All of Anandur’s careful planning had been a waste of time and effort. No professional massage to put Wonder in a relaxed move, and no declarations of love over a romantic dinner in the Four Season’s fanciest restaurant.

He needed to come out with a new plan and fast. Any moment now Wonder would get out of the bathroom and ask him for a massage.

There was only one way that could end.

Not a bad prelude to sex, but Anandur was adamant about telling Wonder how he felt about her before taking her to bed.

Perhaps a romantic dinner on the suite’s balcony would do?

Nah, it was too hot and humid. He would have to settle for the suite’s living room. Hopefully, room service in this hotel would function better than the one in Cairo. Should he offer a bribe? Or would a threat work better?

Anandur picked up the phone and dialed the restaurant extension. “This is Mister Wilson from room five hundred and five. I would like dinner delivered to my suite. What can we do to ensure that it is delivered as quickly as possible?”

After choosing items from the menus and several promises of guaranteed satisfaction, Anandur put the phone down and headed to the bedroom to get dressed.

Lucky for him, Wonder wasn’t a fancy dresser and liked him in jeans. Besides, it was all he had. Pairing them with a button-down dress shirt should do it.

The knock on the door came much sooner than he’d expected. “Room service,” the waiter announced as Anandur opened the door.

“Come in.” He took a step back to let the guy wheel the table inside.

“Would you like me to set the table for you, sir?”

“Please do.”

Anandur had requested the whole romantic dinner package, including candles and flowers and a bottle of fine wine. Naturally, he'd also added fresh orange juice for Wonder. But setting it up nicely was above his skill level, especially if he wanted it ready before Wonder stepped out of the shower. A professional would do it much faster.

When the guy was done, the small table looked perfect. “Would you like me to stay and serve dinner, sir?”

“That won’t be necessary.”

“Very well. Could you sign here, sir?”

Anandur scribbled the fake name the room was reserved under and handed the guy his tip in cash. “Thank you.”

The waiter’s eyes widened at the generous amount of US dollars. “Thank you, sir,” he said with a bow.

“You’re welcome.” Anandur opened the door and hastened the guy out.

The hairdryer’s motor had been whining for a while now, which meant Wonder was almost done.

A minute or two after the waiter had left, he heard the bathroom door open, and a couple of seconds later Wonder sauntered into the living room.

It was most fortunate that the waiter was gone. For him.

Wonder’s flimsy white nightgown was so sheer, Anandur could see every detail of the lacy pattern on the sexy bra and panties set she had underneath.

Beautiful didn’t begin to describe her. His girl outshone every Victoria’s Secret model he’d ever seen, and Anandur had seen them all, and not only in the catalogs Amanda had been saving for him. He’d been following the tall and busty beauties on the internet for years and knew each one by name.

But no more. He was done with that.

Uncharacteristically rendered mute, Anandur resorted to waving one hand over Wonder’s perfectly proportioned statuesque body, while putting the other over his racing heart.

Wonder smiled. “Does that mean that you like what you see?”

He nodded like an idiot.

“I guess it means you do.” She glanced at the table. “Are we having dinner first?”

No one could accuse Wonder of not being direct.

He pulled out a chair for her. “Yes, we are.” Could he eat with his eyes closed?

Wonder glanced down at her nightgown, shook her head, then padded to the table and sat down.

As he pushed her chair in, Anandur wondered what that head shaking had been all about. Did she doubt the effect her sexy lingerie had on him?

“You look good enough to eat, lass, but I need to feed you first.” He sat across from her and waggled his brows. “After I fatten you up, there will be more of you for me to devour.”

With a wink, he uncorked the wine and poured it into their goblets. "Are you ready to try wine, or would you like me to pour you some orange juice?"

"I'll try the wine." She lifted the goblet and sniffed it. "It smells good."

“Cheers, love.”

“Cheers.” She took a tiny sip.

“Let’s drink to old memories and new ones. May all of them be joyful.” He winked again. “I plan on making a lot of new memories with you.”

“I’ll drink to that.” Wonder clinked her glass to his.

As long moments passed with them cutting and chewing, Anandur tried to decide on the perfect time to tell Wonder that he loved her.

It would be a first for him, and probably the last.

Not the words themselves, he planned on repeating them many times over, but only to Wonder. It had taken him almost a millennium to fall in love, chances were it wouldn’t happen again. Wonder was the one for him.

Except, he still hadn’t figured out what was the right moment to do it. Who would’ve thought it would be so difficult.

Telling the woman he loved while chewing a steak was as romantic as texting her the declaration. Should he wait until they were done?

Maybe over coffee?

“Would you like coffee after dinner?”

Wonder put her knife down. “Sure.”

“How about dessert?”

She cast him a questioning glance. “If I didn’t know better, I would’ve thought that you’re trying to stall.”

Anandur sighed and pushed his plate away. “I’m not stalling. I’m looking for the perfect moment.”

“What is a perfect moment?” Her question wasn’t mocking, it was sincere. But she hadn’t asked him the more important one: a perfect moment for what?

Rubbing the back of his neck, he looked into her intense eyes and got lost for a moment. “I don’t know. That’s why I’m still searching.”

Wonder wiped her mouth with the napkin and pushed to her feet. “I’m going to brush my teeth. Maybe you’ll figure it out while I’m gone.”

He nodded, watching the enticing sway of her perfect hips as she walked toward the bedroom.

Sexy tigress. That was his new nickname for her. It was sure better than virgin child.

The thing was, Wonder was both. The seductive walk was natural, it was a part of her innate femininity, not something she did consciously. The girl was too innocent for that, and it hadn’t escaped his notice that her lingerie and nightgown were all white.

A bridal white. A virginal white.

He doubted she’d done it on purpose either. The white just looked great against her dark coloring.

Fates, he didn’t know how to make it right for her. Everything would’ve been so much simpler if Wonder weren’t a virgin. He would’ve taken her to his bed after their first kiss.

Maybe he was just overthinking it.

Yeah, he definitely was.

Anandur put his fork and knife down, wiped his mouth, and pushed away from the table. The simplest way was the best. He was going to walk into that bathroom, pull Wonder into his arms and tell her he loved her.

Then he was going to lift her up and carry her to bed.