LITMIR.BIZ

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course. Good point.”

      “But you could have had something with a little more kick than a diet soft drink.”

      Something akin to alarm flickered in her eyes and vanished, leaving him wondering if maybe he imagined it. “I’m not much of a drinker.”

      “Me, neither.”

      That made her laugh.

      Should he tell her the truth? Step one, he reminded himself. “I’m serious. I’ve been sober almost two years.”

      The amusement drained from her face. “Oh. Luke, I’m sorry I laughed. I shouldn’t have.”

      He leaned closer and touched her hand. “No apology necessary. Sometimes even badasses grow up.”

      “Not always.”

      He guessed she was talking about her ex.

      “Some of us do,” he said. Too bad it sometimes took a disaster to make it happen.

      She slowly withdrew her hand. “So, here we are. Ten years out of college and a couple of teetotalers.”

      “Wow. It’s been ten years?”

      “It has.”

      The server set Claire’s soft drink and his coffee on the table. “You folks ready to order?” she asked.

      Claire gave the menu another quick scan. “What’s good here?”

      “They have the best burgers in Seattle. The Emerald Isle is my favorite.”

      She read the description and grimaced. “Two beef patties and bacon and cheese? I see your appetite hasn’t changed.”

      “I worked hard today. I need the calories.”

      “And I sat at my desk most of the day, so I definitely don’t. I’ll have the O’Chicken burger,” she said, smiling at the name as she handed her menu to the server.

      “Fries or salad with those?”

      “Fries for me,” Luke said.

      “I should have a salad.” Obviously that’s not what she wanted.

      “Have a salad,” he said. “We can share my fries.”

      The server confirmed their order and drifted away.

      “I was surprised to see you this afternoon,” she said. “I bumped into one of your old dorm-mates a couple of years ago and he told me you’d joined the Seattle P.D.”

      So she did know. “Yeah, I got in a couple of years after I graduated college.”

      “And you’re moonlighting as a window washer?”

      He didn’t want to let her believe that, mostly because it wasn’t true. But because of where she lived, and the reason he was working there, he needed to be careful what he did tell her.

      “I’m with vice. Sometimes an investigation is easier when the bad guys don’t know who we are.”

      “So you’re...what? Working undercover?”

      He tipped his head in agreement.

      “I thought things like that only happened in the movies.”

      “If this is a movie, that would make me James Bond.”

      That made her laugh. “Isn’t he a spy?”

      “Yeah, but it’s a movie, remember? That means I get to be anybody I want. What about you?” he asked, wanting to steer the conversation in a different direction.

      “Well, since you get to be Pierce Brosnan—or would that be Daniel Craig?—then I guess I’d be Julia Roberts.” She was blushing again. “But more Mona Lisa Smile than Pretty Woman,” she added quickly.

      His turn to laugh. “Good to know, but I was talking about the real-life you. You said you work at home.”

      “I do, some of the time, but nothing movie-star glamorous I’m afraid. I’m a Realtor, and a partner in a business called Ready Set Sold.”

      He never would have imagined her as a salesperson. Then again she’d be good at anything she decided to do. “Good name for a real estate company.”

      “We thought so. We’re more than just real estate, though. We help people renovate and stage their homes before we put them on the market.”

      “Good idea. How many business partners do you have?” he asked, hoping she wouldn’t say her ex was one of them.

      “Two. Samantha Elliott is our carpenter and general handywoman, and Kristi Callahan is an interior decorator. They both do really amazing work, but they’re more than business partners. They’re my two best friends.”

      Huh. Three women, best friends, running a business together. He liked the sound of that. “What about Donald? Is he in real estate?” Not that it was any of his business, and he probably shouldn’t even bring him up, but something about the guy didn’t sit right with him.

      Claire plucked a napkin from the dispenser and wiped the table in front of her. “No. He’s an investment broker. He did really well at it, which is how we could afford the condo. Things between us started to fall apart right around the time the economy took a downturn, and then I found out he was...”

      Luke had a pretty good idea what she was going to say, and he let her get to it without prompting.

      “And then I found out he was having an affair.”

      Bastard. Women like Claire, and his mother, deserved better. His own track record was less than stellar but except for Sherri, he had never been in a relationship long enough to be unfaithful. Even with her, although he’d been tempted a time or two, he’d kept his pants zipped. He might be a chip off the old block in a lot of ways, but his father’s infidelity had been the thing he hated most about the man. No way, not even when he’d been drinking heavily, as he had been in those days, would he let himself sink that low.

      “Is that when Donald moved out?”

      “He didn’t have a choice. After I found out, I packed up his stuff and called a moving company.”

      He felt himself grin. “Hot damn, you’re feisty.”

      He had always liked that Claire was a smart, determined woman. To know she wouldn’t put up with any crap from anyone made him admire her even more. Why hadn’t his mother kicked his father’s ass out of the house a long time ago? Why didn’t she do it now?

      Claire swirled the straw in her drink. “A lot of men might think that what I did was a bit over-the-top.”

      “Only the ones who are cheating.”

      “You mentioned something about a breakup. Were you the heartbreaker or the heartbroken?”

      He should have seen this question coming since he’d been the one to bring up exes. “A little of both, I guess. I didn’t cheat on her, though.”

      “Did she? Cheat on you, I mean.”

      “No. At least not that I know of. We were seriously into partying and then...ah...something happened that made me realize I had a problem. I knew I needed to quit drinking, and it turned out I wasn’t much fun to be with when I was sober.”

      “She actually said that?”

      “Not in so many words. And I learned some stuff, too.”

      “Such as...?”

      “Being sober and living with a drunk isn’t much fun, either.”

      “Oh, Luke. I’m sorry. Do you know how she’s doing now?”

      “No. We sort of lost touch.” Which wasn’t entirely true. He did know how she was doing. Not good. He didn’t want to talk about Sherri or the real

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