I clutched the small box in my hand as I got to my apartment door. I still hadn’t decided if I was going to get down on bended knee and give it to her. Would that be too much? Handing it over would be less romantic, and probably for the best. Regardless if I did either, there would be no going back. It would be real. I’d be making it real, a conscious decision, asking her to marry me. I wouldn’t be able to say it was all a big misunderstanding. I’d be committing to lying to Anna.

Throughout all my years, all my short-lived relationships, I’d never really thought about getting married, or asking someone to be my wife, and yet now that I was on the precipice, my hands shook. What was so different about Anna that made me feel like this? My stomach wriggled with nervous energy. This wasn’t exactly how I’d imagined how it would go down.

Inside the apartment I crept along the hallway, hardly making a sound, holding my breath. It wasn’t that I wanted to surprise her; I was on edge, feeling a bit like an intruder in my own home. But then I rounded the corner and saw her face and all my worries flew out of the window replaced with concern for her.

Her knees were tucked under her body, sitting on the couch, her face turned toward the light coming through the window. She hadn’t seen or heard me yet, and I took a moment to look at her. Study her. Her beauty struck me like it had that morning. I felt a tightening at my throat… no, it was further down, the clutching pain coming from my chest, my heart. What was happening to me?

One look at this woman and my body reacted in so many unexpected ways. I sucked in a breath and forced myself to look away from her, for just a second. I needed to get myself under control. How could this be possible? I’d only met her. We barely knew each other. We’d occupied the same space and air for less than a couple of hours and yet there I was with an engagement ring in my pocket and an urge to take her in my arms and never let go.

My tongue tripped over the words I tried to get out, not having a clue what to say. Anna turned my way with a start, stricken for a moment with surprise. But then she relaxed, a weak smile appearing on her lips, one that I noticed didn’t reach her eyes completely. She looked like she had the weight of the world on her slim shoulders.

“Hi,” she greeted me. “Didn’t hear you.” Her voice was thick was emotion, her accent a little softer than I remembered from that morning.

With her face turned I now saw her other cheek, tear-stained. In fact, both her eyes were a little puffy. The telltale sign that she’d been crying. Had she spent the majority of the day feeling miserable and alone? Crap, I shouldn’t have left her here, by herself on her first day.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to startle you. Are you okay? Have you been crying?” I moved toward the couch and sat close, but not quite next to her. I had the urge to be cautious around this timid creature, when normally with anyone else I wouldn’t have been so kind.

Anna waved my concern away. “I am fine,” she said with a sniff.

Was she missing her home? Scared to be in a new place? Of course, she was, that was evident from her face.

“You’re not fine. You’ve been crying. You can tell me what’s wrong if you want?” I scooted closer, my heart calling out to her. I glanced down at her hand resting on her thigh. Before I could stop myself I took it. The same thrill from earlier coursed through my body. Touching her, being so close to her, felt so right. I squeezed her hand, locking eyes with her.

“It is nothing. Please, do not worry.”

She let go of my hand and moved into the kitchen area. I couldn’t see for sure, what with her back to me, but her hands went up to her face. To wipe away more tears?

It was then as I looked around the apartment, desperately trying to think of anything that would maybe ease her pain and came up with nothing. I felt helpless… a new emotion for me, that had me standing up, fidgeting, and uneasy. It was then that I realized the place didn’t look the same as when I’d left it that morning.

The apartment was practically spotless. On the edge of the couch was a pile of my clothes, the surfaces had all been wiped down and the clutter that had been on them had vanished. There was also a mouth-watering smell in the air that had me searching for the source.

My eyes went to Anna again. She stood at the stove and I joined her, leaning against the island counter. God, she was amazing, not only had she tidied up after my lazy ass but somehow she’d managed to cook something from whatever I’d had left dying in my fridge… unless she’d gone out?

“Did you do all this?” I asked with wonder. Getting her attention, she glanced at me as I gestured to the clean room. She nodded. “And you cooked too? Wow, thank you. I didn’t expect this.”

I honestly couldn’t remember when I’d last had a home-cooked meal.

I went to the fridge opened it and stared inside. It was bare as I remembered it. “Did you go outside to the market?”

Anna stirred the contents of the saucepan, nibbling her lip as she looked at me then quickly her gaze darted away. There was a slight shake of her head. I frowned, I had a sense that she was lying to me about going out. But why would she need to lie? Then I remembered she didn’t even have a key. I was jumping to conclusions, seeing deception when there wasn’t any. She was just nervous. She’d done a good thing with the meal. There was no need to interrogate the poor woman.

“You know, it’s okay if you go out. I just didn’t think you would want to, your first day and all. Not alone anyway. I don’t want you to get lost. And just so we’re clear… Anna, look at me.” Reluctantly she did and I stepped forward. “You’re not a prisoner here, and you’re certainly not here to tidy up after me, though I do appreciate what you’ve done today.”

She shrugged as if what I was saying was inconsequential. God, I hoped she understood what I meant.

I slipped a hand into my jacket pocket and held out my hand. “Here, see. You can explore whenever you want,” I said as I handed over the duplicate keycard I’d picked up from the concierge. She took it cautiously and clutched it her chest. “I probably need to get you a map too… or even better a phone. That way you won’t get lost and can always find your way back home when I’m at work. Yes, that would probably be best, I’ll make sure my secretary, Josephine, picks you up one. Sorry, I didn’t think about it sooner.”

Anna rewarded me with a smile.

I lifted a finger, pointing it in the air before slipping it inside my internal jacket pocket. “Oh, and I mustn’t forget this either. Your spending money. As we agreed?”

I handed her the envelope. Her eyes were so full I thought I was going to fall into them at any moment, lost within their depths.

Tears spilled down her cheeks freely as she looked inside, then her hand went to her sensuous mouth. Anna’s gaze moved from the stack of bills up to me, then back down again as if she couldn’t believe the amount I’d just handed to her. Suddenly she launched herself forward, arms circling my neck, pulling me into the most satisfying embrace.

“Thank you,” she whispered, her breath hot on my neck, hair tickling my nose.

I wrapped my arms around her waist and completed the hug, and once my arms were around her, I never wanted to let go. I squeezed her closer, feeling her small body pressed up against mine. The friction between us driving me wild. God, she smelled so good too, like I was bathing in a vat of vanilla ice cream. I almost forgot myself and licked her neck to see if she actually tasted of cream.

Anna pulled back a little, cheeks pink and rosy. Her gaze traveled up, lingering for a second on my mouth, then found my eyes. She was still holding onto me, just as I was to her, her arms wrapped around my neck, and on tiptoes too.

I wouldn’t have been surprised if a whole hour had gone by while we stared at each other like that, my heart thudding, pounding so hard and fast that I thought I was in danger of passing out. Anna’s lips parted as if to say something more, glancing away then back up at me through her long eyelashes.

Then without me initiating anything—even though I desperately wanted to—she pulled down on my neck, stretched upwards and our mouths met.

I groaned with need, want, and everything in between. I tried to forget how good our first kiss earlier that morning had felt, didn’t want to give it the attention it deserved, because what if it had just been a fluke? What if what I was feeling wasn’t real?

It was all too soon, too fast… things like this didn’t just happen. Besides, there was still Sarah to consider, and yet I didn’t let go of Anna. Couldn’t force myself even if I’d wanted to.

Now I knew for sure it wasn’t a fluke. The tingles and sparks exploding through every nerve ending were proof of that. Not to mention my growing hardness that pressed against her tight little body.

The room filled with sizzling noises, a hissing, and I almost broke our kiss distracted by the sound. The whole place could’ve burned down while we were entangled. It was only when Anna’s eyes sprang open and she pulled back, her chest heaving, breath heavy, battering against my lips that I realized what the noise was.

Anna freed herself and stumbled like a party-girl who’d had one Solo cup too many back to the stove. The pan lid rattled, spitting out boiling projectiles, as the pasta water bubbled over.

“Shit,” she said under her breath and began to turn knobs, removing the pan from the heat.

“I’m sure it’ll still taste amazing,” I said moving to stand behind her. Brushing her hair away from her neck I bent to kiss the delicate spot behind her ear. I couldn’t help myself, I longed to have my hands all over her. Wanted to touch her and never stop. Anna giggled and squirmed away from my grasp, doing her best to dish out the food she’d cooked while I pawed her. Finally, once the spaghetti and sauce, pieces of chicken, with torn hunks of mozzarella were in the bowls she turned to me, giving me a no-nonsense glare.

“We eat now.”

I held my hands up, then tucked them behind my back, a safe distance away from her body. “Honey, I hope you’re a fast eater… cause if you’re not careful, I’m going to devour you right here in the kitchen.”

Anna blushed, two incredible bright circles of pink appeared on her already-flushed cheeks. They were like neon signs.

“After dessert?” she crooned in her sweet accent, and followed it up with a saucy wink. I thickened immediately and forced myself to take a step back from her, moving to select a suitable bottle of wine to go with our meal. It was either that or fling the bowls aside, paint the walls red with the tomato sauce, and lay her on the table, peeling her clothes off and tasting every morsel of bare flesh that was revealed.

I uncorked the bottle and grabbed two glasses, then followed Anna to the circular dining table I almost forgot I had. The last time I’d seen it was when I first moved in. Since then I’d mostly used it as a handy dumping ground, a clotheshorse, a place to scatter unopened bills.

Anna had already taken time to set the table. There was even a small makeshift vase, a large tumbler, with what looked to be, at first glance, creamy artificial flowers in it. There were a dozen or so of the blooms.

I nodded to them as I brought the wine over, pouring her a glass first. “Where did you get the flowers, surely not in the apartment?”

Anna tilted her head, a secretive smile playing on her lips. Her tongue darted out to lick the bottom one then she plucked one of the flowers out of the vase. Before my eyes she began to unfold it, delicately smoothing out and peeling back the fabric. I followed her movements, mesmerized. What had once been a white rose, now lay flat on the table. Creased and a little rumpled was a serviette.

“Wow,” I breathed. “You did all those? Can you show me?”

Anna took a long sip of her wine then began to form the rose once again. In seconds the serviette was transformed as if by magic and placed back into the vase with the others.

“You’re amazing, do you know that? I barely know you, but you are.”

She blushed again, hiding behind her wine glass.

My body moved before my mind could register the movement. I wasn’t thinking. That ability had long been obliterated from the moment I saw her. All I knew was I had to have her. She had to be mine.

I was by her side, looking up at her, my knee tucked under me. I pulled the box out of my pocket. It gave a small creak as I opened the lid and presented the contents to Anna.

“This is crazy…” I took a breath. If there was a time to turn back, it was then. I could forget the whole thing, send Anna back home to Russia. I’d figure out some other way to get a date for Gerard’s wedding. Yet somehow, everything had become confused. A hot jumble of emotions.

The moment I’d bought the ring, thinking it would only be temporary, a way to convince Anna that this whole charade was real, something had changed. I’d poured over the cases in the jewelers, all the choices of rings for the best part of an hour… if this weren’t real I would’ve picked the first one I’d glanced at, right? Instead, I needed to find the right one. The perfect ring. And I had.

“Anna, we barely know each other, but somehow, in here, that doesn’t feel like it matters… Will you marry me?”