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“Why do I think you really would?” he said huskily, his voice bemused. “I might have paid a quarter million for a night of your time, but it’s the shell I think you’ll truly appreciate.”
She didn’t know what to say to that. What could she say? That kind of money would save many more horses and benefit her chosen charity in countless ways for a long time. All she’d have was her memories tonight with Liam and the precious shell he’d given her.
She walked with him to some giant boulders that edged the shoreline four hundred meters or so ahead before they turned and headed back the way they’d come. Only once they’d put their footwear back on and he was driving them the way they’d come did she ask, “I’m guessing we’re now heading to date number three?”
He nodded. “We are.” He glanced at her. “My sister lives not too far away from here. It’s up to you if you’d like to borrow some of her clothes or stay in what you have on.”
“You have a sister?”
He nodded, then smiled. “I didn’t even know myself until a few years ago. But she’s everything anyone could ever want in a sibling.”
“You love her very much.”
He nodded. “Yeah, I do.”
He looked contemplative as he drove, and she cleared her throat and looked down at her jeans that were wet just below the knees, sand edging the hems that wrapped around her boots. A good thing the denim wasn’t inside her boots, the sand would have rubbed her skin raw.
“You know what, I’m happy to stay in my jeans. I’m comfortable in them and everyone else will just have to accept me wherever we go.”
He grinned. “Good answer. No one should ever pretend to be someone they’re not.”
“It sounds as if you’re talking from experience,” she said softly.
He cocked a light colored brow. “Let’s just say my parents were one thing in front of us boys, but quite another behind our backs. Not that I’m saying there were bad parents by any stretch of the imagination. It was just a...shock to know we’d been lied to.”
“And if your parents couldn’t be trusted, then who could be?” she deduced.
He sent her a wry smile. “Maybe you’re in the wrong business, cowgirl. Maybe counselling should have been your thing.”
She laughed. “Maybe you’re right.” She sobered a little then and confessed, “One day I’d love to help others with emotional issues by using horses to teach them to be calm and grounded. Horses have special abilities in that way.”
“I hope you get to see that dream come true.”
“Thank you,” she said, smiling brightly at him because she perceived he really meant what he said. He wanted her to succeed in her dreams.
She recognized the big building that made up the Black Pearl Nightclub and its function rooms, along with the Garden Café restaurant, its string of lights shining like a beacon on the second level. Then he indicated right and took a ramp that led to a private underground carpark, where a few other priceless cars were parked. No doubt they belonged to the Black brothers.
Parking the car, he climbed out and opened her door, then escorted her toward a private elevator. The doors closed and she shivered even as her blood heated. This was it then. Date number three. No doubt she’d be shown to his bedroom.
That his very presence seemed to suck away the oxygen while he took up all the space just made her more aware of him. He was a magnet and she was a tiny piece of iron compelled to be with him.
Then the doors hissed open and loud music flooded inside the lift, along with rowdy laughter, cheers and the scent of sweat and alcohol. She glanced up at him. “This is date number three?”
He nodded and grinned. “Care to dance?”
