towel. "It comes in handy occasionally around recalcitrant females, however."
"Do I hear another warning coming?" Kirsten asked, pretending to study the way the tank sat on its stand. She made an unnecessary adjustment while waiting tensely for his reply.
"Will you have dinner with me Friday, Kirsten?"
She looked up cautiously. She'd been expecting a lecture, not an invitation. Then Kirsten took a firm grip on herself. This was the moment he had been waiting for. "I'm sorry, Simon, I'm busy Friday night." There, it was out. Now would she get the lecture? The atmosphere tautened between them.
"I had a feeling you would be," Simon smiled mockingly. He started forward, relegating the towel to the counter behind him.
"Simon…" She lifted a hand to ward him off as he advanced.
"Saturday night?" he tried pleasantly, still coming toward her. Kirsten could see the glitter in the shifting color of his eyes and she gulped. Her chin lifted determinedly as she told herself she would not be intimidated.
"I'm planning on being busy Sat-Saturday night, too," she lied breathlessly.
"You see how useful mind-reading can be? I know, for example, that you're lying. Kirsten, you're no good at it, so don't even bother to try. Not with me, at any rate."
Kirsten was as far as she could go, the path of further retreat being blocked by the couch. Simon came to a stop a foot away and stood gazing down at her, an amused expression on his rugged features.
"It's not fair for you to try and overwhelm me like this," she snapped waspishly, frowning darkly up at him.
"I wasn't aware we were playing by anyone's rules but mine," he observed, right hand reaching out to catch her chin and thereby trap her gaze. "Let's try this question and answer session one more time. Will you dine with me Friday?"
"No," Kirsten said very bravely.
"Townsend?"
She nodded mutely, her whole being waiting for his reaction. When it came it was so mild she immediately grew bolder.
"And if I ask you not to date him?" he queried dryly.
She licked her lip and said as determinedly as possible, "I'm going to go out with him, Simon, and that's final!"
"Does your action strike you as having all the earmarks of a kitten rushing into the lion's den and tweaking the bigger cat's nose?" he asked interestedly.
"Not in the least!" she protested, angered now. "I'd say it's more like one individual human being letting another human being know she will not be ordered about!" No! That wasn't what she meant to say, Kirsten realized abruptly! She wasn't going out with Townsend to teach Simon a lesson! She merely wanted to spend a pleasant evening with an intelligent, civilized man! Didn't she? She bit her lip, distressed and wishing she could recall her words. But as is usually the case with rash words, they had already done their damage.
Simon nodded. "Just what I said. We agree on your motives at any rate, even if we don't describe them the same way. Okay, Kirsten. You can have Friday night to prove your point, but you'll have to be prepared to take the consequences."
"Such as?" she retorted, her stomach tightening.
"Such as the fact that I'm claiming Saturday night."
Not so bad, Kirsten told herself in relief. She wasn't certain what dire threat she had been expecting, but an evening out with Simon didn't seem unduly dangerous now. In fact, Simon didn't appear nearly as menacing as he had this afternoon. It was almost as if he had come to some conclusion… Regally, she nodded her head in acknowledgment of his invitation.
"Good." He accepted what surely was a very small victory with a rather inordinate amount of satisfaction, she thought. Almost as if he'd gotten everything he wanted, instead of just one date. "Now let's finish putting this oversized fish bowl together," he concluded.
Feeling somewhat victorious herself at having salvaged Friday night, Kirsten agreed, wishing her voice didn't carry such an overtone of relief.
Half an hour later they finished filling the tank
"Do I hear another warning coming?" Kirsten asked, pretending to study the way the tank sat on its stand. She made an unnecessary adjustment while waiting tensely for his reply.
"Will you have dinner with me Friday, Kirsten?"
She looked up cautiously. She'd been expecting a lecture, not an invitation. Then Kirsten took a firm grip on herself. This was the moment he had been waiting for. "I'm sorry, Simon, I'm busy Friday night." There, it was out. Now would she get the lecture? The atmosphere tautened between them.
"I had a feeling you would be," Simon smiled mockingly. He started forward, relegating the towel to the counter behind him.
"Simon…" She lifted a hand to ward him off as he advanced.
"Saturday night?" he tried pleasantly, still coming toward her. Kirsten could see the glitter in the shifting color of his eyes and she gulped. Her chin lifted determinedly as she told herself she would not be intimidated.
"I'm planning on being busy Sat-Saturday night, too," she lied breathlessly.
"You see how useful mind-reading can be? I know, for example, that you're lying. Kirsten, you're no good at it, so don't even bother to try. Not with me, at any rate."
Kirsten was as far as she could go, the path of further retreat being blocked by the couch. Simon came to a stop a foot away and stood gazing down at her, an amused expression on his rugged features.
"It's not fair for you to try and overwhelm me like this," she snapped waspishly, frowning darkly up at him.
"I wasn't aware we were playing by anyone's rules but mine," he observed, right hand reaching out to catch her chin and thereby trap her gaze. "Let's try this question and answer session one more time. Will you dine with me Friday?"
"No," Kirsten said very bravely.
"Townsend?"
She nodded mutely, her whole being waiting for his reaction. When it came it was so mild she immediately grew bolder.
"And if I ask you not to date him?" he queried dryly.
She licked her lip and said as determinedly as possible, "I'm going to go out with him, Simon, and that's final!"
"Does your action strike you as having all the earmarks of a kitten rushing into the lion's den and tweaking the bigger cat's nose?" he asked interestedly.
"Not in the least!" she protested, angered now. "I'd say it's more like one individual human being letting another human being know she will not be ordered about!" No! That wasn't what she meant to say, Kirsten realized abruptly! She wasn't going out with Townsend to teach Simon a lesson! She merely wanted to spend a pleasant evening with an intelligent, civilized man! Didn't she? She bit her lip, distressed and wishing she could recall her words. But as is usually the case with rash words, they had already done their damage.
Simon nodded. "Just what I said. We agree on your motives at any rate, even if we don't describe them the same way. Okay, Kirsten. You can have Friday night to prove your point, but you'll have to be prepared to take the consequences."
"Such as?" she retorted, her stomach tightening.
"Such as the fact that I'm claiming Saturday night."
Not so bad, Kirsten told herself in relief. She wasn't certain what dire threat she had been expecting, but an evening out with Simon didn't seem unduly dangerous now. In fact, Simon didn't appear nearly as menacing as he had this afternoon. It was almost as if he had come to some conclusion… Regally, she nodded her head in acknowledgment of his invitation.
"Good." He accepted what surely was a very small victory with a rather inordinate amount of satisfaction, she thought. Almost as if he'd gotten everything he wanted, instead of just one date. "Now let's finish putting this oversized fish bowl together," he concluded.
Feeling somewhat victorious herself at having salvaged Friday night, Kirsten agreed, wishing her voice didn't carry such an overtone of relief.
Half an hour later they finished filling the tank
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