LITMIR.BIZ

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of the first salad. There were a lot of strange looking lettuces and shavings of things he didn’t recognize. Salad was highly overrated, he thought grimly.

      “Think about the guys you usually date,” he said, enjoying the fact that he could get to her. “Scruffy, poor grad students. When compared to me, they don’t have a chance.”

      She glared at him. “Oh, right. Why would dating the next brilliant man who will change the course of history by improving the world be considered interesting?”

      He picked up a roll and leaned toward her. “They’re nerds. They’re not interesting yet and they’re not good in bed. Admit it.”

      Fury darkened her eyes. She opened her mouth, probably to yell at him. He stuck the roll between her lips.

      “Not bad,” he said, pointing at the second salad. “I like the blue cheese. What do you think?”

      She pulled the roll away and glared at him. “I think you’re a pompous, egotistical ass.”

      He tasted the third salad and grimaced. “So you like me.”

      “I don’t.”

      “Of course you do. But I was asking about the salads. What do you think?”

      She pointed at the one he’d tasted third. “That one works.”

      He shook his head. “Not a good idea. There’s too much garlic in the dressing.”

      “Since when do you know anything about cooking?”

      “I don’t.” Could he help it that she set him up with one good line after the other? Sometimes a guy couldn’t help cutting a break. “But I do know about weddings.” He glanced around, then leaned toward her and lowered his voice. “Kissing. Lots and lots of kissing at weddings. You don’t want the guests to have garlic breath.”

      Awareness crackled in the room. He thought Marina might get nervous or change the subject, but her gaze never left his. The humor was gone, replaced by a tension that quickly flared into need.

      What would it be like to kiss her? What would her mouth feel like against his? How soft? How hungry? How sexy?

      Was she the kind of woman who took charge, or did she like to be convinced? The possibilities were endless and suddenly he wanted to explore them all.

      “I think you’re overstating the problem,” she said. “I don’t think the garlic is that big a deal, but if it is, we could simply change the dressing on the salad.”

      “There’s only one way to find out,” he said and leaned in farther, then brushed his mouth against hers.

      There was heat and need. They competed for his attention. Marina didn’t move, but he heard her breath quicken. But before he could take things to the next level, Zoe returned.

      “What did you…Oh. Sorry. Should I come back?”

      Todd straightened. “No. We know what we need to do.”

      Three

      M arina felt as if she’d been hit by a truck. Well, that wasn’t right, she thought as she blinked to bring the room back into focus. Nothing bad had happened and she certainly wasn’t squished. But she was out of breath and feeling a little two-dimensional all the same.

      Talk about wow. The heat, the tingles, the need to jump Todd’s bones and make him have his way with her. All from a teeny, tiny, innocent kiss. What would happen if he kissed her like he meant it?

      A dangerous question, she told herself. Todd was nothing like she’d imagined. He was funny and charming. Too charming. She had to remember that any contact with a woman was just a game with him. That he had the emotional depth of a cookie sheet. She should enjoy the superficial attraction for the momentary pleasure and let the rest of it go. He didn’t do relationships and she didn’t do anything else.

      Although technically she didn’t do relationships, either. It was the whole fear thing. She didn’t want to get lost in a man.

      They sampled several entrées, which were okay and the desserts, which were great.

      “Are you going to finish that?” she asked, eyeing his barely tasted dish of chocolate mousse.

      Todd pushed the bowl toward her. “You’re welcome to it.”

      She dipped her spoon into the creamy, foamy delight and then savored the burst of rich chocolate on her tongue. He watched her, his expression unreadable.

      She wanted to think he found her passion for chocolate fascinating, but no doubt he was comparing her normal appetite to his dates’ lack of appetite and finding her just a little odd.

      “Finished?” he asked when she’d scraped the last of the pudding from the bowl.

      She nodded and they walked out to the reception area. After collecting prices and a brochure from Zoe, they promised to be in touch within a couple of weeks, then left.

      “What did you think?” Todd asked as they walked to their cars.

      “It was good,” she said, “but not dazzling. I want to be dazzled. I think the food should be spectacular, not just good.”

      He glanced at the price list. “Considering what they’re charging, I agree. So we still need a caterer. Do you have any suggestions?”

      “I don’t cater much, but I can ask around.”

      “I’ll do the same. I’ll also check with Ruth.”

      Ah, yes. Her grandmother. “She does the charity circuit,” she said. “At least she’s mentioned it. So she should be a great source of information.” Marina frowned. “I wonder why she hasn’t offered us advice.”

      “She promised not to meddle,” Todd told her. “Don’t get too excited—it’s not going to last. She’s a meddler by nature.” There was a tone of affection in his voice.

      “So you’ve forgiven her for coming to me and my sisters and offering each of us a million dollars if one of us were to marry you?”

      He winced. “I’m working on it.”

      “Why?”

      He shrugged. “She always had time for me and Ryan. Our parents took off for months at a time and left us behind. Aunt Ruth stepped into the void. When we were with her, it was like family.”

      Marina didn’t know what to say to that. On the one hand, it explained Todd’s fondness for his aunt. On the other, this was the same woman who turned her back on her own daughter.

      “You’re thinking about your mom,” he said, surprising her.

      “Yes. My mom was seventeen when she fell in love with my dad. That’s pretty young. I can understand her parents being upset with her choice, but there are a lot of options between saying it’s okay and kicking her out forever. How come they didn’t try any of them?” She drew in a deep breath and let it go. “You’re going to tell me it was because of Ruth’s husband, Fraser. I’ve heard it all before. He was a difficult man who ruled his house and didn’t give anyone second chances.”

      He was also the only father Marina’s mother had ever known. Her biological father, Ruth’s first husband, had died before Ruth had even realized she was pregnant.

      “My mom was Ruth’s only daughter,” Marina said. “She should have tried harder. She should have made sure her daughter was all right.”

      Todd surprised her for maybe the third time in less than two hours when he put his hand on her shoulder and squeezed gently.

      “You’re right,” he said quietly. “She stood by her husband instead of her daughter. Because of that, she spent the next thirty years regretting her decision, but being too afraid to do anything about it. That’s got to be a hard way to live, for all of you. She’ll never get back what she lost

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