The bad thing about summer was how long the sun took to set. Patti didn’t realize how much time had passed until she heard the heavy thud of a car door nearby. She wasn’t given much time to gather her thoughts before she heard the voice that made her tingle all the way down to her toes.

 “So you drive a muscle car and you like to get dirty.” His voice was thick with appreciation and held a touch of laughter.

 Patti used her feet to propel herself from under the car. Once she was clear, she found herself looking up into Jon’s incredible blue eyes.

 “Damn and I thought you were stunning before.” His eyes skimmed down her body, and Patti became acutely aware of how much skin she was showing. She snapped her legs closed.

 “What time is it?” she asked from her prone position.

 Jon held out his hand and she took it. Grasping it tightly, he pulled her to her feet. “It’s nearly eight. I’m usually late for everything, but I found myself unable to wait any longer.” He slid his gaze over her again, and Patti felt her cheeks warm. Here he was confessing that he couldn’t wait to see her, and she had lost track of time over a car.

 He hadn’t let go of her hand, she realized. Gently slipping her fingers free of his, Patti stepped back. Standing there in her filthy tank top and shorts, grease and oil smudging her exposed skin, while he stood before her looking completely edible in a pair of fitted black slacks and a white button down dress shirt, she couldn’t help feeling self-conscious.

 “I’m sorry I’m not ready. I got distracted.” Patti jerked her thumb over her shoulder at the car.

 Jon followed with his eyes and nodded. “That’s understandable. Having something that beautiful at your disposal is bound to cause some distraction.”

 When Patti looked up at him, she found his intense eyes focused on her and she got the distinct impression that he wasn’t referring to the car.

 “I can be ready in fifteen minutes, if you still want to go out,” she stammered.

 A slow, wolfish smile spread across Jon’s face as he took her in again. “If you look this good dirty...” He cleared his throat and shook his head. “Yeah, I still want to go out, but you’d better make it ten because anything beyond that and I can’t promise I’ll still be a gentleman.”

7

Jon struggled to keep his mind from wandering to sex as he sat and listened to the sound of the shower running down the hall.

 All day long, thoughts of her kept him distracted, and now that he was standing in her house, he was at a loss for what to do with her. To her. Himself. His mind was a jumbled mess of confusion.

 He hadn’t been serious with a woman for a long time. He wasn’t entirely sure he ever wanted to be again. But this woman was something different from what he was used to. She wasn’t glamorous in any way, but her beauty seemed to come naturally, as if she weren’t even trying.

 He smiled, recalling the moment he first got lost in her eyes. It was right after the accident when he’d gone to see if she were okay. He’d never looked into eyes as blue as hers. They were rich and vibrant and full of life, like the ocean on a clear summer day. He’d met her two nights earlier, of course, but it wasn’t until the accident that he became mesmerized.

 The water shut off and as Jon yanked his thoughts out of the gutter, it occurred to him that this might be the woman who changed everything. He wasn’t entirely sure he was on board with that realization, but he wasn’t willing to turn his back on the possibility just yet, either.

 The muffled sound of a blow dryer came next and Jon settled into the recliner, knowing for damn certain that he wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon. He had a sister, so he knew without question that the ten-minute stipulation he’d placed on her would be more like thirty…if he were lucky.

 To his surprise, Patricia only kept him waiting an additional ten.

 “Sorry, sorry,” she said as she stumbled into the living room. She had on one very high, black heel, while hopping around on it trying to pull on the other. “I know I took longer than I said I would, but beauty takes time.” Finally managing to loop her shoe over her heel, she stood up tall and presented him with a dazzling smile. “Ready?”

 Jon stared. He couldn’t take his eyes off her even if he wanted to. Dressed in a token little black dress that left her shoulders bare and cupped her breasts like loving hands, and ended at mid-thigh, exposing her lean, toned legs, he was sure he had died and gone to heaven.

 Noticing the look on his face, Patti’s steps faltered. “Everything okay?” She frowned down at herself, smoothing her hands over the formfitting dress. “I just realized that I didn’t bother to ask where we were going tonight. Should I change into something else?”

 Realizing what an ass he was making of himself, Jon shook his head and stood. With his eyes glued to hers, he crossed the room to stand in front of her. “You look incredible. Don’t change a thing.” Unable to resist the allure of her curvaceous body, he reached out his hand and let his fingers skim lightly across the slinky material clinging to her taut stomach like a second skin. He felt the muscles tighten beneath his touch, and took it as his cue to get even closer.

 “Should we be going?” he asked, gliding his palm down her arm and enfolding her hand in his.

 She smiled shyly, dropping her gaze. That single moment of vulnerability set in stone Jon’s determination to get to know her beyond the purely physical. She wasn’t just the hard ass, tough as nails woman he’d met before. She had softness to buffer her rough edges, and he found that quality beyond sexy. “Sure, let me just grab my purse.”

 After she locked up, Jon led her to his truck.

 “I see you got a new car.”

 “It’s a truck, actually,” he said with a teasing smile.

 Patricia smacked him in the side playfully with the back of her hand, surprising him. “I can see it’s a truck.” She smirked. “I just figured you for the luxury sedan type.”

 “I’m whatever fancies me at the moment type,” Jon told her honestly. Hitting the automatic locks, he opened the door for her and took the opportunity to touch her again. Slipping his hands around her waist, he hoisted her up into the cab, then closed the door and ran around to the driver’s side.

 Excitement coursed through him, making Jon feel eager and energetic. It reminded him of when he was a teenager going out on his very first date. All that nervous anticipation and exuberance filled him to the point of bursting. It was insane, but it made him feel rejuvenated. Almost hopeful, even.

 Jon climbed in and settled himself behind the wheel. “I hope you brought your appetite,” he said as he started the engine.

 “I think you lost something,” Patricia said. She held up her hand.

 Jon glanced over at her. Seeing that her arm was raised in the air between them, he noticed the glittering piece of jewelry dangling from her fingertips. Shit. Flashes of the woman he’d picked up at the club last night played in his mind’s eye. She was smoking hot in the latex micro mini and offered herself up like a sacrificial lamb. They’d had a few drinks and shared a few dances, and when she’d taken his hand and guided it under her skirt, her husky confession whispering in his ear, to show him she’d forgotten her panties, he’d all but dragged her back to his car. They hadn’t made it out of the parking lot.

 It was easy to forget for a moment his desire for this woman sitting before him when he was drunk and horny, but now that he was right in front of her, with her staring expectantly back at him, he felt like a total sleaze. All he could see was her blue eyes watching him, waiting for an explanation, mixed with intermittent flashes of the woman he’d fucked right there in the seat she was sitting in.

 Fuck.

 With practiced ease, Jon took the earring from her, inspected it briefly, and shrugged. “Huh, never seen it before. Must be my sister’s.” He smiled with a confidence he didn’t feel and leaned across her legs to open the glove compartment and toss it inside. “So, how does seafood sound?”

* * *

She didn’t know if she bought the sister excuse, but it was their first date and they weren’t exactly an item. It left Patti feeling torn. The string of bad relationships and equally bad boyfriends had made her wary of men and their tactics. Never again did she want to be reduced to just another notch in some man’s bedpost. But, as she looked into Jon’s eyes, all she saw was sincerity and kindness, so she decided to play it by ear. If things between them went no further than tonight, she’d be okay with it, and if it progressed into something more, than she would see it through to wherever it ended up.

 Setting her concerns aside, Patti vowed to enjoy the evening ahead. “Seafood sounds wonderful,” she told Jon. He slanted a dizzying smile at her and eased into traffic.

 He took her to a nice steak house with an African Savannah theme. The hostess seated them in a corner booth made to resemble a train caboose with prop luggage stored on a shelf overhead. It was a very casual yet elegant environment.

 The menu itself was large and consisted of just about every type of meat available to man. Patti had a hard time choosing what to eat, but eventually settled on a light meal of pasta and shrimp with a fruity cocktail laced in rum to wash it down. She hadn’t been treated to a meal this nice in some time, which only made her realize the type of men she had subjected herself to before.

 She really needed to up her qualifications.

 Good thing Jon seemed to fit the bill.

 “I’ve never been here before,” Patti confessed. She sipped her drink and cast her eyes around the room. Rattan paddles that swayed back and forth, gently stirring the air, decorated the ceiling. There were amber-colored sconces mounted on the walls and colorful modern artwork sprinkled in between. At the rear of the room, she could watch the chefs put together the food, but she found the view of the man across the table from her far more appealing.

 Selecting a coconut crusted shrimp skewer from his plate, Jon dipped it in a small bowl of sweet orange sauce and raised his eyebrow to her as he brought it to his lips. “It’s one of my favorite places to come,” he said, “but tonight the company is far more interesting and infinitely more attractive.”

 Taking a moment to mull over his words, Patti took her time twisting the pasta around her fork. “Are you saying you bring your dates here often?”

 “I guess that depends on what you consider a date,” he said cryptically.

 Stuffing a huge mound of noodles into her mouth, Patti used her food as an excuse not to answer. Frankly, it concerned her that she might have read him wrong. Maybe her first impression of him wasn’t as accurate as she’d assumed.

 “Oh boy,” Jon laughed, shaking his head as he went in for another skewer. “I know that look.” Patti lifted a questioning brow. “My mother and sister always have that look when my dad or I say something to piss them off,” he explained. “Maybe I should clarify.”

 He didn’t rush to clarify anything, much to Patti’s consternation, but she waited, certain he would present her with some lame excuse that would hold about as much water as a bucket full of holes. She ate slowly, watching Jon as he tucked into his dinner with casual indifference.

 “I only come here for business,” he began. “Sometimes I meet with new clients, or with some of the members on the board to discuss finances. It’s never for leisure.” His eyes flicked up to meet hers. “Until tonight. This is the first time I’ve enjoyed a meal with someone who wasn’t sporting a pot belly and a penis between their legs.”

 Patti’s quick intake of breath caused her to choke on a partially chewed noodle. Doubling over, she coughed into her napkin so hard her eyes began to tear up.

 “Are you okay?” Jon asked, suddenly standing by her side. He pounded on her back, but his efforts only succeeded in making her feel as though her spine were about to snap in two.

 “I’m fine,” she croaked, coughing a couple more times. Picking up her glass of water, she gulped half of it before she felt recovered enough to speak clearly.

 Jon took his seat again, eying her cautiously.

 “Just to be clear. Did you just tell me you’ve never been on a date with a woman before?” She found that notion impossible to believe. Jon was gorgeous. With his dark hair, blue eyes, and strong build, he was every woman’s Adonis. Just walking into the place she’d caught several women, most already seated with their own man, sneaking covert glances at him.