yes,” he said.
And like a subject to a hypnotist, Skye nodded, then caught herself. “Wait. Whoa. I—”
“You don’t wear earrings,” Gage said, his forefinger now tracing the lobe of her ear.
Anyone would shiver at that gentle stroke. Anyone would be confused by the new turn of conversation. She blinked. “Not lately...”
“So fragile,” he murmured, still playing with her ear, so that his knuckles brushed the sensitive hollow behind it. “And without any jewelry, innocent-looking and...naked.”
Oh, God. That word, naked, combined with the almost delicate contact of his hand made her dizzy. She hauled in a breath, and his scent invaded her lungs, that same exotic, evocative male scent as the night before. It smelled like some rare, copper-colored spice kept behind a curtain in the last booth of a foreign bazaar.
It made her want to rub her face against his throat.
“I’m hungry,” Gage said, still touching her.
Naked. Hungry. She was melting, going liquid inside. So much heat. “Me, too,” she heard herself say.
“Lunch, then,” he said, his hand dropping. “You mind driving?” He was already moving aside her purse and climbing into the passenger seat.
Her mind caught up to his actions. “No. I... What are you doing?”
“I’m hungry, you’re hungry. A meal.” His door shut with a decisive click.
Stymied, she slid into the driver’s seat. “I was on my way to the mall.” It was true, and it was also her last-ditch effort to get rid of him. Men hated shopping.
“Sounds good,” Gage said, adjusting his seat to make more room for his long legs. “I need to buy my mom a birthday gift. Maybe I’ll find something for the engaged couple.”
He glanced over when she continued to stare at him. “What? Won’t your trip be more fun with a friend?”
How to answer that? Of course they were friends. They’d been regular correspondents for months, and he’d only be puzzled if she made a big deal about not allowing him along.
And, damn it, she wanted to be his friend.
Nothing more...but nothing less, either. She’d loved their letter exchange.
Without another demur, she headed half an hour up the coast to the outdoor promenade of shops in one of the bigger beach towns. The streets in its center were closed to car traffic, but she and Gage still had to keep an eye open for bicyclists, skateboarders and moms pushing Hummer-sized strollers. He didn’t say anything as they ambled, his gaze roaming the myriad cafés and restaurants as well as the shops that sold everything any used-to-it-all-and-more Southern Californian could want.
“Culture shock?” she asked.
He turned his gaze from the window of a store that sold nothing but ball caps to look into her face. “I always forget how much...stuff there is available for purchase.”
“Is that disapproval I hear?” She tilted her head. “All the ‘stuff’ offends your sensibilities?”
“I don’t have a lot of possessions myself, because I travel so much. I’m like a hermit crab...carry all I need on my back.”
“Nothing to weigh you down?”
He shrugged. “It’s true I’ve lived light. I...” His words faded away as his gaze caught on the bare legs of a woman in short shorts and platform sandals. He watched her swaying hips until they disappeared into a high-end lingerie boutique.
“There’s something to be said for Western excess,” he said, grinning. “Look at all those pretty little nothings.”
The stork-legged mannequins in the shop window were dressed in panties cut high and bras cut low.
“Ironic how Western excess results in a definite shortage of T-and-A coverage,” she grumbled.
He laughed. “Shall we go inside?”
“No!” she said, mortification washing new heat across her skin. “I’m not going in there with you.”
“I’ll buy you a present.”
“No,” she repeated, then quickly stepped into the specialty body and bath products store that had been her destination. Instead of scantily clad mannequins and posters of supermodels in wings, this boutique was decorated with murals of flower fields and lush vineyards. Various lines of organic skin care products were arranged by scent. Skye headed toward the back corner.
“Wait.” Gage’s head swiveled and he drifted toward a display of products nearer the front. There sat bottles and tubes colored a pale, green-tinged blue. Stacked beside them were hand-hewn blocks of soap the same color. They smelled of freshwater and flower petals. “This,” he said, pointing to it. “This is you.”
Skye shrugged a shoulder, half uncomfortable, half pleased. “You’re right. That’s their Melusine line. It’s what I use.”
He brought a waxy bar to his nose, inhaled. “I like it. It suits you, cool and sweet at the same time.”
Another surge of pleasure warmed her, even as her nerves tingled a warning. Should she change her bath products? She didn’t like the idea that her personal fragrance was so recognizable. Drawing attention to herself through looks or even scent didn’t sit well with her any longer. As she watched, he closed his eyes and drew in another breath of the soap’s perfume, clearly enjoying it.
Her nerves tingled again. Maybe it was the kind of detail only Gage would notice, she thought.
Which didn’t make her feel any more at ease. Backing away from him, she cleared her throat. “Don’t worry about sticking close. Go on out, browse the other shops. I can find you when I’m done picking out the bridal present I’m after for Jane.”
If she’d thought the mention of a wedding would send the man on his way, she’d been wrong. He was at her shoulder as she perused a display of orange blossom products packaged in white organza. Hyperaware of him, she selected several items that she’d put together in a gift basket.
“Can I help you?”
They both turned toward a salesgirl, her platinum hair ironed to a shiny fall, her sparkling blue gaze focused on Gage.
His smile spread slowly. “I don’t know,” he said, not looking away from the young woman, who was dressed in a layered trio of tank tops and a napkin-sized skirt. “Do we need any help, Skye?”
Speaking of scents, she could smell the sex appeal he was beaming toward the pretty blonde. “I’m fine,” she said, and turned her back to give the man privacy for his flirtation.
And he did that, flirted, his voice low and warm as he asked the woman’s opinion on a birthday gift for his mother. With half an ear, Skye heard her recommend the Melusine products and couldn’t miss Gage’s quick dismissal of that idea. Next they walked to a row of tester vials and Skye rolled her eyes as the salesgirl insisted
