“Non,”I replied, and continued in French. “The itinerary is my concern. And all I agreed to was the keynote speech next week. Bastien can take his damn meetings and shove them up his—”
“Non, monsieur. There’s also your assistant and security detail, who need to be apprised of your movements.We cannot just wander onto whatever tourist attractions she recommends without a plan. You could be recognized and cause a mob scene in under five seconds. This—” Dimitri waved a hand to indicate the bar they were in. “Tonight was an anomaly. We won’t always be this lucky.”
“You’re wrong. No one in this country even gives the first shit about any royalty other than my British cousins. We’ll befine. You worry too much.” I turned to the ladies and switched to English. “I’m sorry. That was rude. Dimitri was just reminding me that we have some obligations that are firm, but that doesn’t mean we can’t have some fun. Maybe we should exchange phone numbers?”
Hannah and Rachel’s eyes ping-ponged between my smile and Dimitri’s stone-faced expression. Finally, Hannah spoke. “I don’t want tocause any problems with your boss. This is a work trip for you, after all.”
“Let me worry about my boss.” I waited for Dimitri’s coughing, snorting fit to subside, then leaned across the table and smiled winningly at Hannah. “I’d love to see you again.”
“Again? Who said tonight was over?” Hannah lifted a hand, signaling for another round, then tossed me a sassy smile. “You gotta pay to play,Luc. I don’t give anyone my number without a dance first.”
I winced as another tone-deaf guy ruined one of my favorite Jay-Z songs. “I don’t know if I can dance to someone butchering a song. What if he takes it as a compliment and thinks he has talent?”
Hannah sighed deeply. “Damn, and I thought we had some chemistry going here. I just don’t think I could be with someone who takes himself soseriously.”
Dimitri snorted again, then coughed. “Excuse me. I think I swallowed wrong.”
“You make that sound a lot.” Rachel tilted her head in concern. “Have you seen a doctor for it?”
Hannah’s laughing eyes met mine over the table. She obviously knew as well as I did that Dimitri was full of shit. I jerked my chin in acknowledgment of her challenge.
Just then the unmistakable thrumming beatof “SexyBack” pulsed through the bar.
I closed my eyes with a muttered curse. It would have to be a douchey song.
Hannah bounced in her seat, her shoulders twitching along to the beat. “What do you say? Wanna get your sexy on?”
“Mon chou,my sexy is always on.” It was a corny line, but I grabbed Hannah’s hand and pulled her onto the small space reserved as a dance floor, leaving a chortlingDimitri and Rachel behind.
