Take Me All the Way by Toni Blake Page B

returned the nod. And wondered out loud, feeling a little braver, “What’s changed that?”
    For the first real time since she’d arrived, he fully met her gaze. Reminding her how piercing it was. She felt as pinned in place by it as a butterfly in someone’s collection case. “Maybe I like the idea of this particular company.”
    Her heart fluttered nervously. Lord, it had been so long since anyone had flirted with her—and here he was, at it again, this fast. She’d totally forgotten how to respond to flirtation. Perhaps she’d never really known in the first place. Her chest tightened as she drew in a tense breath.
    â€œOh.”
    That’s what she said, what left her. She felt frozen in place. Socially inept. What on earth was wrong with her?
    His eyes. It was his eyes. The way they held on her, so intently. It was nearly unbearable.
    â€œMaybe,” he went on, “even though we didn’t exactly hit it off, I’m cool with giving somebody a second chance.”
    Okay, that was easier to deal with. And it was fair—they’d both been at fault in ways so far. So she managed to say, “Me, too.”
    â€œSecond chances have been good to me lately,” he added, ending with a soft, deep laugh that seemed to vibrate gently all through her. And she could scarcely understand how she’d felt his laugh that way, as if it had somehow entered her, become part of her. And she was all into this second chances thing, but even this small exchange of flirtation had been enough to make her want to get away from him, just a little, so she could mentally regroup.
    â€œUm, it’s hot out here,” she said.
    A hint of amusement reshaped his eyes. He knows I’m nervous. “Yeah,” he said.
    She pointed vaguely over her shoulder toward the strip of businesses including the Hungry Fisherman and Gino’s. “I think I’ll walk over and get us both something to drink.”
    For the first time since her approach, he actually grinned. And just like his laugh, it moved all through her. “That’d be great—thanks.”
    And with that, she turned and made a beeline for Gino’s Pizzeria.
    Her heart beat too fast as she walked away.
    She still didn’t get it, this effect he had on her.
    He had a nice smile, when he chose to use it. And his blue eyes held a certain sparkle, along with those little crinkles around the edges that were always so much more attractive on a man who was beginning to age a bit than they ever seemed on a woman.
    So . . . you’re going to work a little more closely with him. And that meant one of two things would probably happen.
    Either you’ll start getting to know him and ultimately decide you really don’t like him in that way and all the weird, tingly feelings will disperse.
    Or . . . the weird, tingly feelings will stay and you’ll want to act on them. A thought that didn’t do anything to calm the frantic beating of her heart.
    But you’re getting ahead of yourself. What you need to focus on right now is just . . . acting normal with him. Pleasant when warranted. And not nervous. After all, you can’t go dashing away for a Coke every time he smiles at you.
    By the time she had two cups of Coke in her hands and began making her way back up the street, she felt more like her usual self. In control. Normal. Ready to communicate with him like a regular human being, even when he flirted. It was something of an art, flirting. And it had caught her off guard. But I can learn to flirt back. Or at least be pleasant about it while I’m trying to learn.
    And . . . maybe Fletcher and her friends were right. Maybe she needed to loosen up and be more open-minded. Maybe after the bad experiences of her youth, she’d put up some sort of invisible wall—not only about not getting too close to people, but one that didn’t let men in. And maybe it was time to slowly, carefully