later; however, his impending triumph had given him quite an appetite. He’d just have to make do with the chef’s specialty, an overdressed piece of fish so fancy it deserved its own art exhibit.
He reached for his fork, but the frown on his dining companion’s face as she looked at her food stopped him. “Everything all right?”
She wrinkled her nose, and for the first time he noticed the faint smattering of freckles dotting it. “Honestly?” she asked.
Cole chuckled. “Somehow I don’t think you know how to be any other way.”
“I realize you’re accustomed to sitting down to a so-called gastronomical experience at every meal, but I’m a simple country girl with simple tastes. I’d have been fine with a pulled pork sandwich or burger.”
“Unbelievable,” Cole murmured. More like amazing.
She held up a hand. “Don’t go getting offended on me. It’s just a personal preference.” She picked up her fork and poked what appeared to be pureed spinach. “I’m sure whatever is under all this froufrou garnishing tastes just fine.”
Cole threw his head back and laughed. Too bad this wasn’t a date because Sage Matthews was almost too good to be true. If he wasn’t careful, he could end up liking her...a lot. “First of all, from what I see there’s nothing simple about you,” he said. “Second, you and I have the exact same opinion when it comes to food.”
“Really?” She brightened and a smile touched her lips.
He nodded, and then scanned the surroundings. “Write-ups in Bon Appétit and Saveur magazines have made this place a hot ticket. It impresses the people I do business with who love both its exclusivity and the cuisine.” Cole shrugged. “But me? I’ll take cheeseburger with a side of onion rings over froufrou every time.”
“My absolute favorite meal,” she said. “Thanks to an electronic billboard I pass on the way to work advertising a new burger place in town, I’ve been giving in to a craving for it every day for the past week for both lunch and dinner.”
“Burger Tower?”
She nodded. “Have you eaten there yet?”
“I haven’t had the opportunity; however, I can see the very same billboard from my office window. It leaves me practically drooling.”
She leaned in conspiratorially, her brown eyes sparkling with mischief. “Well, Mr. Sinclair, from one burger lover to another, they’re positively addictive.”
Cole rarely acted on impulse, but Sage Matthews was such a refreshing change of pace. She didn’t pander to him with her eyes on his wallet for what she could get. She impressed him as a woman who spoke her mind and didn’t give a damn what he or anyone else thought about it.
He was well aware he’d asked her here for purely professional reasons. Still, he found himself wanting to see her again.
“Call me Cole,” he said. “Because once we conclude our business, I’d like to take you out for one of those burgers. Feed both you and your addiction.”
She blinked. “As in a date?”
His common sense told him this wasn’t the time or place. Intermingling the personal and professional broke the most basic rule of business. A rule he’d never been tempted to bend until now.
He knew better.
Cole couldn’t defend his actions. Nor could he stop himself from telling her exactly what was on his mind.
“You couldn’t have missed it. I’m not even sure what to call it—an air of familiarity?” He searched for the right words to describe the coincidences, but came up empty and hoped he didn’t sound like a fool.
“It’s almost like looking in a mirror,” she said, softly.
Cole exhaled, and then nodded.
“Not physically, of course,” she quickly added. “But we do appear to have an awful lot in common.”
“More than that...” Again, he found himself reaching for just the right words, not wanting to make presumptions or come on too strong.
Her gaze dropped to his hand. The same one her touch had left tingling. “I felt it, too.”
“It’s the reason why I’m asking you on a date in the middle of a business lunch. I’d like an opportunity to get to know you better.”
The sparkle in her eyes dimmed. “As much as I’d enjoy that, I don’t think it’s going happen.”
“Why not? Are you involved with someone?” Of course, she was, Cole thought. He hadn’t seen a ring on her finger, but that didn’t mean anything.”
“No, I’m not seeing anyone. Honestly, you’re the first man I’ve met in a long time who’s piqued my interest.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“Oh, I’m not the one with the problem,” she said. “You’ll be, once I turn down your offer to buy Stiletto.”
* * *
“Are you sure you want to do that?”
His voice was velvet smooth. Its deep, melodic cadence threw Sage off her game. She didn’t think she’d had it in her to act like Amelia. Yet, for a while she’d let herself be lured into entertaining the ludicrous notions of instant attraction and serendipity.
Get a grip, she silently scolded. It was just one touch and a few coincidences.
Her guard firmly back into place, Sage needed to make her position clear. Before Cole Sinclair talked her out of her company and her panties.
“I’ve made my decision,” she said. “No sale.”
Cole raised a brow. “Maybe I haven’t explained that the figure I gave you is merely a starting point,” he said. “One I’m willing to sweeten with a few more zeros.”
Sage swallowed, hard. The offer was already beyond generous, and at this point, much more than her company was worth. If money was the only measuring stick.
The massive figure didn’t take the intangibles into account. She didn’t have family and had sacrificed the few friends and relationships she’d had by putting all her time and effort into her small company.
While Stiletto was simply a commodity to a man like Cole Sinclair, something easily bought or sold, it was her everything.
He leaned back in his seat and crossed his arms over his broad chest. “Think about it, Ms. Matthews,” he continued. “We’re talking about a lot of money here. You’re a young woman. Wisely invested, it’ll last a lifetime. You could travel the world worry-and responsibility-free.”
“And how did that work for you?”
Sage caught the tic of a muscle beneath the shadow of beard along his strong jawline. The tiny telltale movement was the only indication her question made him
