"Jesus, Mimi! You'll give this guy a heart attack!" Jasmine laughs, though her wide eyes show genuine surprise when she looks at her best friend.

"Jas!" Mila scolds, though I have to admit I do feel like I'm having a heart attack. A fucking pleasant one at that, but a heart attack, nonetheless. "I hope this is okay. I didn't know what exactly we're going to do, so I figured it should be something comfortable..."

"Mimi, chill. Let the guy get rid of his boner before you babble him down."

"Jas! Oh my God..." Mila hides her face in her hands as she always does in these situations, and Jasmine just giggles when I get up, clearing my throat to find my voice again.

"Hey." I step toward Mila and take her hands from her face, intertwining our fingers with a smile. "You look absolutely perfect, Lucky. Stunning as always."

Another wave of heat creeps into her cheeks while she takes a deep breath, her eyes finally meeting mine. "Thank you."

I rub my thumb over her palm, trying to calm her a little. It's obvious she's still embarrassed by all of this, and I don't want her to feel like a joke. "You want to get out of here?" I ask, and the way Mila frantically nods makes me chuckle once more.

"Have fun, lovebirds. Text me if you stay the night."

"Oh my... Jas!" Mila groans, but Jasmine just laughs when I pull Mila after me and into the elevator, not bothering to look back as she stumbles behind me. The second the door closes, I punch the emergency stop button, and I don't even get the chance to move before Mila pushes me against the wall and kisses me with hot fervor. I definitely did not expect a petite woman like that to unleash a power so charged and fiery, but I can't deny that I love every second of it.

She grips the hair on the back of my neck and pulls me down to shamelessly ravish my senses. I can feel how she melts into me too, my hand on her lower back steadying both of us as I close the distance between our bodies, her breasts pressing on my chest. We're fire and ice, an explosive combination that's about ready to combust from the tension building between us. It feels like we're devouring the other, fueling our addiction with every breath we share, fighting fire with gasoline.

"What the fuck are you doing to me, Lucky?" I somehow manage to get the words out as we pull apart.

She looks at me with this fire in her eyes, fire that ignites me, that makes me want to take her against this fucking elevator wall and every other goddamn surface in our vicinity. "You tell me, Cash." Her eyes sparkle like fireworks when she runs her fingers through my hair, trying to fix the mess she created. It's a movement that seems so ordinary, but it sets me on fire even more. Because it's like we've done this countless times before, like she was meant to fix me up every goddamn morning before I leave the house.

It makes me feel something I haven't felt in a very fucking long time, something I shouldn't feel yet. We've only just begun, just created this dangerous potion between us, but it's already starting to show its effect, spectacularly.

I realize I must've been staring at her like an idiot, her questioning gaze settling on me again, and it instantly gives me goosebumps. It's like she knows what I'm thinking, like she can watch my mind race.

Knowing I can't stay in this elevator much longer without devouring her on the spot, I release the emergency stop button. After a quick glance to make sure we're alone, I pull her after me and into my car, closing the doors behind us as quickly as I can.

"Thank you," she whispers so quietly, I almost don't hear it.

"For what?"

"For getting us out of there. Jasmine's like an embarrassing parent sometimes. I think she feels she's obligated to test my date before I go somewhere..."

I would've laughed at that statement if it weren't for that sad expression on her face when she says it. It makes me wonder even more what exactly happened in her life that I don't know about, that made her the woman she is.

But this is neither the time nor the place to speak about that. "Yeah, she can be a little intense." I shoot her a smile instead.

I give her hand another quick squeeze when she doesn't say more, and soon I drive us back to my apartment complex. A comfortable silence surrounds us as I send the elevator to the rooftop with the private code I asked for, and I glance over to Mila, wanting to see her reaction in a second.

Her eyes widen as the door opens, and I can't look away when she takes in the rooftop terrace I decorated this morning. There's now a table with two chairs next to the pallet sofa that was already there. "Wow...what a view," she whispers while she walks to the railing, staring at the L.A. skyline in front of us.

She looks like a goddess who calls out to her people beneath her, and I suddenly feel so insignificant next to this celestial woman. "It sure is," I mutter as I follow her to the rail, watching how she turns around to me with a smile.

"This is on your apartment building? Why do you even go anywhere if you have this?"

"Hm..." I pull her closer again, my lips brushing over her earlobe as I say, "Guess I just needed the right company."

She blushes at my words, but there's a hint of a smile on her lips when she gets on her toes to place a swift kiss on my lips. "Well...your company was promised breakfast. And she's starving."

I chuckle at her sudden change of mood, although I should be used to it by now. I take her hand and lead us to the table, pulling out her chair so she can take a seat. "Alright..." I clear my throat as I open the picnic basket next to us. "Choose your poison."

"Wow. That's the largest picnic basket I've ever seen."

"It has peanut butter cups." I wink.

And then she laughs so wholeheartedly that my heart skips a beat from the sound, the pure happiness in her voice creating a graceful melody when she speaks again. "A man after my own heart..."

"These will have to be subtracted from the amount I still owe you, by the way."

I laugh when she looks at me in mock surprise, slapping my chest like I just said the most ridiculous thing. "You wouldn't dare!"

"Okay, fine... But only if we eat now. I'm starving too."

"Deal," she answers, smiling so fucking brightly, the earth could stop spinning and go into oblivion and I wouldn't notice. Mila is taking up all my attention.

We start our breakfast, and I'm glad I ordered a large pot of coffee instead of a medium one. Because gods, this woman drinks more coffee in a minute than I do in a day.

The conversation is light as we eat; she tells me a little about her book, and I tell her about my schedule for the next few weeks. "Wait, you're going to Annie Knipp?" she asks.

Annie Knipp is Good Morning USA's host, the biggest morning television show in the country. It's an interview I agreed to a few weeks ago, though I definitely regret that decision now; she seems like one of the media demons I hate so much.

"Yeah, I am."

"Wow. I knew you were famous, but I didn't know you were Annie Knipp famous." Mila looks actually shocked for a second, and I'm afraid this is getting too much for her, again.

"I hope that doesn't change how you think of me," I say with much more seriousness than intended.

She must notice, because suddenly a shy smile graces her lips, and she takes my hand in her own, her brown eyes aiming straight at my heart. "It doesn't. Who you are out there, in the media world, isn't what interests me. It's who you are here, on this rooftop, with me, that can change my mind about anything."

I look at her for a second, shaking my head in an attempt to clear my mind, to understand this goddamn enigma in front of me. "You seriously surprise the fuck out of me with everything you say, Lucky."

A hint of mischief crossing her face when she asks, "Is that a compliment?"

"Hell yeah, it fucking is."

"Well, thank you. You swear a lot, by the way."

"I know. I'm sorry. I'll try to behave," I quip, although I know how hard it is for me to control myself sometimes.

"No..." Mila shakes her head. "I like it."

Her response makes me laugh again. I mean, can this woman get any more complex? "Well, I'll keep on fucking swearing like a goddamn sailor, then."

She stifles a laugh and grabs another peanut butter cup, which she throws in her mouth. "You did say you're the all-or-nothing kind of guy..."

"I did. And I am. Which is also why we'll be getting company soon." A hint of disappointment flashes in her eyes as soon as the words leave my lips, and I smirk on the inside; it's just fucking delightful to see that she wants to spend time with me, alone. "Not for long. But I promise you'll like it," I assure her.

Right on cue, my phone rings, showing the number I was waiting for. I walk to the elevator and send it down, ordering it to get back to the rooftop. The man I was waiting for arrives shortly after, pulling a large box on wheels behind him as he greets me. "Buongiorno, signor."

I shake his hand and step aside, waving him out of the elevator where Mila already shoots him a smile. "Hi. Hello. I'm Mila."

The way he looks at her doesn't sit right with me, and I quickly tug her to my side, wrapping my arm around her waist as he shakes her hand way too long for my liking.

"My name is Antonio. I'll be your host for today."

"Our host?" Mila asks while looking up at me, releasing her hand from the man to take my own.

"Yes, our host. He'll be hosting our coffee tasting."

"Coffee tasting?"

Her eyes grow even wider, and I only shake my head in amused disbelief. "You really need a hearing aid, love."

"Only when you do things like this," she whispers as her cheeks fill with color, and I lean down to kiss her, short but rough, just so she gets the message.

"Well, you'd better get one then. Because I'm not going to stop."