Page 36

Feeling bold, and a little vindictive, I twirled my hair around my finger and turned back to the Frenchman with a winning smile on my face. “Tell me again about the Danube Tower.”

“It’s located in Donau Park, and as the tallest building in Austria, it offers the best—”

I tilted my head back and laughed loudly, for no other reason than Stefan’s benefit. The Frenchman was clearly surprised by the abrupt reaction on my part, but it didn’t slow him down. Not for a moment. Instead, he leaned back and gave me a long, flirtatious smile.

“So I take it you’re excited to see the…tower?”

“Oh, yes,” I said, tossing my hair aggressively. “Very excited.”

My current cocktail was still about half full, so I quickly downed the rest of it, prompting a raised eyebrow from my new companion. I was definitely feeling the warm, mind-hazing effects of all the alcohol at this point, but I didn’t care. In fact, I felt great. I was wearing a new dress, my skin was glowing, and my hair and makeup looked fantastic.

And the way the Frenchman was looking at me—like he would be more than happy to help me slip out of that sexy dress of mine—made me feel pretty damn good. Especially since I knew Stefan was watching.

As the Frenchman waved the waiter down and ordered me another fruity concoction, I peered surreptitiously through my hair around the bar, zeroing in on where Stefan was still standing. His face was stormy and his fists were clenched.

My heart skipped a beat at the sight of him and I was instantly annoyed at myself. Why couldn’t I just be attracted to the guy sitting right next to me? The one who’d actually shown interest? Why was it that Stefan—and only Stefan—got me all hot and bothered?

I looked back at my new friend. Our next round had magically appeared in front of us.

“Cheers,” he said, raising his glass.

I did the same. “Cheers,” I said. “To new friends.”

The Frenchman grinned at me, that grin full of sexy promises. Promises that would never be fulfilled. I’d already decided it wasn’t going to go any further. I was flirting in full view of Stefan merely to give him a taste of his own medicine. I wasn’t a cheater like he was, but he wouldn’t know that I had no intention of following through with this stranger.

“To new friends,” the Frenchman echoed.

I winked at him.

It was a mistake.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Stefan barreling toward us. His expression was one of fury. My heart raced—what was he going to do?

“Victoria,” he said when he reached us, his voice hard. “It appears you’ve lost track of time.”

I could hear the barely controlled rage in his voice, though it was doubtful anyone else would have any idea just how angry he was.

The Frenchman was still smiling, though his brow had creased in confusion.

“Victoria? You know this man?” he asked, looking at me.

For a moment, I didn’t know what Stefan would do. Would he tear this poor guy to shreds or simply punch him in the face?

I definitely was not expecting Stefan to reach out his hand. The Frenchman shook it, the uncertainty still evident on his face.

“I’m Tori’s husband,” he said, politely. “And you’re leaving. So get the fuck off that barstool and step away from my wife.”

Immediately, the Frenchman grew somber. “Wonderful to meet you. I wish you both a pleasant time in the city.” He withdrew his grasp and fled.

Before I even had a chance to glare at Stefan, he had his hand around my arm and was yanking me out of the bar. It was hard to tell what he was angrier about—that I had missed dinner or that I had been flirting with a stranger. Either way, he was furious. More furious than I’d ever seen him before.

He towed me across the lobby and practically shoved me into the elevator, and I almost stumbled on my high heels. Being drunk didn’t help, though his anger was doing a lot to sober me up quick. We were alone in the elevator when the doors closed, but Stefan wasn’t even looking at me. Wasn’t even facing me.

He had his back to me, and I saw him take a deep breath, his hands clenching and unclenching. It was hard to tell if he wanted to throttle me…or kiss me. Because I had seen the blazing hot passion in his eyes when he had gotten a good look at my dress.

He was angry, but he wanted me too. I felt exactly the same way.

I could almost imagine him slowly counting to ten before he let out a string of harsh, angry curse words. He didn’t look at me for the rest of the ride and by the time we got to our floor, I was fairly subdued by the tense experience.