Yours to Savor (17 page)

She crossed her arms and waited, appalled at the audacity the man possessed. Who did he think he was, summoning her like this, as if she had nothing better to do? She tapped her foot irritably, thinking of all the
right
reasons she was here, when she spotted him.

He was sitting at a table, looking out over the city lights. She was surprised that she’d forgotten how tall he was. How powerful he looked.

Then he turned and saw her.

Chapter Ten

Brandon stared at Sandra as if she were the only thing that existed in the world. His eyes captured her soul, and she found herself short of breath. A slow, steady smile that rivaled the moon’s own beauty spread across his lips. The look he directed at her intensified until it seemed to Sandra that he, too, was the only thing left in the world. She was drawn into the depths of his unwavering green eyes, drawn into pools of eternal time, and it was like some invisible barrier had isolated the two of them from the outside world.

Then he stood and started to walk toward her. His movements were smooth; he looked as if he were gliding underwater. His lips moved as he said something, but her addled brain was too numb to make sense of it. She saw him smile, felt him take her hand. When he brought it to his mouth with assertive grace, the heat of his lips against the edge of her knuckles made her gasp and come back to herself.

The rising tide of emotion swept aside any resolve that Sandra had built up before. She was taken in by Brandon’s rich, piercing gaze.
The hunter’s look,
she thought.
It held her mercilessly suspended in time.

Is this what love feels like?
Sandra wondered absently.
Can it arrive without warning, in the least expected of places?
Or had it always been there, sparked by fate the moment she stumbled into Brandon in that serendipitous meeting outside
Cassie’s Blend
? Had some part of her subconscious
known that,
and led her here as a result?
Was that the real reason I agreed to come to Seattle?

Everything about Brandon held her captive. Those stirring iron-green eyes. The bit of stubble on his cheeks. His messy, wavy hair. The casual way he had his sleeves rolled up to expose powerful forearms. The way he looked at
her:
Not like a doll, not like a toy, but like a woman. A woman he thirsted for.

“You look magnificent,” she heard him say, but the words seemed far away, distant. Her brain had become mush, and performing even the simplest function was difficult. The low, distinctive growl of his voice made her insides start churning all over again. The irresistible curve of his jawline drove her crazy, as did the subtle movement of his Adam’s apple when he spoke.

Belatedly, she realized Brandon was looking at her now, the amusement clear on his face, waiting smugly for a reply.

“Oh,” she stammered. “Thank you. It’s not me, really. It’s the dress. The one you bought me. Thank you—for the dress, I mean. And the compliment. But it’s not—” she cut off, heat flooding her cheeks as she realized she was babbling like an idiot,
again
.

Brandon regarded her with utter calm, his smile never wavering. Sandra took a deep breath. How was it fair that he could make her feel this way? After all the things she had planned to say to him!

“I have a table for us,” he told her. “Come.” Taking her hand, he led her to where he had been seated.

“How did you do this?” she managed as she sat down. “The people outside. They’re all waiting, I mean. But you’re here. And—”

“Sandra.” Brandon smiled. The way he said her name made her stop. She hadn’t felt this nervous the last time she was with him. Why now?

“Yes?”

“You needn’t worry. Everything’s been arranged for us.”

“Everything? You mean—”

“The restaurant is ours for the night.”

Sandra’s eyes widened. Of course, she had suspected as much, but to hear him actually say the words? It was a little like finding yourself in a dream, pinching yourself to wake up, only to
feel
the pinch and discover you weren’t dreaming at all.

“It doesn’t matter,” Brandon continued. “Only you matter right now. I was worried you might not come.”

“Might not… come? Why?” She had to get a grip on her nerves. It wouldn’t do for Brandon to see how unsteady he made her feel.

He reached across the table and took her hand in his, delicately brushing the tips of her fingers. Electricity ran through her arm, and her nipples firmed into hard buds beneath the soft lace of her bra.
There’s no way this type of reaction is normal.
“Never mind. You’re here now, and that’s all that matters.”

Sandra took a shaky breath. His touch sent shivers down her spine and all throughout her body. They were seated across an entire table from each other! She could only imagine what would happen when their bodies came closer together. There was so much she wanted to say to him, but the words wouldn’t come. She could scarcely even
think
. Nobody had ever had this strong an effect on her before. It had started just before the kiss on the boat, and now, almost a week later, it was like they hadn’t been apart at all.

“Tell me about yourself,” she blurted suddenly. She had to say
something
to take her mind off the highly sexualized feelings that Brandon roused in her. “I don’t want to be rude. But I don’t know anything about you yet.”

“What do you want to know?” he asked quietly.

She’d revealed her most recent past on the yacht… yet his was still clouded in darkness. “Well, I barely know anything about you, and you know my whole history—”

“Your whole history?” He smiled and leaned back, amused. “I don’t know a tenth of your history. I don’t know what you were like as a little girl. I don’t know what your favorite color is, don’t know what your favorite subject in school was, don’t know if you keep a diary, if you like summer or winter best. I don’t know if you’ll jump in the deep end on a whim, if you eat chocolate and watch sappy romances
when you’re upset. I don’t know what your favorite flower is—”

“Violas,” she said. “I like violas.”

“Violas,” he repeated slowly, testing the word on his tongue. He leaned forward, and the gaze he directed at her made her stomach flutter and her heart beat double time. “
Yes
.” The word was a husky growl. “That suits you. But there’s so much more I don’t know. So much I want to know.”

“You…
want
to know all those things?”

He locked eyes with her, reached across the table, grasped her hand again. “I want to know
you
, Sandra.”

Oh, God,
she thought. How was she supposed to resist that? Nobody had ever said something so absolutely heart-wrenchingly sincere to her. And the feel of his strong fingers caressing her hand, that tingling sensation that erupted along her skin wherever he touched, the heat that flared between her legs from a single look… it left her helpless. It wasn’t
fair
.

The worst part is, I can’t even fight my attraction to this man.

Here he was, someone who’d clearly been given so much in life, who could obviously have any woman he wanted, and yet, for some inexplicable reason, he was interested—enthralled, even—by
her
.

Sandra had had men interested in her before. She’d had men look at her hungrily before, but Brandon was
different
. There was lust in his eyes, to be sure, but it was kept restrained by something else. Something more wholesome, more fully there, more…
honest
.
He’s interested in me, and not in the quickest way to get me to bed.

How could she be upset for the way he had invited her here when he was behaving like this?

“Why were you gone?” she asked abruptly, too loudly, too awkwardly. She expected her words to break the spell of his gaze, to stop the jumble of feelings from continuing to build in her middle, but his eyes never once left her face.

“Hmm?” he murmured. “Gone?”

“After last week. Why didn’t you tell me you left Ocean Shores and came to Seattle?”

A smile spread across his lips. “I didn’t know you wanted me to.”

“That’s kind of the polite thing to do.”

“Is it? I wouldn’t know.” His smile became all too suggestive.

“And yet, obviously you know what you’re doing with me.” She paused, then spoke without thinking. “How can I not fall under your spell?”

He blinked, and for a second that fire from when he kissed her flared in his eyes. “You’re falling under my spell?”

Shit.
She didn’t know what had possessed her to admit that to him. But now that she had, she couldn’t very well deny it. “How could I not?”

Brandon looked very pleased at that. “Then I’ll take it I’m doing something right.” He leaned back and motioned around with his hands. “I’m going to be honest with you, Sandra. I don’t have a lot of experience with nights like this. I haven’t had the desire to make the effort with anybody else before. But with you, it’s different.”

“Why?”

“Isn’t it obvious? Because I’ve never met anyone I wanted to know as much as I do you.”

Wow. There was no pretense with this guy. He was direct and to the point, as always.
If he were anyone else, I wouldn’t believe him… but something about Brandon is different
. “Why?” she asked again.

“Why?” Brandon repeated. He chuckled. “Your silver eyes should be reason enough for any man. Did you know they shine like diamonds in the candlelight?”

Sandra blushed a little. “No.”

“They do. And they’re lovely.”
Okay,
now
he’s turning up the charm.
“But that’s not why I invited you here. After last week, I haven’t been able to get you out of my head. You cast a spell on me, Sandra, and I’m responding the only way I know how.” Again the hunger flashed in his eyes. “No,” he corrected. “Not the only way. The
right
way.”

Oh,
wow
! Sandra felt the flush of heat across her cheeks come at exactly the same time as it did between her legs. She had to look away. Did the man
know
of his effect on her? Something in the back of her mind screamed,
Yes. Very much,
YES
!

“Why didn’t you respond to any of my texts?”

“I was busy.” He waved a dismissive hand through the air. “I had meetings during the day. Nothing that would interest you. Besides, I don’t like communicating that way. It feels too… impersonal. You saw my notes from this morning?”

Sandra smiled. “Of course.”

“It’s a little archaic, but I think handwriting conveys so much more meaning than something you punch into a phone.” He cocked his head to the side. “Wouldn’t you agree?”

“I never thought of it that way, but… yes.”

“And I trust shopping with Clarisse wasn’t too unexpected. She told me you had a great time.”

Sandra blushed again, feeling a bit of shame creep up within her. “You didn’t have to do that.”