Straight Flushed (Hot Pursuit #1)(21)

“I work in personal protection.” I glanced out of my window at a long fishing dock we were driving past. A man in the distance drew back his pole and cast a line into the water beyond my line of sight.

“Which means what exactly?”

“I’m a bodyguard.” I turned and watched his reaction. It wasn’t like I worked at a doctor’s office or a bank, so I was usually met with a little surprise.

“Oh, how cool,” he said with a smile. “You’ll have to tell me more about it when we get inside. We’re here.”

He pulled into a gravel parking lot. Maria’s restaurant was nestled off in a side lot next to a small, upscale shopping complex. The old brick building was weathered but had a newer looking black and white awning hanging over the door. A handwritten sign was perched out front with the daily specials written in hot neon pink marker.

After we pulled into a parking spot, I reached for my door handle, but Stephen stopped me. “Don’t move,” he said, and I looked at him suspiciously then he got out of the car. I stayed in my seat and watched him walk around to my door.

“Thanks,” I said, smiling as he opened my door. I stepped out and a skinny, twisted dark gray and pink shell was at my feet. It was pretty, yet completely out of place in the sea of gravel. He glanced down and picked it up.

“Here,” he said, handing it to me. “Something this pretty shouldn’t be in a parking lot waiting to get crushed. You should keep it. A little souvenir from our first date.”

Guilt poked my stomach. A first date? I took a deep breath, releasing it quickly, and took the shell from his hand. I rolled it back and forth between my fingers. “It’s pretty, isn’t it?” I tucked my hair again behind my ears and glanced at him.

“Gorgeous,” he said, gazing at my face. He put his hand on the small of my back and looked around the lot. “But we should get inside…out of this heat.”

I nodded then slipped the shell into the pocket of my dress, and we walked around the car toward the front of the restaurant. Inside, we were quickly led to a table in the back which looked out onto a small fishing bay. A few boats rocked lightly back in forth in the murky green water, and a lone fisherman was tying his dinghy to the dock.

“This place is really cute,” I said, scanning the interior. Old nautical maps and pictures of sailboats were scattered about randomly on the dark wood-paneling. Small, circular porthole windows were cut into the walls. It felt like we were dining inside the lower deck of an old ship. “I love all the artwork and the ambiance.”

“Yeah, it is a cute little place.” He glanced down at his menu. “So a bodyguard, huh? Do you get to smack people around all day long?”

I laughed. “Maybe, but only if they need to be smacked.”

“Sounds like an exciting job.”

“It has its moments.”

“I have to admit, I’m not really surprised to hear that’s what you do, though.”

“Really? It’s not a run-of-the-mill type job. Most people are kind of surprised when they hear.”

He shook his head. “No. When I picked you up last night there was something about the way your body reacted. Then later when we were…” He cleared his throat and looked over his menu at me with playful eyes. “In the sand. You felt strong. I doubt you have any problems handling yourself.”

His flattery warmed my heart. “Thank you for saying that.”

“My pleasure.” He smiled, looking down at his menu. “Where is home anyway?”

“Cincinnati. You?” I asked, and his head popped up with a look of surprise.

“New York.” He knitted his brows together. “You know, I knew you looked familiar last night. I was in Cincinnati on business last week. Maybe we bumped into each other somewhere?”

“I don’t think so. I’m sure I would recognize you.” I hoped the dim lighting didn’t show the flush rising in my cheeks.

Our server interrupted, returning with two waters and then she told us the specials. Stephen ordered a bottle of Oregon pinot gris, and we ordered our meals. A warm bowl of creamy lobster bisque with a cold glass of white wine awaited me, and my salivary glands went into overdrive.

“Who were you seeing in town?” I asked. “Maybe when I was working we crossed paths.” It would have been the only way I wouldn’t have noticed him.

He grabbed his napkin and dotted some sweat that had developed on his temple. I couldn’t believe he was hot enough to be sweating when I was chilled to the bone. It’s one of the life’s great mysteries; men are usually hot when women are usually cold.

“I met with an old friend from National Bank Corporation,” he said, draping his napkin across his lap.

“Oh!” I exclaimed. “That has to be it then. My partner and I were guarding one of their Vice Presidents last week. We were all over the city with him—functions, meetings, parties—it was a busy week.” I laughed. “Actually, he’s one of the reasons I ended up here.”

“He is? How?” His body stiffened again.

“We kind of got into a car accident. Not a big deal,” I said, completely avoiding the details of the high speed chase, and the men who shot at us. There was nothing run-of-the-mill about that.

“Really?” He smiled tightly, and the color drained from his caramel cheeks.