Troy walked around the car and opened her door holding out a hand for her to take. When she refused his offer Troy rolled his eyes and watched as she helped herself out of the jeep landing on the sand with a soft thud.

"Where are we?" Gabriella said looking up at the hut. Troy had laid out a floral dress for her to wear while she was in the shower. It was annoying how much control he wanted over everything. Since the day they were married he had a say in everything, her meals her clothing, her living space and her job. Her hand came down to smooth out the wrinkles in her dress. The dress was pretty and flattered her curves, which annoyed her because she didn't want to like it. The necklace had been a surprise, also a reminder that Troy's ideas of simple were expensive.

"A good friend of mine works here, and I want you to meet him," Troy said closing the door behind her, "He's a cook, like you."

Gabriella looked down at her dress and then at the hut shaped building, "Don't you think I'm a bit over dressed for a place like this?" Gabriella looked at his own khaki shorts and button up shirt buttoned mostly mid-way up his chest exposing a white under shirt beneath.

Troy smirked as he looked at her while the wind gently blew through strands from her pony tail. "You'll fit right in," He smiled as she sent him a look of doubt before turning back to look at the building. Gabriella hand quickly came up to her necklace and Troy took her hand before she could touch it. "Relax will you," he said playfully.

"Around you," Gabriella said with a raised brow, "I'd rather not."

Troy lead her up the steps as he ignored her remark, she was wise to keep her guard up. Troy smiled to himself as he thought about the small gasp that escaped her lips earlier in the room when he finally answered her question. He might be gentleman but he was a man first and foremost. He had plan and he wasn't going to let her or David get in the way of that.

When they entered the restaurant Troy tucked his hands into his pockets as he walked causally at her side careful not to touch her. Lifting his sunglasses up, he removed them and hung them on the breast pocket of his shirt scanning the bar. There were a few people already seated quietly talking, laughing and enjoying the ocean breeze that came in through the windows. Suddenly there was a commotion from the back room and Troy watched as Chad walked into the dining area carrying a box of glasses.

"Health department, we're here to shut it down," Troy called out playfully causing Gabriella to jump and Chad to turn their way.

"You bastard!" Chad placed the box on the counter top and made his way over to them with a big smile.

"How is life?" Troy said as he embraced his friend in a hug before moving back and placing a hand on Gabriella's lower back to nudge her forward, "You remember my wife from our wedding?"

"Life is sweet," Chad said taking Gabriella's hand in his and bringing it up to his lips, "But the sight of newlyweds is a delicacy."

Gabriella blushed faintly as he placed a kiss on the back of her hand. Chad, she vaguely remembered had been Troy's best man at the wedding. She talked to him briefly during the reception when she was trying her best to play the part of a blushingly excited bride. "Your restaurant is so romantic," she said looking around at all the soft colors and atmosphere of the room.

"Thank you," Chad said with a wink as he turned his attention back to Troy, "Your table is ready in the back, made sure no one will disturb you," Chad said as he motioned for them to follow.

Gabriella frowned as she looked back at Troy, "I thought you said this was a business meeting?"

"We're business partners aren't we?" Troy responded with a small smile.

Gabriella narrowed her glaze as he made his way through the tables, following Chad to a more secluded table. Gabriella followed cautiously not sure what to expect from Troy under the current circumstances. When she pulled the curtain aside to enter the room she was caught off guard by all the appearance of such an intimate setting. The room was secluded with hardwood floors and cream colored drapes that hung down from the ceiling and in the middle of the room right over the table was an open wide window that looked out onto the beach and the water.

Looking down at the table there was beautiful setting for two and bucket with a bottle of wine already chilled and ready to serve. "This is amazing," she said quietly as she looked around the room.

"Not as amazing as they way you look in that dress," Troy said with a small smirk as he motioned for her to take a seat.

Chad who was standing off to the side with a smile on his face, looked from Gabriella to Troy, "Your food will be ready shortly."

"Thanks," Troy said gently pushing in Gabriella's chair. When Chad left the room disappearing behind the curtain Troy took his own seat and gently drummed his thumbs on the table top as he looked around.

"Why are we here?"

"Stop asking questions," Troy said looking back at her with tight grin, "Just enjoy yourself."

Gabriella was quiet for a moment as she looked around the room once more looking at all the tiny details, the hanging shells and decorative star fish on the walls. Biting her bottom lip she looked back at Troy who was sitting across from her at the table. He was now looking out the window at the water.

"Chad brought this place after he lost his job on Wall Street," Troy said peacefully looking back at her with a soft smile.

"Why did he lose his job?" Gabriella asked curiously.

"That," he said dismissively, "Is a question." His eyes looked down at the table cloth in an effort to avoid her angry glare he was more than sure she was sending him.

Gabriella frowned and watched him avoid her glaze, when she was about to say something Chad walked in with two plates of food. "This is called Hearts of Palm Parmesan Salad," he said with a smile as he set their plate on the table in front of them. "This is a Costa Rican salad that I enjoy very much. I use fresh shaved Parmesan, tomatoes, garlic, fresh basil and green onions."

"Wow," Gabriella said with a smile as she looked down at her plate, "this smells amazing and looks wonderful."

"Thank you," Chad said with a bright smile as he made his way out of the room.

Gabriella and Troy were left in silence once again, "I think the key to any successful meal is not only taste but how filling it is as well," Troy said casually as he picked at his salad with his fork. "Who wants to leave a place having eaten and feeling hungry still or worst feeling like they overpaid because they had to order more than one serving."

"Are you trying to say that my cooking isn't filling?" Gabriella said with a frown.

"Question," he said brining the fork up to his lips.

Gabriella rolled her eyes as she looked down at her plate and gathered her own sample to taste. There was burst of flavor in her mouth as she let out a sigh of pleasure. The food was delicious, the salad wasn't dry, and it was moist and covered with just the right amount of toppings. The taste also had a spark of spice like a sharp kick of attitude that made the crunch of the lettuce

"I also enjoy the show of it all, makes the bill at the end of the meal easier to shallow," he said watching her relish in the taste. Troy clenched his jaw tightly as he watched the pleasure on her face as she slowly chewed.

"This is the best salad I've ever had," Gabriella said looking up at him and holding a hand in front of her mouth to hide her still chewing lips.

"I'm glad you like it," Troy said with a grin as he gathered another fork full. They were quiet for a few more bite as Troy continued to enjoy the way she ate in front of him. She wasn't shy about using her fingers or cautious about which fork she had picked up.

Gabriella looked up at him with curious glance as she reached for her water and took a small sip. She wasn't sure what to say, so far whenever she did speak he would promptly end the conversation.

"What?" he asked with a raised brow as he watched her staring at him.

"I'm not sure if I'm allowed to talk or not?" she said quietly.

"It's simple, stop asking questions and start making a statement," Troy said leaning up in his chair, "People don't take you seriously if all you ever do is ask questions."

"I beg to differ," Gabriella said taken aback, "Asking questions generates knowledge."

"No," Troy said blankly, "It's annoying, it's typical and it shows a great lack in confidence because you're constantly looking for someone else to provide you with this knowledge."

"How do you do anything without asking questions?" Gabriella said looking at him as she placed her fork down.

Troy frowned as he looked up at Gabriella and placed his fork to the side, "I ask questions when I need to ask them."

"How do you know when you need to ask them?"

"When I don't already know the answer," Troy said with a smirk.

Gabriella looked at him and let out a sigh, "You don't really think you know the answer to everything do you?"

Troy raised a brow, "I beg to differ."

"You can't be serious?"

"That's enough," He said sternly looking at her with a frown, "You will be quiet."

Gabriella opened her mouth to protest but Chad entered the room again this time he was rolling in a tray. Gabriella shifted her attention to Chad as he wheeled in the cart and reached for the plates in front of them putting them on the bottom shelf and then taking the two dishes from the top shelf and placing them on top. "This is a spicy chicken," Chad said with a smirk, "It's a popular dish out here for lovers, they love the senses that get heighten, the kisses are hotter the touches are more tempting."

Troy chuckled as he looked at all the food, "I don't think we need any help in that department," Troy said lifting his glaze to Gabriella's.

Chad chuckled and pulled the cart away from the table and reached for the wine. "Don't let this man make a fool of himself, you can tell me he's a horrible lover," Chad said with a wink towards Gabriella, he opened it and poured the two glasses of wine. When Chad left Troy returned his full attention to the woman sitting in the seat in front of him.

"You are the rudest man I have ever met," Gabriella said looking up at him.

"You are the most inquisitive woman I have ever met," Troy responded.

"You don't have a friendly bone in your body," Gabriella pick up her fork and knife as she began to cut into the chicken, "I wish you'd choke on your meal."

Troy stood up and grabbed his chair moving so that he could sit beside her.

Gabriella moved over in an effort to get away from him "What are-"

Troy blue eyes caught hers as he looked at her with an unspoken warning. The words quickly died on her lips and he took his seat next to her. Troy dabbed a finger into the sauce and held it up motioning for her to come in closer.

"No thank you," Gabriella said watching him closely, "I'm fine right where I am."

Troy shrugged his shoulders and leaned in placing his finger along her lip and smearing the juice from the chicken delicately there. He watched closely as her tongue came out and rolled over the searing moisture on her lips. Her eyes slightly shut as she bit her bottom lip tasting the warm sensation.

"I brought you here, because I know you have a passion for food," Troy said quietly as he turned back to the plate to cut a tiny piece of chicken. "I arranged for this tasting because I need you to remember how much you love food, for the last five years of your life you've been in a kitchen, tired, pushed, neglected, bored and lost," he said watching her as she watched him hold up the fork with the chicken on it, "you can't do this unless you're at your best and I can't do this without you."

Gabriella leaned forward and took the chicken off the fork gently pulling back and chewing slowly. The chicken fell apart in her mouth and the taste set a mini fire ablaze that was muted by the sensation of ranch drizzled on the chicken. Watching him he lifted her glass up and she took it from him. No one talked to her like he did, no one seemed to understand her better than he did. It was terrifying when she let herself be pulled in by Troy, because it was always in these small moments that she let her guard down.

In so many ways he gave her that same comfort she remembered from when she was with David, while seducing her with a kind of tough love she never felt before. He made her feel like a child, like she done something wrong and then as soon as she thought she couldn't hate him any more than she already did he would say something so rude and derogatory. Gabriella let out a sigh, but then he would do something as simple as feed her chicken and she suddenly felt like kitten in his lap after being scratched behind the ear.

"Tell me what you like about this dish," Troy said cutting another small piece of chicken and tasting it himself.

"I like the flavor, that searing burn that's put out with the ranch." Gabriella watched him chew as he tasted the chicken as well. "I don't know what that is but it's like he squeezed the juice from a chill pepper and injected it into the chicken."

"What else do you taste," Troy pulled up another fork full and watched as she took it once more. His jaw clenched tightly as he watched her eyes flutter shut as she chewed slowly and thought about the juices in her mouth. His eyes hovered on her lips, watching them move, wondering if they would be warm, if they would taste like fire from the sauce of the chicken.

"I think I taste garlic and oregano," Gabriella said opening her eyes and leaning forward to look at the chicken better.

Troy let out a sigh as the smell of her conditioner tingled his nose she was really close to him and he was remaining very still with a lot of effort.

"There is lemon juice," Gabriella said with a small smile, "I wonder how he got it so moist." Looking up at Troy she frowned when she noticed he was staring up at the ceiling. There was a small pinch of disappointment inside her that he hadn't been looking at her. She wasn't at the center of his attention and it made her feel jealous. Jealous of what? After a moment's hesitation she dipped her finger on the plate to feel the warm tingle of the sauce on her finger. Bringing up her finger she carefully smeared it on his lower lip just as he done to her.

Troy senses kicked up and he inhaled sharply the smell of peppers and flowers. Her finger was incredibly soft and warm. Troy licked his bottom lip as he watched her observe him. "I want to kiss you."

Gabriella pulled away quickly retreating back to her own space, "I thought you said we could be friends, I've never been kissed by a friend before."

Troy leaned forward watching her reaction the closer he got, "Then you never had any really good friends in your life," he said quietly as he hovered over her lips. There was a heat pulsating between them, their lips felt like magnates repelling and coming together at the same time.

"Please don't," Gabriella said quietly, "You're very good at a game I don't want to play."

"What about this is a game to you?" Troy asked a little more seriously.

"I never know if you're going to be with or against me, and lately I feel like you're against me," She said looking away from him.

Troy raised a brow as reached over to bring her back to him, "I will always be on your side," he said in a low voice. "This deal is a two way street and it only works if we do this together."

"Then why do I feel like your treating me as if I were a child."

"I have no intentions of treating you like a child," He said in low rumble as he pulled her closer. Before she could say something else his lips were against hers. They were pushed together in this heated warm sensation that made her insides tickle and her shoulder literally fall because his kiss tasted so damn good. Leaning in she gave into that feeling, kissing him back, reaching her hand up to pull him closer.

Troy hands came down in a scooping motion moving her from her seat to his in an instant and he liked the feel of her weight against him. The plush feel of her breast against his chest, her hands slinking through his hair and her lips eagerly feeding off of him, his lips burned his mouth was on fire and he could care less. He wasn't about to stop what was happening between them because it felt way to damn good to stop.

"Hey guys, how do you like the-" Chad stopped midsentence in the doorway cause both of them to pull away from each other.

Troy smiled politely at his friend and then up at Gabriella her lips were swollen from his kiss and her breath was quick as she parted her lips to breath. "The chicken is amazing," Troy said finally to Chad with a smile.

"I'll just leave you two alone," Chad said with a knowing smile as he left the room.

Troy reached up to catch Gabriella's lips in his and frowned when she pulled away from him. "What?"

"I don't know what I'm doing," Gabriella said quietly.

"You're doing just fine," he said leaning for another taste.

Gabriella pushed back again this time moving herself back to her chair scurrying to get away from him, "I think we should just stop."

"Why?"

"You know why," Gabriella said pointedly.

"I want you to tell me anyway."

"I still have feelings for David."

Troy raised a brow as he backed away from her, "Understood," he said with a nod. Troy stood up from his seat and shifted so he was back in his seat on the opposite side of the table.

The rest of the meal was quiet, both of them spoke minimally talking about the food, Troy kept his eyes on her. Watching as she would quietly shift in her seat obviously uncomfortable in his presence. Later when they returned to the hotel Troy walked her to the door of the hotel but remained outside watching as she made her way through the lobby and to the elevator, he was going to have to go on a long walk to figure something's out himself.

Gabriella lit a cigarette as she sat on the floor of the balcony. Her fingers holding the cigarette as she looked at her phone. It stared back at her, it looming there, begging her to call him. Gabriella brought the cigarette to her lips and inhaled deeply closing her eyes and leaning her head back as she brought her knees up. Letting out a long string of smoke she let out a sigh and picked up the phone, using her thumb to scroll down all the way to where David number was listed as Stop Calling. She paused as she hovered over the number, bringing the cigarette up to her lips she propped it there and opened a text message.

Hey,

Gabriella put the phone done after she hit the send button reaching for the cigarette and releasing the smoke slowly. What if he already moved on? What if he forgotten all about her by now and met up with some young college student or worst another professor who was better than her. The phone beeped, "Shit," Gabriella jerked as she looked at it, quickly her eyes darted back into the empty room and then back to the screen where she opened the message.

Hey there, how is Costa Rica?

Gabriella smiled as brought the cigarette back to her lips and began to text back.

It hot as shit out here, reminds me of that weekend we spent in Mexico.

Gabriella put the phone down and looked down at her blue floral dress, the one Troy picked out for there "meeting." Gabriella rolled her eyes as she thought about their lunch this afternoon. The food was amazing, the company had been dreadful. Her lips still burned from his touch, she was unable to shake the feel of his finger along her lower lip and that kiss. She felt her thighs clench, that kiss made her want to rip his clothes off. She wanted to be ravished, taken, and completely lost his touch in his arms, in his bed. She suppressed a moan as she let out a sigh. The phone chimed and she picked it up.

I remember that bright yellow bikini. Remember when we went skinny dipping and then got a cold that lasted for two weeks. You had the cutest little red nose.

Gabriella smiled as she brought a hand up to her cheek wiping away some of the moisture. They spent that entire week in bed watching the whole last season of Buffy the Vampire Slayer littered in tissues and he thought she had the cutest little red nose. Gabriella frown a little disappointment, it wasn't exactly what she was looking for.

Those were the days.

As soon as Gabriella hit the send button another message came through and she opened it.

I miss you.

Looking at the words on the screen she felt her heart sink as she looked back at her ring finger. Life was just unfair. Putting her phone down she pushed herself up and made her way back into the room, dropping her cigarette in one of the glasses of water left on the table and placing her phone next to the envelope of pictures that David had brought back to her. Gabriella walked into the bathroom and stood in front of the mirror looking at her own reflection. She could do this she could be strong, the game wasn't over yet she still had options.

She shouldn't even feel this way about him. Troy was going to sell the restaurant! He was going to stab her family in the back and she had to stay on her toes. She had to keep her eyes on him, she had to keep her distance. She could not just fall into his bed, not when so much was at stake. She had to get down to the bottom of what he was up to. The sound of her phone chiming again made her look back out into the room, cautiously she made her way out and into the room. Picking up the phone she looked down to see the message.

I'm sorry; I know that you're married and I don't want to be disrespectful to you or your promise. I just don't want to lose you from my life again. I made that mistake once I won't do it again.

Just as she was about to text him back the door opened and she turned around to find Troy walking in casually. He took off his shoes and began unbuttoning his shirt the rest of the way. He didn't say a word to her, didn't even look her way instead he threw his shirt onto a chair and made his way into the washroom. Gabriella powered her phone off not taking a chance that he would see the messages on it. Making her way over to her purse she buried the phone deep within it.

Just as she took a seat on the couch, Troy came out of the washroom and walked across the room to the small table and picked up his brief case on the way. She watched him quietly as he unpacked the briefcase pulling out his laptop, a note pad, a cell phone, a smaller box he plugged into the laptop and finally a small case where he pulled out a pair of glasses and put them on as he turned the laptop on and the engine roared to life.

"I didn't know you wear glasses," Gabriella said tilting her head to get a better look at him.

"Reading glasses," he said with a small tight grin before looking powering on his phone. As soon as the phone was fully powered on it be began to ring continuously as he got up and made his way over to the small fridge and picked up a menu from on top of it. "Here you can order room service, and watch television."

Gabriella looked back at his phone which was still chiming, "Are those all your missed messages?"

"I'm busy man," Troy said offering up the menu and remote to her again.

Gabriella took the menu and remote from him and watched as he came over to the cabinet and opened it revealing a flat screen television. "I don't really watch TV that much."

"Well I have work to do, I'm not a babysitter," Troy said as he walked back to his set up and took a seat just as his phone stopped chiming.

Gabriella turned around and watched as he opened his phone and began reading the messages. "What do you do actually?"

"I rehabilitate companies," Troy said still reading the messages.

"Yeah but what does that mean, what's your title?" she said propping her head up with her hand as she leaned on one of the sides of the couch.

"I'm a business consultant, people just come to me and offer me a price. I take those companies apart when they don't work and put them back together so that they do." Troy put his phone down and began clicking through the laptop. "In my private life I buy smaller companies like yours and I perform the same task."

"Like the lingerie store?"

Troy looked at her pointedly for a moment, "Like the lingerie store."

"Sorry," Gabriella said looking back at the menu; her eyes scanned each page quietly looking through it. Looking back up she watched as he began to jot things down. "How many businesses do you own?"

Troy looked up at the screen; he let out a sigh and then looked at her. "Fifteen," he said quietly going back to his work.

"So you must work all the time," Gabriella said to herself as she looked back at the menu, "No wonder you couldn't find a wife of your own."

Troy looked up again from his notes and back over at her as she sat on the couch looking through the menu. His patience was running thin, and her last statement was like a slap in the face he hadn't been expecting. "I do not work all the time, and I haven't gotten married because I work better on my own."

"Right," she said turning away from him some more as she brought her feet up on the couch and settled out so she was more comfortable. "Do you want anything?"

Troy stood up from his seat coming over to the couch he removed his glasses and set them on the coffee table leaning down he rested his hand on the arm of the couch and looked into her brown eyes that were now looking up at him in fear and anticipation. "Normally, when I have a woman that will not be quiet I take a moment to give them my undivided attention, which usually leaves them too exhausted to say another word. Now I have never given you a reason to hate me. You're just creating your own little drama out of pure insecurity." Troy brought a knee up onto the couch resting it besides her own.

"I promise, I won't say another word," she said looking up at him. Her breath was hitched as the smell of the ocean and sand floated around her twisting with this faint scent of aspen. He might as well be a strawberry dipped in chocolate, her eyes drifted slightly as the muscles on his arm flexed as he leaned closer.

"I don't believe you."

Gabriella leaned away from him as much as she could, "Then what are you going to do?"

"There is nothing wrong with a sexual relationship, if you ask me you're over due for one," he said quietly. His eyes swept down to look at her body underneath him and then back up to her brown eyes. "If we hadn't married under the current terms," he said using his other free hand to play with the strap of fabric on her shoulder. "If I would have asked you out to dinner instead, and you would have gone. You would have dressed up for me, would even let me whisper in your ear, and then at end of the night right before you went inside, before you made up your mind to see me again. I would have kissed you so passionately, tasting you, enjoying you, pressing your body up against the wall, against me, making you wet, making your knees shake," he said leaning into her so he could whisper in her ear, "You would've loved it."

"I wouldn't date you if you were the last person on earth," she said quietly as she kept her brown eyes on his. Her body was tingling, her cheeks felt flushed and she was sure she was already wet from the moment he said the word sexual.

"That's just dumb," Troy said pulling away from her and standing up right before he reached for his glasses, "If I were the last person on earth, you wouldn't be here," he said with smirked as he slid his glasses on. Walking away from her he smiled as he took his seat at the laptop and she sat there in complete silence.