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Her eyes round with shock, she gaped at Joseph. “How did you know?”
“Oh, just a guess. My mother’s name is Esmeralda, and she is Esme for short. My grandmother was a Victor Hugo fan her whole life. Your mother too?”
“No, she likes Disney princesses.”
“Ah, I see. Well, it’s a lovely name.”
“Thank you.”
Once Joseph had gone, I said, “Your full name is Esmeralda?”
“You didn’t know? I thought you must have done a background check on me or something.”
It intrigued me that the idea of me digging into her history didn’t seem to bother her in the slightest. “Nope. I don’t even know your full name.”
“White. Esmeralda Snow White.”
“Fuck off. It is not.”
Her eyes brimming with laughter, she reached into her purse and pulled out her driver’s license.
“So, your Mom’s a bit crazy, then?”
“Bit rich, coming from a guy called Wolfe.”
“Fair.”
“What’s your middle name?”
“I’m tempted to come up with something outlandish, like…Howl…”
She threw back her head and laughed. That rich, throaty chuckle that skittered over my skin and heated my blood. “That’s terrible!”
“Yeah, it is. But luckily for me, my parents' imagination ended with my first name. I don’t have a middle name.”
Joseph returned with the champagne. After he’d gone again, I watched Esme tentatively pick up the flute and bring it to her lips, hesitating before taking a sip.
“If you don’t like it, we’ll get something else.”
She tasted it, scrunching up her nose and looking obscenely cute while she did it. “Oh, it’s actually really good!”
“Great. Now let me know what you want to eat.”
“Yes, sir.” She picked up the menu and perused it for a few moments before putting it back down. A small frown on her brow, she sighed. “I don’t know what anything is.”
“Do you trust me?”
“Of course.”
I needed to take a moment to absorb the impact of how easily and quickly she said that. “I’ll order for you.”
“Great!”
As though summoned by my thoughts, the hostess appeared magically by the table. “Are you ready to order?”
“Yes, thank you, Colleen.”
After I’d placed our orders and Colleen had gone, Esme rested her chin on her linked fingers and gazed at me for a long moment. “That’s a bit hot, you know.”