Part of Your World(22)

She went quiet for a moment. “Must be a lot of change.”

“It must.”

I kept glancing at her while we ate in the white glow.

She was so beautiful. I couldn’t believe I’d gotten her to come back here. Made me a little proud of my sex skills.

“Does Brian own the drive-in?” she asked, eating a dried apricot.

I nodded. “That and the grocery store.”

“And you’re the mayor, and you run a bed-and-breakfast?”

“We all wear multiple hats around here. Liz works at the VFW and waits on tables at Jane’s three days a week. Doug does odd jobs. And the mayor thing really isn’t a big deal. It’s mostly town hall meetings.”

“For what?”

I snorted, picking up a cracker. “For me to resolve petty squabbles.”

“Like?”

I chewed and swallowed. “Well, like telling the Lutsens they can’t have chickens on the roof of the barbershop because the feathers are blowing into the candy store across the street. Barking dog complaints, judging the butter carving contest in Doug’s barn on Halloween. You know, important stuff like that.”

She laughed.

I took a sip of hot chocolate. “So are you going to tell me what you do for a living?”

She gave me hooded eyes. “I mean, isn’t it more fun if I’m mysterious?”

“I think it’s more fun if I get to know you.”

She twisted her lips.

She didn’t want to tell me.

“Is there something nefarious you think I’m going to do with this information?” I teased.

She tucked her hair behind her ear. “I’m in the family business.”

“Which is…”

“How about I give you three guesses.”

I smiled. “Okay. And what do I get if I guess right?”

She arched a playful eyebrow. “What do you want?”

“I want you to come back next weekend.”

She gave me an amused smile. “Okay,” she said. “You have a deal.”

I rubbed my hands together. “Do I get any questions before I guess?”

She shook her head. “Nope. You have to go in cold.”

Crap. This was going to be hard. I tried to think of the little I knew about her. She was polished and elegant. Smart. My guess was a white-collar job. She obviously came from money, so she probably made a lot, whatever she did.

“A lawyer,” I said.

She tilted her head. “Do I seem like someone who negotiates for a living?”

“You hustled Doug,” I pointed out.

She laughed. “No. Not a lawyer.”

“CEO.”

“Nope.”

“Damn,” I whispered.

“That’s two,” she said, smiling. “One more.”

I pursed my lips.

“Banking?”

She shook her head. “No.”

I puffed air into my cheeks. “So what are my chances of getting you to come down next weekend anyway?” I gave her a raised eyebrow.

“Not good.”

“So you’re saying there’s a chance…”

She laughed at the movie screen. “Let’s just see how tonight goes.”

We finished the food right as the movie started, and I put everything in the picnic basket and pulled out a blanket so we could lie down. I was glad it was a little cold, because she needed me for warmth. She scooted over and let me put an arm around her. She snuggled into the crook of my elbow, and it was so familiar and comfortable I had to remind myself this was only the second time we’d been together.

And damn, she smelled good. It was intoxicating. I didn’t even want to watch the movie, I just wanted to put my nose to her neck, and I knew if I did, both of us would end up with hickeys again before we drove out of here.

I tried to behave myself and watch the show, but I got the sense her attention wasn’t faring much better. I made a mental note to take her upstairs before taking her out next time. Neither of us could focus.

Westley was sword fighting Inigo Montoya when I glanced down at Alexis again. But she wasn’t looking at the screen. She was looking at the sky.

She noticed me and turned so her lips were an inch from mine. “I don’t remember the last time I looked at stars,” she said quietly. “Maybe never. It’s so peaceful here.”

“We don’t have the light pollution,” I said. “The stars are always really nice in Wakan.”

I dropped my eyes to her mouth.

She cleared her throat and looked down at the arm I had lying across my stomach. “Tell me about your tattoos.”

I held up my arm to show her. “It’s roses on both sides.”

“Why?”

“These are the flowers from the banister on the stairs. They were one of the first things I remember as a kid. One of my favorite things in the house. And Grandpa always brought Grandma roses.”

She traced a finger over a petal, and I watched her. I felt my heart picking up just from this tiny contact, like even this minor attention from her was enough to put my body on alert. When she got to my wrist, I threaded my fingers in hers. She closed her hand around mine and I smiled.

Maybe women like this did hold hands with men with calluses…