I wanted her so bad.

When she stepped out wearing my revealing showcase ensemble, I felt everything immediately rise to attention. Sensual. Tempting. Daniella. Her provocative appeal makes it harder and harder for me to resist. And believe me, after seeing her last night, I no longer care to resist.

But she had way too much to drink, and even though that kiss we shared was passionate, I am a gentleman first.

So I brought her back to her room, carried her inside, laid her down on the couch, and left her a note.

I even set her alarm clock on her phone so she would wake up in time for our flight to New York this morning.

But she seems annoyed with me now. As if I did something wrong. She hasn’t said much since I picked her up from her room. Only a few yes’s and no’s. And a lot of arm-folding and scoffs.

We check our luggage in, make our way through customs, and when we make it to our departure gate, we have only minutes to spare before we are called to board.

Our seats are in first class again, next to each other, and I do hope her mood settles soon since we are in for a long flight.

Liza and Jonah aren’t flying back until Saturday as they are staying for the full Fashion Week. I hope they learn to get along. They’ve been arguing non-stop, it seems.

“Is something wrong?” I finally get the nerve to ask.

“Nope. Not at all.” She dishes up pursed lips and a cold shoulder.

“Great. Because I was beginning to think you’re annoyed at me.” I roll my eyes.

Could she be mad about that kiss? I don’t want to bring it up unless she does.

The flight attendant makes the pre-take-off announcements, sounding much like the one we had on the flight here. I lean into the aisle and notice that it is her.

Daniella emphatically fastens her seat belt, then grabs a magazine, whipping through pages faster than she can read them. She then closes the magazine and shoves it back into the seat pocket.

“What’s the matter?” I ask, with a questioning glare.

She folds her arms and then leans over to me. “I had a very heated sex dream about you last night, Antonio Michaels.”

She grimaces and I can’t help but laugh out loud. “So you’re mad at me because you had a naughty dream about me?”

She nods. “Yep.”

“And why are you mad at me?”

“I don’t know.” She pouts.

I lean in closer to her and say low and soft, “Was I any good, at least?”

A smile creeps up on her lips and before I know it, we laugh together.

“Look, thank you for being my date last night. There was no way in hell I would have let anything happen between us after we both had been drinking. I’m not that kind of guy. Even though you did look extremely sexy.”

She gives a half-grin. “You didn’t look too bad yourself.”

“So, you’re not mad anymore?”

“Nah. I was just feeling sexually deprived.” She chuckles.

Welcome to my world.

We both fall fast asleep, for I don’t know how long, then we are awakened by turbulence.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, we are experiencing heavy turbulence on our approach to New York City. Please make sure your seat belts are fastened and your tray tables are in their upright positions. Thank you.”

Daniella stretches and lets out a yawn. “Looks like we were both tired. We didn’t eat or anything.”

“Yep. It’s been a long week of events. I was wiped out.”

The plane dips a little as it goes over an air pocket. Daniella grabs my arm.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, this is your captain. It looks like we are flying through a storm headed for New York and surrounding areas. All flights out of New York this evening have been cancelled. Please be sure to check with your individual airlines for more information.”

Daniella’s eyes dart. “Cancelled? What are we going to do? Where will we go?”

I pat her thigh and her expression softens. “Don’t worry. I actually have an apartment here in the city. We can gather our luggage and head there and figure stuff out in the morning.”

Daniella lets out a sign of relief and sits back in her seat, still gripping my arm.

And after more turbulence during the final descent, we finally land, Daniella and I pick up our luggage at baggage claim, and haul it over to the rental car counter to rent a car. Then, we stop at the ticket counter and arrange for travel back out tomorrow afternoon, giving the storm time to pass.

“Come on, let’s head to my apartment.”

Daniella looks tired, hungry, and slightly afraid. I want to do my best to ensure I make her feel protected. We stop for Chinese takeout since we missed out on our meal on the plane.

“It’s not even raining here. Why did they cancel flights?” she asks as we walk up the stairs to my apartment.

“Because the storm is headed here from the west. We will be fighting weather the whole way back to California. They had to cancel to be safe.”

She shrugs her shoulders. “Okay, I suppose.”

Inside, my apartment is cold. I haven’t been here for months, so it may take a while to warm up.

Daniella looks around and smiles. “You have great taste, Antonio. Here and at your home in Beverly Hills.” She starts to remove her coat and then decides against it after she shivers. “Is there only one bedroom?”

“The heat should kick in soon. And yes, only one bedroom. But you can have it. I’ll sleep on the couch.”

She chuckles. “I won’t bite.”

“Yes, but I might.”