by Amii Lorin
Selena left the decision to Luke, who shrugged. They were seated at once inside the dining room.
The menus were huge. Luke barely glanced at his, and Selena hid a smile behind hers. He ordered a steak, rare. She decided on blackened fish.
The restaurant had an old-world ambiance and an unhurried attitude. Dinner was to be savored and enjoyed, and the tension slowly eased from Selena’s taut, expectant body.
“You’re very quiet this evening,” Luke observed, giving her a sober look over the soup appetizer.
“I’m tired,” she explained, lowering her eyes to her steaming gumbo. “I didn’t get much sleep last night.” She sipped the broth looking up in time to see him scowl.
“Why not?”
The underlying hardness in Luke’s tone confused her. Watching him warily, Selena finished her soup before answering. “I drove most of the night.”
Luke slid his soup plate aside breaking a roll in a way that gave Selena the shivers. “Most of the night?” His tone was soft, silky with suspicion.
Tension began uncurling inside her again. Impatient with him and with her own reactions, she forced herself to relax. “Why?” she repeated. “Because I didn’t leave my house until after three-thirty this morning, that’s why!”
“Three-thirty!” he exclaimed.
“Yes, three-thirty.” His astonished expression threw Selena off balance. What difference could it possibly make to him what time she’d left? Frowning, she bit into the piece of butter-slathered roll he offered her. “Why?”
Luke hesitated, his frown mirroring hers, before a shadow of movement rippled his shoulders in a careless-looking shrug. “Three-thirty just seems like an odd time to begin a journey.”
Selena nibbled on the roll. “I really hadn’t planned on taking a journey,” she replied at length. “It was one of those spur-of-the-moment decisions.”
“I see,” Luke muttered, sitting back as the waiter served their entries. “Spur-of-the-moment, huh?”
Selena nodded. “Yes. Like yours.”
His serrated knife sliced through the steak and made a grating noise against his plate. “What do you mean, like mine?”
“There’s no reason to get testy! I thought you’d said that your decision to come to San Antonio had been spur-of-the-moment.”
“Oh. Yeah.” Luke stared at her for a second. Then he grinned. “I guess it was.”
Thoroughly confused, Selena gave up the verbal battle. “Ah...how’s your steak?”
“Great,” Luke mumbled around the wedge he was chewing. “How’s your fish?”
“Great,” Selena echoed, positive it would have been if she were able to really taste it.
When her appetite was finally restored, she did enjoy the delicate flavor of the blackened fish and side dishes. The remainder of the meal was consumed in relative silence, giving proof of how very hungry they both were. Conversation resumed over after-dinner liqueurs and dark, rich coffee.
Then, appearing far too casual, Luke tossed his napkin aside and asked, “Are you too tired for a walk?”
“No.” Selena heaved a sigh. “In fact, I believe a walk is required.”
“Good.” Standing, he held out his hand to her invitation. “You can introduce me to San Antonio.”
Chapter Six
“This is the famous River Walk.”
Luke gave Selena a dry look. They were standing outside the restaurant, staring at the river, which, as rivers go, wasn’t exactly remarkable. “Cute.” His tone reflected his expression. “This is my introduction to San Antonio?”
Selena offered him a bright, counterfeit smile. “It’s a beginning.”
‘I’ve met this river,” he reminded her. “I was on it less than two hours ago...remember?”
“But you haven’t really seen it,” Selena countered. “Have you?”
“Point taken.” Luke glanced left, then right. “Pick a direction.”
“This way.” Selena turned right and began strolling along the crowded walkway.
Dodging the laughing, chattering pedestrian traffic, Luke strode to Selena’s side. He shortened his step to align it with hers and clasped her hand. “I don’t want to lose you,” he said, curling his fingers around hers.
Selena felt the vibrations of his warm touch from her fingernails to her toenails. “Afraid you’ll have to sleep on a bench somewhere if you do?” She tossed an arch look at him as she moved ahead to pass around some teenagers.
Luke’s soft laughter tickled the back of her neck and her scalp and her ears. “No, I’m not afraid,” he said, bringing her to his side with a light tug. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve got you in tow.” He lifted their clasped hands for her inspection.
Haven’t noticed? She’d noticed little else since he’d wrapped his long hand around hers. She’d noticed the chills vying with the fire running rampant along her veins. She’d noticed the sudden constriction of her breath. She’d noticed the curling tendrils of fog clouding her mind. The only things she hadn’t noticed were their surroundings and the people surging around them.
“I noticed,” she confessed, willing a measure of carelessness into her tone. “Have you noticed any of the lure of the River Walk and the festive atmosphere?”
Luke’s smile was conceived in erotic realms and born in his devilish eyes. His gaze fastened on her frowning face. “I noticed a definite lure,” he said, lowering his eyes to her mouth. “But it has damn little to do with the river, the walk, the festive atmosphere or San Antonio.”
Selena’s muscles contracted, and Luke’s smile told her that he felt the clench. She cleared her throat and laughed. She had an overwhelming urge to leap into the river—if only to cool the sheen of heat shimmering over her body. She had to do something, and quickly. If not the river, then something less drastic. With the strains of music from several strolling players lending background, she drew a breath and launched into a rapid tour-guide monologue about the River Walk,
“As you can see-—” Selena motioned to a foot bridge arching over the water “—the Paseo del Rio, or River Walk, is located one level below the downtown streets.”
While at the moment, my mind is one level below normal function.
“The River Walk is considered by many to be San Antonio’s major visitor attraction and experience.”
At this instant, however, it’s second only to Luke Branson.
“The river meanders its way several miles through the center of town between banks abundant with giant cypress trees, palms, tropical foliage and flowering shrubs.”
Not to mention the deadwood referred to as a brain inside my head.
“If you’ll note,” she continued in a desperate tone, “much of the route is bordered by hotels, restaurants, cabarets, sidewalk cafes, boutiques, and art and gift shops.”
While my mental terrain consists only of sexy images of a handsome, dark-souled man.
“You’ve already experienced the river taxis, which offer half-hour scenic cruises, and—” She broke off as Luke held up his free hand in a sign of surrender.
“Okay, I give up.” Though he made an anguished face at her, he was laughing. “I’ll look. I’ll observe. I’ll absorb. Only, please—will you shut up?”
Feeling foolish, yet suddenly lighthearted, Selena laughed with him. “You weren’t enthralled?”
“More like numbed.” He gave her fingers a gentle squeeze of denial.
“More like bored,” she corrected him.
“Never.” Luke’s response was immediate and thrilling. “You couldn’t bore me if you worked at it.”
“Not even by reading aloud from the phone book?” Not quite able to believe the sense of easy camaraderie she now felt with him, Selena slid a sparkling glance his way.
“Well...” Luke drawled the word, grinning. “You’re beautiful, and the sound of your voice does do strange and wonderful things to my libido, but...” His voice faded and his grin remained.
“But...?” she prompted, inordinat
ely flattered by his remark.
“I wouldn’t go as far as the phone book.” The grin still tugged at his chiseled lips—and her imagination.
Selena laughed. All at once, teasing him was easy and fun.
From their first meeting two weeks ago, Luke had struck her as aloof, withdrawn, cynical and a loner. Which wasn’t surprising, since most of the people she had met since corning to West Texas were loners by choice. But this evening, whether by accident or design, he was revealing warmer, more approachable facets of his character. Maybe his soul wasn’t quite as dark as she’d thought.
Luke’s soft laughter merged with hers, instilling inside Selena a comforting sensation of ease. That in itself was unusual, since she was never truly at ease in the company of any other man. The feeling both fascinated and astonished her, and she was examining it when his low-pitched voice drew her from her reverie.
“Where have you gone, Selena?”
Blinking, she cast him a look of puzzlement. “Gone? I don’t understand.”
“You’ve gone off somewhere inside yourself. Where?” Before she could reply, his lips tightened and his voice grew an edge. “Who are you thinking about? Manuel?”
Selena came to an abrupt halt. “Manuel?” Genuine surprise colored her tone. “Why in the world would I be thinking about Manuel?”
Supremely unconcerned with the crowds jostling for space to move around them, Luke stood in the center of the walk and stared into her startled eyes. “Why not?” he retorted. “Didn’t you drive here with him from the party last night?”
“What?” Sheer amazement raised her voice to a squeak. “What are you talking about?”
Luke didn’t answer. “And didn’t you spend the night with him in a motel in Alpine?” he went on in a relentless tone.
Because it was so sudden, so unexpected, his attack devastated Selena. A lethal mixture of emotions rocketed through her. She felt disappointment because his arrogant tone had wiped away her sense of ease and camaraderie. And she felt unutterably weary, because she had offered him something she had never before offered to a man—a glimpse of her true self—and he had thrown that offering in her face.
Selena’s reaction would have been a subtle warning to anybody who knew her. Her small body grew rigid. Her delicate chin lifted and tilted. Her green eyes sparkled like emeralds reflecting a blazing noon sun. Her voice was as cold as the North Atlantic in January.
“I beg your pardon?”
Luke felt the chill to the depths of his overheated outrage. He had blundered badly, and he knew it. This cat-witch woman did not appreciate questions of a personal nature. She arched her back. She bristled. She unsheathed her claws. Luke was undone. She was so damned beautiful.
“Selena.” His voice was low, calm, yet even he could hear the thread of a plea woven through the fabric of control.
‘‘Answer me, damn you!”
Heads turned among the passersby, startled by her harsh note of command. Luke registered and ignored the curious glances sent their way. Denying an itch in his palm to stroke her, soothe her, he met her glaring green eyes with a dark, direct stare of his own and answered her with unadorned, unrepentant bluntness.
“I asked if you spent last night in bed with Manuel.” Unaware of holding his breath, and fully expecting an explosion, Luke waited for her reaction.
When it came, he was thrown completely off balance.
“That’s what I thought you asked.” The harshness had disappeared from Selena’s voice, replaced by a remote, careless note. A small, weary smile curved her mouth. Jerking her hand free of his grasp, she turned and walked away from him. Her head was held high. Her back was straight. But he could see the betraying shake of her shoulders.
Cursing himself for shattering the harmonious accord they had been sharing, Luke strode after her. It was only when he reached out to clasp her arm that he realized her shoulders weren’t shaking from unspent rage, but with uncontrollable inner amusement. She was silently laughing.
“Selena?” Luke peered at her, concerned. “Are you all right?”
“Manuel!’’ Selena exclaimed on a whoop. “That’s really very funny!”
“It is?”
She brought her laughter under control with obvious effort. “Well, of course it is, you potato-head!”
Unappreciative of the unflattering name, Luke repeated, “Potato-head?”
Selena’s bare shoulders quivered with laughter. “Only a potato-head would... Oh!” She gasped as a distracted tourist careened into her.
“Watch it, buddy!” Luke’s voice cracked like a smartly uncoiled whip.
The startled man froze then stammered an apology, inching along the walk to get away from the scowling Luke.
It was simply too much for Selena. Covering her laughing mouth with one hand, she grabbed Luke with the other. “We’re blocking traffic.” She began to walk, only to be brought up short by an immovable object...one Luke Branson,
His features set into hard lines of determination, his booted feet planted on the walk Luke stood like a statue and looked every bit as solid and unyielding. “I’m not going anywhere until you explain why only a potato-head would—” He broke off to give her an implacable stare.
“Oh, for heaven’s sake, Luke! Lighten up!” Selena laughed. “It was only an expression.”
“I’m glad you’re amused.” His steely tone told her that glad was the last thing he was feeling.
Heaving a tired, telling sigh, Selena just looked at him and shook her head. “What a grouch,” she muttered, glancing around the area. “Look—” she indicated a nearby sidewalk cabaret with a flick of her hand “—I’m tired and I’m thirsty. Let’s get out of the way here. I promise I’ll explain myself over a drink. Okay?” She gave him a coaxing smile, along with a gentle tug on his hand.
“Okay.” Luke allowed her to draw him along the walkway and up the steps to the large porch of the cabaret, “But this had better be good.”
The place was jammed, inside and out, with people ranging in age from late teens to senior citizens, all of whom appeared to be hell-bent on having a good time. There was one empty table, a tiny one, against the slatted railing in the curve of the porch. Another young couple was heading for the table from inside the building. Moving like quicksilver, Luke snaked through the crowd, beating the other couple to the table by a hair.
The other man glared at Luke.
Drawing himself up to his full height, Luke turned on the ice and glared back.
The man retreated.
Selena was forced to turn away to hide her once-again uncontrollable laughter. Her entire body shook with it. She could barely choke out her preference for white wine to the waitress who approached the table.
“Are you having fun?” Luke asked in a muttered growl when the waitress departed.
Swinging around, Selena laughed in his face. “As a matter of fact, I am.” She held her breath, waiting for his reaction, wondering if he’d see the humor in the situation.
For a long, disappointing moment, Luke stared at her. Then, to her utter relief, he exhaled a deep breath and grinned at her.
It was amazing. One grin from him and the tension was gone, the camaraderie restored. Selena moved automatically when he pulled out a chair and motioned for her to sit down. She watched as he settled his length on the chair opposite her, and she felt a pang in her heart when his grin slipped into a self-derisive smile.
“Okay, I’m behaving like a jerk.” His shoulders rippled in a shrug, drawing her fascinated gaze to the muscles flexing beneath the smooth cotton of his shirt. “I’m sorry.” His chiseled mouth twisted into a grimace. “I was out of line,” he admitted. “You had every right to call me a potato-head because I had no right at all questioning your actions.” His voice went low, weighted by acceptance. “And I’ll understand if you tell me to take a hike and find my own room for the night.”
Selena was tempted, not because she was afraid of him, but because she was afraid of the liquefyin
g effect he was having on her. She drew a breath, smiled and drew another before she found her voice and the words to respond to him.
“I’m not going to tell you to take a hike, Luke.” His relief was visible and flattering. But a tiny frown line still marred his brow.
“Thank you, but maybe you’ve spoken too soon.” He glanced up, murmuring thanks as the waitress set their drinks on the table.
“What do you mean?” She sipped her wine.
“I must ask one more question.”
Her eyebrows arched. “And that is?”
He hesitated then plunged. “I could understand your anger,” he said. “But why were you laughing?’5
“Because I met Manny this afternoon when I arrived at the hotel,” Selena explained with a laugh. “He works there.” She took another, larger sip from her glass.
Luke’s expression went blank. “Works there?”
“Yes,” she said. “He’s one of the desk clerks. He was on duty when I arrived. I had come down from my room tonight a moment before you strolled into the lobby. Manny was just going off duty and stopped to chat for a few seconds.”
The look that transformed Luke’s features was both sheepish and shrewd. Studying her, he took a deep swallow of the beer he’d ordered. “You’re right, I acted like a potato-head,” he conceded. “But you were also wrong.”
“In what way?” Selena demanded.
“I saw the look in Manny’s eyes,” Luke said dryly. “He was devouring you. Believe me, a casual chat with you was the last thing on his mind.”
Since Selena had reached the exact same conclusion at the time, she could hardly argue the point. She had known what was wriggling around inside Manny’s mind as well as she knew what was fermenting inside Luke’s gray matter. A teasing, knowing light sparked a fire in her green eyes.
“Are you accusing Manny of having the same kind of designs on my person that you have yourself?” she asked in a sweetly barbed tone.
“Yes, damn him!” Luke retorted with blunt honesty. His dark eyes pierced hers. “You may as well know that I intend to have you, to make you mine.”