“No buts.” He pushed open the door and waved goodbye to Yasmin, who grinned at them.
Amber let him maneuver her closer to the lot of parked cars. Any other time she would have thought of how big a mistake this was. Her, a single girl in a foreign country, going off alone with a near stranger. They made movies like this that did not end well for the girl.
Her gaze slid to Seth. Though there were lines that creased his forehead and the corners of his eyes—deeper than someone in their mid-twenties should have—he bore a lightness about him. Almost as if he’d once carried a heavy load that had weighed him down and someone had come along and unstrapped the boulder from his back. He’d seen darkness but chose to turn his face to the light. A man like that couldn’t have nefarious intentions. Could he?
Seth caught her staring. “What?”
“I don’t need to have Liam Neeson on speed dial, do I?”
A laugh rumbled from his chest. “Don’t worry, the only place I’m taking you is for food.” He stopped beside a gray van. “Besides, you said one of your brothers used to be in the navy, right? I’d be more afraid of the US military than Jean Valjean.”
Amber halted. “I say Liam Neeson and your first reference isLes Misérables? NotStar WarsorSchindler’s Listor even Aslan fromThe Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe?”
He opened the passenger door for her. “What? So having a shot average of seventeen point four per game means I can’t appreciate classic French literature turned into musicals?”
As a kid, Amber had wanted to see how fast an ice cube could melt on a hot Florida sidewalk. It hadn’t taken long. The intense rays of tropical sun had worked away at the hard, cold cube until all that was left was a small puddle.
If she weren’t careful, she’d end up like that ice cube.
She stepped up into the van and slipped the seat belt over her shoulder. She looked around, somehow only just now noticing what they were going to drive around in. Seth rounded the hood and entered on the driver’s side.
“Is this the center’s vehicle?” Shouldn’t they have asked before using it? No way Mr. Hotshot Athlete would own a fifteen-passenger boat-on-wheels. He belonged behind the wheel of something sleeker with a lot more horsepower.
The engine turned over, and Seth put the van into gear. “Yes, but Ben and Mila won’t mind if we take it out.”
Seth carried more than his share of the conversation as he drove around the city. He pointed out places of interest like the Mercedes-Benz and Porsche headquarters, museums, some of the popular parks, and the zoo. The landscape changed as they drew closer to the low mountains she’d seen as a distant backdrop at the center. Her gaze traveled the rising lines and then widened as they snagged on a familiar shape. It was the castle. The same one little Jay-Jay had pointed out on the plane.
Her fingernail tapped on the glass of her window. “Do you know anything about that castle?”
Seth hunched down so he could look out the square of glass beside her. “Can’t say that I do, although it looks old. Germany has a few famous castles, like Neuschwanstein in Bavaria.”
“That one was the inspiration for Cinderella’s castle at Disney World.”
“Really?”
Amber shrugged. “I’m from Florida.”
He grinned. “Good to know.” He glanced back out the window. “Neuschwanstein was built in the nineteenth century, whereas the architecture on the one up there seems more medieval to me.”
She leaned against the arm rest on the door, turning toward him. “So, you’re a professional athlete, a musical aficionado, and now a historian? Is there anything you aren’t?”
“Your date.”
Her jaw slacked and he laughed. “I’m kidding, although you’ve said it often enough that I may need to go back and lick my wounds tonight.” He shifted the gear into Park. “We’re here.” He came around and opened the door for her, then ushered her into a cute little bistro on the outskirts of town. The spicy smells of Bratwurst and other German sausages clung to the air and caused her mouth to water. In what sounded like perfect German to her untrained ears, he ordered them both theKäsespätzle.
Once the server had retreated to put in their order, he studied her from across the table. “So, I told you the real reason I’m here. It’s your turn. Unless you’re sticking with all thoseors.”
She fiddled with the cloth napkin in her lap.
“Friends tell friends stuff, right?”
Her gaze lifted from behind her lashes, the right side of her mouth twitching. “You sure are using thatfriendcard an awful lot.”
He settled back in his chair, a mixture of unrepentance and satisfaction curving his mouth into an easy smile. “It’s the only one you’ve given me so far.”
Her twitching lips teased into a full smile. “Fine. You win.” She cocked her head. “You know, you actually remind me a bit of my brother, Trent. He can charm his way with the ladies as well.”
She thought he’d laugh at the comparison, but instead, his face flushed and he looked away. When he met her gaze again, the sparkling tease in his eyes had faded. He leaned forward, his forearms resting on the table, an intensity radiating from his core.
