Lisa was definitely rattled at that moment.
How interesting.
‘Thank you,’ she returned, confusion in her eyes, as though she was well aware she was not acting like her normal self.
Even more interesting.
‘Are you ready?’ he asked, quite pleased at how the evening was going so far. Who knew? He might not have to be super-patient after all. If he wasn’t mistaken, his little ice princess was already on the thaw.
Ready?
No, Lisa suddenly wanted to scream at him. No, I’m not ready. Not ready at all! I need a few minutes to find myself again. To find control. And composure. And to work out what happened when you looked me up and down just now.
Lisa was no stranger to men staring at her. She was used to hot, desire-filled glances. Even lecherous ogling.
Jack’s gaze, however, had not been at all lecherous. His eyes had betrayed nothing but a natural interest in her appearance. In truth, Lisa would have been piqued if he hadn’t complimented her.
What had upset her was her own reaction when he’d looked her up and down. Her skin had burned under the silky lining of her dress, her nipples tightening in a most disgraceful fashion.
She’d felt naked before him. Naked, and excited.
Yes, excited. That was what she’d felt.
No wonder she’d blushed.
‘Have you got your house keys with you?’ Jack prodded when she made no sign of moving.
‘What? Oh. Yes. Yes, I think so.’ She opened the gold clasp on her bag and made a pretext of inspecting its contents. ‘Yes. They’re here.’
‘Lock up, then, and let’s get going. I don’t like being late.’
Lisa used the few seconds it took to lock up to calm herself. But any headway she’d made was obliterated when Jack took her arm and started steering her down the front path towards his car.
Such a simple gesture. A gentlemanly gesture, really. But the moment his large palm cupped around her elbow, electric currents went charging up and down her arm, making Lisa stiffen all over.
She smothered a sigh of relief when he let her arm go to open the passenger door of his car, grateful when he allowed her to settle herself into the seat, unaided. But she could feel his eyes on her bare legs as she swung them inside, once again making her hotly aware of her semi-naked body underneath her clothes.
She clutched her bag in her lap as he swung the door shut after her, keeping her eyes steadfastly ahead, resisting the temptation to glance up at him, for fear of what he might see in her face. But when he came into view through the front windscreen, striding round the low front of his car, Lisa surrendered to the temptation to gaze openly at him, her thoughts reflecting her ongoing shock at how he was affecting her tonight.
Just before he opened the door and climbed in behind the wheel Lisa wrenched her eyes away, hopeful he hadn’t noticed her staring at him.
But what if he had?
Embarrassment curled her stomach. Please don’t let him have noticed. Please let me get through this evening without making a fool of myself.
Because that was what Lisa was suddenly feeling like. A fool. Not a frigid fool any longer. Just a fool.
Chapter Eight
JACK frowned as he gunned the engine. Talk about one step forward and three steps backwards.
For a split-second, when she’d blushed, he’d thought she was warming to him.
But just when Jack had started counting his chickens, the hatching had ground to a halt. She’d acted like a marble statue when he’d taken her arm. And now she was staring out of the passenger window and clutching that bag in her lap as if she was scared stiff he was about to pounce.
Clearly, he hadn’t hidden his desire for her as well as he thought he had.
Time to calm her fears with some distracting conversation, or this evening was going to be a total disaster.
‘Very nice place you’ve got there, Lisa,’ he said as he executed a U-turn and accelerated away. ‘It’s a credit to you.’
Her head turned and there was no mistaking the relief in her eyes. Obviously, she didn’t mind his complimenting her house.
‘I do like keeping it nice,’ she said. ‘But my mother says I’m too house-proud.’
‘Nothing wrong with being house-proud. Have you always lived here?’
‘Ever since my marriage. Though it looked like I’d lose the house for a while after Greg died. His insurance payout didn’t cover the mortgage.’
‘So what did you do?’
‘I couldn’t go out to work. I had a child and I hadn’t booked him into childcare. So I took in ironing and cleaned houses whilst people were at work. Anywhere where I was allowed to take Cory with me. I worked seven days a week. By the time I started my business, I was close to paying off the mortgage. I’m now free and clear of debt.’
‘Wow. That’s impressive, Lisa.’
She shrugged those slender shoulders of hers. ‘I did what I had to do. But what about you? Where did you live before you bought up here?’
‘In Sydney’s eastern suburbs. I still have an apartment in Double Bay. But I was finding it hard to write there. I bought the place in Terrigal as a kind of writer’s retreat.’
‘You must be very wealthy.’
‘I’ve been lucky.’
‘I don’t believe that. People make their own luck. I’ll bet writing is hard work.’
‘It’s becoming more so with time. When I first left the army, the words seemed to just flow.’
‘Oh, so you were in the army. My mother said you must have been. She said you knew too much about weapons not to have handled them yourself. Once I thought about it, I agreed with her.’
‘I was in the army for twelve years. Joined when I was eighteen. Left when I was thirty. I’d had enough.’
‘How long ago was that?’
‘Six years. Do I look thirty-six?’ he asked, slanting her a quick smile. ‘Or older?’
She stared back at him for a few seconds. ‘Thirty-six looks about right,’ she said at last. ‘Though I wouldn’t have been surprised if you’d been older. You do have years of experience in your eyes.’
Jack nodded. ‘Some days I feel a hundred. I saw lots of things I’d rather not have seen in the army, I can tell you.’
‘Hal is you,
