LITMIR.BIZ

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about over there?” she asked, and moved to claim it before getting an answer.

      It was perfect—as far away from the country and western music and the dart players’ cursing as they could get. They sat across from one another and a waitress promptly appeared to claim her tip.

      She removed the empty bottle, swiped a cursory rag across the top of the table. “What can I get y’all?”

      “What have you got on tap?” Tori asked and caught the surprised look Jake gave her.

      The waitress named three beers and Tori ordered a Corona.

      “Make that two,” Jake said, his eyes staying on Tori as the cute blond waitress walked away.

      “What?” she finally asked him when he wouldn’t look away.

      “You always drink beer?”

      “No, sometimes I drink wine. I picked up the beer habit in college. Much to my mother’s delight.” Now, why had she added that tidbit? She sighed to herself. Obviously Freudian.

      “I bet.”

      “I’m twenty-six. Anything she doesn’t like about me, it’s time she got over it.”

      Jake smiled. “You’ve been away at school all this time?”

      “Just about. Four years of undergraduate studies, then one year of graduate school. I took a year off to go to Europe, then went back to school and finished my MBA.”

      “You don’t look like an MBA.”

      She laughed. “Thank you. I’ll definitely take that as a compliment.”

      “Your parents must be pleased.”

      Something in the tone of his voice made her uneasy. But she didn’t know him well, so she wouldn’t judge. Not yet. “Yeah, right,” she answered. “They about had cardiac arrests when I told them I wanted to take a year off. They threatened to cut me off and not pay for my last year’s tuition.”

      “You didn’t back down?”

      “No way. I told them I was tired of school anyway.” She leaned back to let the waitress set their beers on the table. When they made eye contact again, he had the most peculiar look on his face.

      He smiled. “I take it they gave in.”

      “After a mega lecture, but yes.” She picked up her beer and took a sip. She hadn’t expected to be so nervous. Of course she wasn’t in the habit of picking up guys. What if he turned her down? She took another sip, realized he was watching her and asked, “What about you?”

      He shrugged. “Still in the landscaping business, as you can see.”

      “Have you been here in Houston the whole time?”

      “Do you mean, did I go away to school?”

      She didn’t understand the hint of sarcasm in his tone but chose to ignore it. “School, traveling, whatever.”

      He lifted a shoulder. “I went to California for a couple of years, and then Dallas for a short time.”

      She waited but he didn’t seem inclined to give out any more information. “Think you’ll stay in Houston?” she finally asked.

      “Probably. You?”

      The question startled her. “Of course. This is our headquarters.”

      “Ah, staying in the family business.”

      Her defenses rose. “Haven’t you?”

      One side of his mouth lifted as he picked up his beer. “Not exactly.”

      She watched him tilt the bottle to his lips, wondering why she’d gotten so defensive. She’d be a fool not to keep her hand in Whitford Industries. The company was well-known, the name respected and recognized worldwide. No shame in wanting to stay a part of that success.

      He set the beer back on the table, leaving his long, lean fingers wrapped around the bottle, stirring her creative mind and making her forget about anything to do with business.

      His nails were surprisingly clean considering the type of work he did, and she easily imagined him running his palms down her bare back, over her breasts.

      “So, Tori, why are we here?”

      She looked up into those intense dark eyes and wondered what he’d do if she suddenly ran her foot up his leg. She smiled. “Weren’t you ever curious? For years the most we did was wave to each other.”

      His brows rose slightly. “Why do you suppose that was?”

      “I wasn’t allowed to talk to you,” she said, the surprise in his face giving her pause. “I had piano lessons twice a week, ballet three times, and a riding lesson on the weekend. Mother didn’t leave me much time for distractions.”

      One side of his mouth went up in a cocky, almost patronizing way.

      “What’s that for?”

      “What?”

      “That look.”

      “Admit it, your mama didn’t want you hanging around with anyone the likes of me.”

      “That’s not true.” Indignation rose in her voice. “Of course you were so much older.” She paused. “Mother isn’t a snob.”

      “You know her. I don’t,” he said, shrugging.

      Tori sighed. “Okay, sometimes she is. But I don’t think—” She broke off, sighing again, unable to defend a position of which she was uncertain. A thin line existed between snobbery and concern for the Whitford name and business.

      “Hey, it doesn’t matter.” He gave her a crooked smile. “You were brave enough to break the barrier. Go where no Whitford has gone before.”

      “Very funny.”

      He laughed, reached across the table and covered her hand with his rougher palm. The contact jolted her, and when their eyes met she knew he felt the spark, too. He didn’t retreat, but ran the pad of his thumb along the side of her wrist. A small innocuous movement that shouldn’t have driven her crazy. She sucked in a breath, and then let it out slowly. His sexy gaze fell to her lips and her mouth went too dry to swallow.

      He released her, grabbed his beer and leaned back in his chair. “So, what now?”

      Tori took a deep breath. She didn’t want to sound too obvious or eager, but no sense wasting any time, either. “Have you eaten? We could have dinner.”

      He smiled. “I meant, what will you do now that you’ve finished school?”

      “Oh.” She gave a breezy laugh, not about to show her embarrassment. “I’ll be staying in Houston. I haven’t found an apartment yet, though.”

      He seemed surprised. “You’re moving out?”

      “Of course. You don’t still live with your father, do you?” She paused, recognizing her gaffe. “Not that it would be a bad thing if you did.”

      “Relax. I don’t, but if I did live with my old man, I wouldn’t take offense. He’s a pretty okay guy.”

      The look of genuine affection on Jake’s face warmed her. Sadly she couldn’t say the same for her parents. She loved and respected them, but she didn’t like either of them much. Then again, maybe she’d like her father if she’d really gotten to know him. He’d always been working or away on business. Often their schedules clashed. When she’d be home from boarding school for the summer or the occasional weekend, he’d be away. Mostly she wouldn’t see him for months at a time.

      When she finally slipped out of her musings, she found Jake watching her with open curiosity. His gaze lowered briefly to her breasts, rose to linger on her lips before meeting her eyes. And then it narrowed slightly. “What exactly

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