See Me(65)

Obviously, Lily had been planning this all along. She reached for Colin’s hand. “Just run me through a bit of everything, okay? At full speed.”

Colin complied before finally separating from Lily. “Good enough?”

“You’re going to dazzle her.” Lily winked. “Just like you did with the flowers.”

“And you know what else will dazzle her?” Evan asked. When Colin turned toward him, he knew that Evan’s thoughts had taken a serious turn. “First your car starts, and then you don’t end up getting arrested.”





Colin had barely finished knocking when Maria pulled the door open. For a long moment, all he could do was stare. Her blouse hugged her curves and her skirt reached only to midthigh; her strappy high heels made her nearly as tall as he was. With a touch of mascara and lipstick, she looked nothing like the professional he’d gone to lunch with only a couple of days earlier, nor did she resemble the sun-kissed woman on the paddleboard. As he stood before her, he wasn’t sure which version of her he most preferred, though this one, he had to admit, was pretty stunning.

“You’re right on time,” she said, giving him a kiss on the cheek. “I’m impressed.”

His hands automatically went to her hips. “You look beautiful,” he murmured. Up close, he caught a whiff of perfume, something floral and understated. Perfect.

“Thank you,” she said. She patted his chest. “I like the shirt.”

“It’s new.”

“Yeah? For tonight?”

“You could say that.”

“I feel special,” she said. “And, I have to say, you clean up pretty well.”

“Sometimes,” he admitted. “Are you ready to go?”

“Just let me grab my purse, and then I’m ready. Where are we going?”

“The Pilot House.”

“Wow… I love that place. The food is fabulous.”

“So I’ve heard. Lily recommended it.”

“Then she obviously has good taste.”

The restaurant wasn’t far, but Colin drove at a leisurely speed with the windows rolled down, both of them enjoying the flickering stars that spread to the horizon and a breeze just strong enough to erase the lingering heat of the day.

Near the river, Colin left Market Street, eventually pulling into the restaurant’s lot. Walking around the car to open Maria’s door, he reached for her hand and escorted her to the entrance. Once inside, he was surprised to note that it was less formal than he’d expected – a clean, unpretentious place with white tables and a million-dollar view. The restaurant was crowded, people clustering near the bar while they waited for indoor and outdoor tables. After checking in with the hostess, he followed her and Maria to a corner table with a breathtaking view of the Cape Fear River. Moonlight spilled over the slow-moving surface, forming a liquid vein of light between coal-dark banks. As Maria stared toward the water, Colin mentally traced the graceful outlines of her profile, watching her hair catch in the breeze. How had she come to mean so much to him so quickly?

As if sensing his thoughts, she met his gaze and smiled slightly before stretching her hands across the table. He took them in his, marveling at their softness and warmth.

“It’s a gorgeous night, don’t you think?” she asked.

“Gorgeous,” he answered, but he knew that he was really referring to her. Sitting across from her, Colin had the strange feeling that he was living someone else’s blessed life, someone more deserving than he. And by the end of dinner, after all the dishes had been cleared and the wineglasses emptied and the candles were flickering out, it dawned on him that he’d spent his entire life searching for Maria, and only recently been lucky enough to find her.





CHAPTER 12





Maria





T

he warehouse was located in a run-down neighborhood on the outskirts of town, and the only hint that it served a different purpose than any of the other abandoned warehouses nearby was the scores of cars parked haphazardly on the far side of the building, out of sight from the main road.

Not that its sketchy vibe seemed to matter. In addition to the crowd already inside, there was a long line of people – almost exclusively male – still waiting to get in. Many were dragging coolers, no doubt filled with alcohol; others drank beer or sipped from plastic cups as they slowly edged toward the entrance and the music blaring within. Unless they were with a date, girls didn’t have to wait in line, and Maria watched as one group after the next cheerfully marched toward the door in tight tops, short skirts, and stiletto heels, ignoring the litter-strewn surroundings, whistles, and catcalls.

Colin appeared relaxed, taking it all in quietly. When they reached the door, they were met by a heavyset man in sunglasses who was collecting the cover charge. The bouncer studied Colin up and down – no doubt trying to decide whether he was with law enforcement – then did the same to Maria before reluctantly taking the bills Colin was offering and nodding toward the door.

Inside, they encountered a solid mass of swaying bodies, and with the booming music, the place shook with a vibrant, barely contained energy. No one seemed to care about the oil-stained concrete floor or the lack of décor or the industrial-grade lighting; guys were clustered around their coolers, drinking and shouting to be heard above the music, trying to get the attention of any girl who happened to pass by. Like at most nightclubs, men clearly outnumbered women, and most appeared to be in their twenties or thirties. Maria presumed that the vast majority were working people out for a fun Saturday night. There were, as Serena had noted, some pretty scary-looking guys here, too, with tattoos and bandannas representing various gangs and wearing baggy pants that could easily conceal a weapon. Ordinarily that would have made her nervous, but the atmosphere indicated that most people were simply focused on having a good time. All the same, she found herself scouting out possible exits in case trouble broke out.