“There isn’t a whole lot to see,” Selena replied. “It’s a speck on the map.”
“It’s speck with a lot of history. Isn’t it referred to as ‘a peaceful place with a violent history’?”
Selena sat up straight. “How’d you know that?”
“I teach American history.”
“Where?”
“At the Christopher Munroe Military Academy in North Charleston.”
“Do you like teaching?” she asked, continuing with her questioning.
Xavier smiled, bringing her gaze to linger on his sexy mouth. “I love it. Now, tell me why you left Matewan.”
“I was offered a full academic scholarship to Stanford.”
The seconds ticked as he stared at Selena. Not only was his pretend girlfriend beautiful, but she was also very bright. “What was your major?”
“Drama.”
“You’re an actress?”
Slumping in the chair, Selena stared at a spot over Xavier’s shoulder. Answering his question would open a door to her past she didn’t want to reopen. “No,” she half lied after a pronounced pause. “I’m a pastry chef.”
“But…but why did you major in drama if you wanted to be a pastry chef?”
“At the time I didn’t know that acting wasn’t for me.”
What she didn’t tell Xavier was that she was a pastry chef with chocolate as her specialty. She prayed Xavier hadn’t watched daytime soap operas or he would’ve recognized her even without the makeup and designer clothes. After she’d graduated, she’d auditioned for a small part on a soap opera and was hired on the spot. Her acting credits included commercials, a made-for-television movie and work in several films. The seven-episode role on the soap opera was expanded, and she was signed to a one-year contract and became a recurring character.
Ratings for the show escalated. Her workdays began at five in the morning and didn’t end until ten at night. After memorizing fifty to sixty-page scripts, she barely had time for socializing. But after about a year and a half she began going out with Derrick Perry.
He’d been the most attentive man she’d ever known, but when his attentiveness bordered on obsession, Selena knew they had to stop seeing so much of each other. It was as if she were being smothered. He’d become unreasonable when she’d told him that she wasn’t able to see him every day, and that they could get together on weekends. He’d fly into a rage, and then resort to a crying jag. She didn’t see Derrick for several weeks, and when he reappeared it was as if nothing had happened. Selena didn’t ask where he’d been and he hadn’t been forthcoming about his disappearance. They’d resumed their weekends-only dating for a month when he disappeared again. This time it was for three months. When he’d shown up at her apartment late one Sunday night she didn’t recognize the man with whom she’d been involved. He’d lost weight, his eyes were sunken, he’d grown a beard and his hair was fashioned into twists. When she’d asked where he’d been, his response was he’d gone away to try and find himself. It was then that he began stalking her and unbeknownst to her, planning to kill her.
“Selena?”
Xavier’s voice broke into her thoughts. “Yes?”
“How often do you do that?”
“Do what?” she asked.
“Zone out.”
Droplets of heat pricked her face. “I’m sorry. What else do you need to know about me?”
“How long have you lived in Charleston?”
“About a year and a half. I opened Sweet Persuasions six months ago. I’ve never been married and you already know I’m not involved with anyone.”
“Is that by choice?”
A soft gasp escaped Selena’s lips. She sat there stunned, unable to believe Xavier had asked her that question. “Of course it’s by choice.”
“Don’t act so put out, Ms. Yates. After all, you were the one who said you didn’t like people hooking you up. Suppose you’d met someone you liked. Would you get involved?”
Resting her elbows on the table, she shortened the small distance separating them. “Are you asking if I would consider seeing you, Mr. Eaton?” There was a hint of laughter in her voice.
Xavier eyes lingered on her parted lips before meeting her amused gaze. “No. I would never be that presumptuous,” he said, unaware that his approval rating had gone up several points with Selena.
She wrinkled her nose. “Now it’s your turn. Give me a quick overview of Xavier Eaton so I don’t embarrass myself when someone asks me about my date.”
“I’m thirty-four, a marine—”
“I thought you were no longer active military.”
He wagged his finger. “Shame on you. Didn’t your brother teach you, Once a Marine Always a Marine?”
“Now, how could I forget that?” Selena said jokingly, as she hit her forehead.
“I don’t know,” Xavier crooned.
She rolled her eyes at him. “I owe you for that one.” Xavier responded with a wink. Suddenly he appeared carefree and boyish, qualities she didn’t think he possessed.
Xavier curbed the urge to run his finger down the length of Selena’s nose. He didn’t know what it was about her utterly adorable nose that captivated him. “I met Bobby Bell when we were cadets at The Citadel. I lived on campus while Bobby commuted. When I didn’t go home to Philadelphia for holidays and school breaks, I could be found at Bobby’s house. I became his unofficial brother. We managed to stay in touch after graduation, but lost contact with each other once he was assigned to the American embassy in Istanbul. After I was deployed to Iraq, and later Afghanistan, I lost touch with everyone I knew at The Citadel.”
The seconds ticked as Selena gave Xavier a long, penetrating stare. “Were you injured in combat?” He nodded, then went completely still as if he’d been carved out of stone. “Why did you decide to return to Charleston?” she asked, changing the topic.
Xavier breathed an audible sigh. He didn’t like talking about the war because the images of what he’d done and seen were indelibly imprinted in his mind. There were times when he woke up struggling to breathe, his heart racing uncontrollably from the nightmares that haunted him once he was no longer on active duty.
“I like this city.”
“You like this city?” Selena said.
“Isn’t that enough?” Xavier said. “You moved from West Virginia to California to go to school, but instead of returning home you decided to put down roots in South Carolina.”
“There’s a reason why I didn’t go back to West Virginia.” She knew she sounded defensive, but Selena wasn’t about to spill her guts to a man who she was just pretending to date.
Xavier crossed his injured right leg over his left knee. He was able to get around without a cane now, but there were times when the dull ache was a reminder of how close he’d come to losing the limb. “Were you running away from an old boyfriend?”
Years of acting training kicked in when Selena’s face belied the tension of the knot that had formed in her stomach. She didn’t and couldn’t tell Xavier how close he was to the truth. “I didn’t have a boyfriend when I lived in Matewan.”
“Did you have one when you lived in California?”
“I thought we were talking about you?” she retorted, unable to hide her