right there and then.

"Hey handsome," Imogen's voice was soft, filled with sultry promise. Her own gaze raked over him, lips curving in approval at the pale blue dress shirt tucked in to black chinos, a tailored, black blazer completing the outfit.

Her eyes lingered on the open neck of his shirt, the top two buttons undone, giving a glimpse of his neck. Her shiny, red lips parted in appreciation, a wild hunger in her eyes.

Ethan had no doubt that if chose to forget dinner, and take her back to her place for a night of hot, wild, sex, she wouldn't throw any objections.

Marcus' words came back to him. It had been over four months since he'd last had sex, too busy with the government contract his company had landed to give much thought to dating or taking a woman to his bed. Perhaps it was time to remedy that situation. Imogen was a beautiful, willing woman, and he was damn sure she was the adventurous type in bed.

The type of woman he liked in his bed.

He smiled, taking one of her hands and lifted it, placing a kiss on the back, while his other hand circled her tiny waist and drew her against his body.

"You look amazing tonight, Imogen," he murmured, holding her gaze with his, letting her see the list burning in their depths. "But then, you always look stunning."

He was gratified to catch the slight hitch of her breath, and the way her eyes darkened with arousal. He felt a stirring response in his groin

"Thank you, Ethan," she replied a trifle breathless, her face heated from the sudden flush of desire that suffused her entire body. "I wasn't sure you would come, but I'm glad you did."

"Me too," he kissed her knuckles, never breaking eye contact. "Very glad I'm here."

He released her and signalled to the waiting maître d to led the way to their table. He didn't miss the flash of disappointment in Imogen's eyes as he placed a hand at the small of her back to steer her and smiled to himself.

She definitely would have put up no objection whatsoever.

He was the perfect gentleman, holding her chair out and waiting until she was settled before taking his seat. A waiter already hovered nearby, waiting with a bottle of chilled wine on a tray.

"I took the liberty of ordering a bottle of wine," Ethan said to Imogen, gesturing for the waiter to pour. "I hope you like white wine? The Sauvignon Blanc goes wonderfully with any number of fish dishes."

"Sounds great." Imogen beamed at him, as the waiter poured some into a glass held it out to Ethan.

He accepted the sample, taking a moment to savor it, rolling the liquid around his tongue. Then he nodded for the man to pour into Imogen's glass.

She took a sip and sighed in pleasure.

"Mmm, nice and dry," she gave him a coy look, and the tip of her tongue peaked out to lick a stray droplet of wine off her lips. "You have an excellent taste in wine, Ethan."

"I have an uncle in the business. He liked to bore us with talk about wines making and quality."

"Well, you must have picked up a thing or two." She held up her glass in toast. "To a successful business deal."

He held up his own glass, clinking it with hers. "And to furthering our acquaintance."

Her eyes lit up at the veiled meaning. "I'll definitely drink to that."

The waiter handed them gold embossed menus, and Imogen launched into a discussion of choices with him.

Ethan listened with one ear while he allowed his gaze to run the length of the exclusive restaurant. Their table was at an intimate corner of the room, close to huge bay windows that overlooked the Chicago river, glittering a golden hue from the city lights reflecting off its surface.

He gazed outside for a moment, his mind inadvertently drumming up memories of a certain brown eyed witch that plagued his every waking thought, but he ruthlessly it. Tonight, was all about his pleasure, and would not let anything ruin his mood.

"What'd you think, Ethan, the lobster tortellini or the blackened bass?"

He turned from the view to answer, but was distracted by a couple entering the room.

They stopped to speak to the maître d for a minute, back turned towards Ethan and in the dim light of the room, he could barely make out their identity, but there was something familiar about the woman and his need to satisfy his curiosity kept his gaze fixed on them, until they turned around and began to follow the maitre d.

He stilled, eyes narrowing to slits as he watched them approach. The restaurant seemed to dissolve into nothingness as he recognized the woman in the black dress.

Erin Gosling was stunning in a short dress that showed her curves in a way that made him hard just by looking, those endless legs of hers encased in what could only be described as 'shoes made for sex.' She was laughing at something her companion said, her arm entwined with his and even from the distance, Ethan could see the besotted look in the eyes of the tall, dark haired guy she was with.

Ethan's gaze lingered at the point where their hands joined, his fingers unconsciously tightening around the stem of the delicate wineglass as a flare of possessiveness flared in him. His jaw worked as he fought the urge not to rip the guy's arm from her. Which was an absolutely ridiculous feeling to have for a woman he could not even stand, for fuck's sake.

The couple drew near, almost to his table and Erin tore her gaze from her date long enough to glance around. Ethan had the satisfaction of seeing her freeze in shock when she spotted him, color draining from her face. Stunned, she ground to a halt, hazel eyes growing wide, mouth falling open in dismay.

* * *

Amazement and dismay swelled within Erin as she stared at the last man on earth she wished to encounter.

Ethan sat there in all his evil glory, in the very restaurant she was in, looking up at her with that same mocking smile she had come to loathe.

Oh dear god, why are you tormenting me this way?

"Erin?" Todd's worried voice broke into her thoughts. She tore her eyes away from Ethan and looked at him, seeing the worried frown on his face. "Are you okay?"

Erin looked from Todd and back to Ethan. Dismay melted to be replaced by anger. Anger at Ethan for ruining a perfectly good evening for her. How the hell had he even known she would be here? Was this part of his master plan to ensure her complete and utter humiliation? She could just murder the man.

"I'm fine." She forced the words out through clenched teeth, even as she shot murderous glares at Ethan. To her consternation, he appeared unfazed, if anything he looked highly amused at her reaction, the light blue eyes dancing in mirth as he studied her.

"We have got to stop meeting like this, Sweetcheeks," Ethan drawled, his eyes moving over her body in an way that left Erin shaky. "If I didn't know better, I'd say you were stalking me."

"Don't call me that!" She snapped back at him. "And I should be asking you why you're stalking me, not the other way around."

"I am simply having dinner with a lovely woman," He spared his companion a look. "I do have more important things to do than to chase your little spoiled arse around."

He turned to Todd who was watching the scene in bewilderment. "You must be lover boy then? The one who kept our delightful Ms. Gosling so entertained this morning she lost track of time?"

"I -" Todd began.

"Don't answer that." Erin cut in, laying a hand on Todd's arm.

She shot a baleful stare in Ethan's direction, hating him with every fiber of her being at that moment.

"My personal life is none of your business, Ethan." She said through gritted teeth, wishing she could strangle him with the dark blue tie hanging from his neck.

Ethan's brow shot up in mock surprise. "He's not the one? Oh my, you do go through them quickly. Must be a family trait."

Erin's cheeks flamed at the insult. First, the insulting term and now he had resorted to blatant insults. Even more humiliating was the fact that he'd done so with an audience present. For heaven's sakes even the maître d and the couple at the next table were watching and listening with rapt attention. She watched the fleeting look of triumph that crossed his face and it dawned on Erin that he had deliberately said those words to hurt her, true to his threat.

She gritted her teeth, wishing she could throttle him. But no, she would not give him the satisfaction of knowing how much those insults affected her. She would take the high road and simply ignore him, let him stew in uncertainty for the rest of the evening.

Erin took a deep calming breath and slipped her arm through her bewildered date's. She pasted an indifferent expression on her face and turned to look at the blonde sitting opposite Ethan, the same astonished and confused look on her face as on Todd's.

"Enjoy your dinner." She said, pasting a fake smile on her face though her heart ached from the humiliating experience.

She nodded at the maître d to continue on their way and tugged on Todd's arm, silently urging him to follow. She could practically feel Ethan's eyes burning holes in her back and she straightened her shoulders, determined to not let him see how flustered she was by that encounter.

Erin slipped into her seat, grateful to be sitting down. Her whole body shook from the force of her agitation, pulse racing a million beats per second. She kept her head down,careful to avoid Todd's gaze, even though she could feel him looking at her. But Erin was in no frame of mind to answer the questions he was sure to ask if she looked at him.

How had the evening - which had started out with so much promise- gone horribly wrong? She wondered, studying the floral patterns on the table cloth without really seeing it. What had she done to deserve this?

"That was interesting." Todd said, his voice tinged with curiosity and concern at her obvious distress. "Bitter ex-boyfriend?"

"No."

"You alright? I could go back and punch his lights out if you like?"

"No, but thanks."

He sighed and reached over, lifting her chin so she could look at him. Erin searched his eyes for signs of anger or derision but found only genuine concern in their brown depths.

"Would you like to leave? I completely understand if you don't want to stay and we can go to another restaurant - or do this some other day."

Erin shook her head. "No, it's quite alright. I want to stay," she pushed back her chair and stood. "But I'd like to freshen up please."

"Sure, take your time."

In the ladies room - the place thankfully deserted - Erin stood before the mirror and stared at her reflection. Her make up was still intact, but now it did nothing to hide the pain in her eyes.

"Dammit! Why is he doing this?" she asked her reflection. "Why now, after all this time and what's his endgame?"

A million similar questions raced through her mind, but she had no answers to any. One thing she was sure of though. Ethan Lachlan was a devil; a madman with a vindictive edge and extremely dangerous.

I'm his target. Heaven help me!

Erin reached for a paper towel, moistening it with water and dabbed at her eyes. She re-applied her lipstick and eyeliner, stood back and viewed the result, pleased at how poised she looked.

Ethan's words could hurt her, but she would never let him see that. She would go out there and enjoy herself and Ethan Lachlan could burn in hell.

She pulled open the door and stepped into the dim hall and retraced her steps. Just as she passed the men's room, the door suddenly swung open and she crashed into a solid male form just exiting the room.

"Oh!" Erin exclaimed, her purse slipping from her grasp as she reached out to steady herself. To her shock, strong muscular arms wrapped around her waist and her nostrils filled with a familiar heady scent.

"Careful, Sweetcheeks." Ethan chuckled, his arms like bands of steel around her middle.

"What the hell do you want now?" Enraged, Erin planted her palms on his upper arms and shoved, trying to free herself from his grasp. Her heart pounded at his closeness and she felt her mouth go dry. "Let me go!"

"You crashed into me." He observed drily, making no move to release her. He smirked when she glared at him, not in the least bit fazed at the silent threat.

"I did nothing of the sort." She snapped.

Ethan pulled her even closer, his eyes liquid pools of heat. She could feel every inch of his hard body against her, the contact almost turning her legs to jelly.

"Are you angry at me? Did our conversation get between you and lover boy?"

"That was your intention, wasn't it? Well, sorry because your fool plan backfired. Todd knows me too well to let something like those petty little insults come between us."

Her heart skipped at the lie, but there was no way she would let him think he had the upper hand.

"So he was the lover." He looked irritated. Why, she had no idea.

Fortunately for Erin, a woman came down the narrow corridor, heading towards the restrooms. She gave them a curious look and Ethan let his arms drop from Erin's waist.

"We'll talk later, Sweetcheeks. Run back to your boyfriend now."

He stood aside to let her pass. She grabbed her purse from the floor and stalked past him, head held high. They would continue the conversation over her dead body.