“I just have a little shop. I sell old clothes that I buy at estate sales and markets.”
“And do you enjoy it?”
“Very much. But it would probably seem dull and boring to someone like you.”
“The question is—is it dull and boring to you?”
“No! Of course, not! I love what I do. I live to find some darling item at a bargain price, so that I can sell it to a customer with a limited budget. Every woman longs to be beautiful, you know.”
“Then I envy you.” Again she heard a weariness in his voice. Only this time she sensed the deeper pain that lay beneath it.
“And you don’t think I’m boring…because I sell old clothes?”
He laughed. “Don’t be absurd.”
“No, really, you must tell me.” She leaned forward, holding her cup in two hands for fear of spilling. “Since we’re strangers, we can speak freely. Was your first impression of me…Did you think I looked boring and old?”
He set his scone down. “Who the hell’s been telling you a stupid thing like that?”
“My boyfriend.” Why had she admitted that?
“Then dump him.”
“I sort of did, but I’ve always loved him. Or, at least, I thought I did. Maybe he’s just been in my life forever.”
“So you’re the loyal, committed type?”
“Well, anyway, I can’t stop thinking about him. All day I thought about him. And the things he said.”
His black brows shot together so alarmingly her hands, which still held her teacup, began to shake. “Stick with your decision.”
“But I’ve loved him since I was five, I think,” she whispered a bit defensively. “My mother disapproves of him, though.”
“No wonder you cling to him.”
“No, it’s not like that.” She smiled. “It’s just that I’m not sure I did the right thing to break up with him. I did it so fast, I mean. That’s not like me. I spent several years planning before I opened my store.”
“Maybe the decision had been coming on for a while.”
“But Fletcher—”
“Fletcher?” His handsome features hardened. “Well, you’re not boring or old. So, you want to know my first thoughts about you. I thought you were lovely. Fresh. Nice. Different. Too nice for me probably, but a woman I definitely would want to know better if I were a different sort of man—one capable of commitment. Sexy.” He bit off that last rather grumpily. “Sexy in a nice way. You’re the kind of woman a nice guy, who has a good job and wants to settle down, marries so he can have a houseful of kids to play soccer with on the weekends.”
His dark eyes with those sparking flecks said much more, and she grew hot with embarrassment.
“That’s sweet,” she said.
When his hand reached across the table for hers, she jumped.
“Responsive, too. That’s another first thought.”
She yanked her hand free and tucked it beneath her pink napkin.
“This Fletcher doesn’t deserve you. But let’s talk of something more pleasant. I can tell we’ll never agree on this subject, so why argue? Your love life is your choice. Not mine. I barely know you.”
He seemed out of sorts suddenly, defensive, almost jealous. But that wasn’t possible. A man like him, who was wealthy, refined and movie-star sexy couldn’t be jealous of her. Especially not when they’d just met.
“I’m sorry if I upset you.”
“So, you have a sister?” He was clearly determined to change the subject. “Here in London?
“Carol. Actually, she lives outside London. On a rather grand estate near Wolverton. She has a large house with a conservatory. And a lovely garden, too. That sounds so English, doesn’t it? But she and her husband—he’s a lord and a very important person, mind you—keep a flat here in St. James so they can stay in the city whenever they need to, which is usually four or five nights a week. She’s a barrister, and he’s high up in the government. They both work in the city.”
“So how much time do you have with them? What sights are you going to see while you’re here?”
“I’m flying to Marseilles tomorrow afternoon. But I hope to ride the Eye and walk across the Millennium Bridge. I’m sure those seem like dull and boring things to you.”
“Quit running yourself down. We’ll do it, then,” he said.
“We’ll?”
“If you’ll accept my invitation. Are you free for dinner and dancing tonight?”
“But we just met. I bet I’m not the sort of girl you usually ask out.”
“What the hell are you talking about now?”
“Just what I said. I’m not the sort of girl you usually hang out with.”
“No, you’re not. But maybe that’s why I like you so much. Why I find you so not boring and old, as you put it, that I want to clear my schedule, which is jam-packed I assure you, and spend as much time as I can with you before you leave.”
She was thrilled and yet startled, too. She was in a foreign city, and she didn’t know anything about him. Except that he was sexy, and she wasn’t sure that was exactly the best recommendation.
“I’ll have to check with my sister. She went to Edinburgh on business, but she’s going to try to get back tonight in time to have me come for dinner. I came over here in such a rush, and she had a calendar full of engagements and business commitments.”
“I understand.” He pulled out a little black notebook and tore out a page. Then he scribbled two numbers. “This one’s my mobile. The other rings at the flat. Call me if you’re free.” Then he shrugged in that wonderful Gallic way he had as he handed it to her.
His deep voice was as heated as his gaze, causing her to shiver even before he placed the note in her hand. Instantly she curled her fingers around the scrap of paper. When his fingers lingered warmly over hers for long seconds, her own hand froze.
Soon the heat of his long fingers wrapping hers proved too unnerving. She couldn’t think or talk or breathe. Not with her pulse knocking a hundred beats a minute.
“Why do you seem so familiar?” she blurted, pulling her hand away so she could put his note in her purse. She gasped for a breath. “I—I just know I’ve seen you before.”
“I don’t think so.”
With a scowl, he picked up the bill. Then before she knew what he was about, he lifted her hand and brought it to his lips, turning it over slowly. His mouth against her palm and wrist sent her pulse leaping even faster than before. Then heat swept her body.
“I don’t need to call you later. I’ll go with you…dancing…everything…tonight,” she said in a rush.
“What about Carol?”
“Carol?” Her mind was blank.
“Your sister.” He smiled much too knowingly.
“Right.” She gasped. “Right. Of course. Carol. I’ve got to wait until Carol calls. I forgot all about her.”
He laughed. “You’re wonderful in your own special way.