I know where it went,” Luke muttered.
The waiter looked from Luke to the woman and back again. Still unsure. Still worried. Luke was used to that. He was rich. His family was famous. Most people got nervous around him. And he hated that. So he forced a smile and said, “Would you get the lady another glass of wine, Michael?”
“Certainly. What were you drinking, miss?”
“Chardonnay, thanks. The house wine’s fine.”
Luke frowned and shook his head. “I think we can do better than that, can’t we, Michael?”
The waiter grinned. “Yes, sir.”
When the man left, Luke looked into those chocolate eyes again. “So, since you’re sitting on my lap, I think it’s only right I know your name.”
“Oh, I’m Fiona. Fiona Jordan.” She held out a hand to him.
He glanced at it and smirked. “I think we’ve already moved past a handshake, don’t you?”
“I think we have,” she said. “And since your lap is being so welcoming, maybe I could know your name? Last name Barrett, according to the waiter. First name?”
“Luke.”
She tipped her head to one side and studied him for a long second or two. “I like it. Short. Strong. Sounds like a romance novel hero.”
This had to be the strangest conversation he’d ever had.
Nodding, he confessed, “You found my secret. By day, I’m a tech-toy developer. But at night, I’m a pirate or a lord or a Highlander.”
She gave him a wide grin, and that punch of desire hit him harder. “How is it you know so much about romance novels?”
“My grandmother goes through a dozen every week. I grew up seeing books with half-dressed men and women on the covers scattered around the house.”
“A well-rounded childhood, then.”
Luke thought about that and had to say, she was right. In spite of losing his parents when he was just a child, Luke’s grandparents had saved him. They’d given him normalcy again. Made sure that though his world had been rocked, it hadn’t been completely destroyed.
His lips quirked. “I always thought so.”
“I envy you,” she said simply, and before he could comment, the waiter was back.
Michael hurried up, carrying a glass of wine for Fiona and a refill of Luke’s scotch. He set both glasses on the table and said, “On the house, Mr. Barrett. And again, we’re very sorry about—”
“You don’t have to apologize, Michael,” Fiona told him. “I’m the clumsy one.”
The man winced. “Oh, I wouldn’t say clumsy…”
“That’s because you don’t smell like chardonnay,” Luke put in wryly.
Michael nodded again before he scurried away.
“I think you scared him,” Fiona said as she watched the man rush back to the bar.
“I think you’re the one who scared him. Pretty women can have that effect on a man,” Luke countered.
She turned back and literally beamed at him. “But not you?”
“I’m immune.”
“Good to know,” she said, smiling. “Does that mean I should give up or try even harder to be scary?”
“Oh, definitely keep trying.” Luke grinned. Hell, he liked a woman this sure of herself. Well, to be honest, he just liked women. But a strong, gorgeous one with a sense of humor was right at the top of the list. And this one was more intriguing than most. It had been a long time since a woman had made this kind of impact on him. He laughed to himself at that thought, because she had landed on him with both physical and emotional impacts.
He took a quick look at the whole package. Long, dark brown hair, those chocolate eyes, a wide mouth, now curved in a smile, and a body that filled his mind with all kinds of interesting images. That green shirt looked great on her, and the full black skirt was short enough to showcase some great legs. The mile-high black heels just put the finishing touches on the whole picture. Oh yeah, she could be dangerous.
Even to a man who had no intention of getting into a “relationship,” Luke loved women, and the occasional date or one-night stand was great. But he didn’t have the time or the patience to devote himself to two passions right now. All of his focus had to be on his budding company. So meeting a woman like this one could be problematic.
“So…” Fiona spoke again, and Luke told himself to listen up. “Now that we’re so comfy with each other, what brings you to San Francisco?”
“I don’t know if comfy is the right word,” Luke said wryly, shifting position a bit.
She reached for her wine, but Luke was faster. He handed her the glass. He wasn’t going to risk another wine bath.
“What’s the matter?” she asked. “Don’t you trust me?”
“Since my shirt is still wet from your last glass of wine, I’m going to say no.”
She laughed. “Well, that’s honest, anyway. I like honest. But I have to say, I think it’s time I moved to a chair.”
He reached for his scotch and took a sip. The aged whiskey sent a slow burn through his body that couldn’t even compare to the current blaze centered in his lap. “Yeah, maybe you should.” He knew everyone in the restaurant had to be watching them, and Luke didn’t give a flying damn. Fiona Jordan had broken up his afternoon and brightened a long, boring day, and he was going to enjoy it. In fact, he hadn’t felt this…light since the day before with his grandfather.
Something about her made him forget the things plaguing him and, for that, he was grateful. Just before she’d dropped into his lap, he’d been going over and over again that conversation with Pop. Wondering if he could have handled things better. Hating that the two of them were at such odds.
But this woman with the brilliant smile and the gorgeous legs had changed that—for however long the feeling lasted.
She hopped up, and Luke muffled a groan as she took a seat across the table from him.
He had to admit he was breathing easier, even when she took a sip of her wine, then ran the tip of her tongue across her top lip to catch a stray drop. His gaze locked on that movement and yet one more sharp jab of heat stabbed him. He couldn’t remember the last time a woman had attracted him so completely. And while warning bells were going off in the back of his mind, Luke ignored them all.
She took another sip of her wine, met his gaze across the table and asked, “So, what should we talk about?”
His eyebrows arched. “You want to have a conversation now?”
She shrugged. “You want to sit here
