“Thank you. It’s lovely.” She kicked herself for thinking that this man’s appeal lay in his good looks. His sexy body and face made her heart skip, but his quiet charisma was absolutely heart-stopping.
“Not as lovely as you. When you walked in the bar, you stole my breath. You are the most beautiful woman I have ever seen.”
“I’m sure that’s not—” He held a finger to her lips.
“It’s not a line. Remember, we are starting over.”
Chagrined, she frowned. “I’m sorry. You were saying, Lukyan?”
“I was saying that I would like to get to know you better. How long are you planning to stay at the resort?”
Norah hesitated before she answered. Only moments ago, the three days she had planned at the resort stretched out like an eternity. Now, faced with the prospect of getting to know this man better, three days didn’t seem like nearly enough time. She was no dummy. Norah wasn’t as experienced with men as her friend, Jessie, but she was experienced enough to know that the chance that Lukyan was Mr. Right was pretty slim. She pushed thoughts ofMr. Rightfrom her mind.Step two, Norah. Step two.Still, she couldn’t deny the intense and immediate attraction she had to Lukyan.
It was more than just his physical appearance. Yes, he was certainly beautiful with his emerald green eyes, broad shoulders, and hard muscles, but he was also charming and funny. And even though she doubted his story about never picking up women, she did get the feeling that he didn’t do this often. She didn’t peg him as shy, but she didn’t see him going out of his way to talk to women, either. Something in the way he talked to her made her feel special. And that was the crux of the problem. Norah had been searching all her life for a man to make her feel special. The likelihood that the man who could finally do it would appear out of nowhere without coaxing or coercion — well, that just didn’t seem possible.Keep it light, Norah.She silently chanted the words over and over in her best Jessie impression.No plans.
“Hey, Luk. Want to introduce us to your friend?” Lukyan gritted his teeth. He had been so absorbed in watching Norah struggle with whatever thoughts were running through her mind, he had completely missed the fact that Alek and the rest of his family had approached the two at the bar.
“Everyone, this is Norah. Norah, this is my family — Alek, Mylo, Dimitris, and Cate. Dimitris and Cate are newly mat— newly married.” Thankfully he caught himself before he said mated. Norah wouldn’t understand that yet. Lukyan thought it would be much easier to explain shifter mating after she had fallen in love.
“Nice to meet you all.” Though she held eye contact with each person in the group, Lukyan noticed that she couldn’t stop the pink heat from spreading up her neck to her cheeks. He found her flush enchanting. He reached for her hand and pulled it into his lap, stroking her soft skin with his thumb. Norah’s face got pinker.
“Hi, Norah. It’s so nice to meet you.” Cate stuck out her hand and grasped Norah’s free one. “I am so glad that you are here to keep Lukyan company while we go in for dinner.” Lukyan wondered what in the world Cate was talking about.
She rambled on, “I made a mistake when making reservations. I only got a table for four when I should have gotten it for five. Anyway, Lukyan was going to have to eat all alone. I was feeling incredibly guilty, but now that you’re here, I can stop fretting over it.” Cate shrugged as if the weight of this problem had finally slipped from her shoulders.
“I — I’m sure they can make an adjustment to the reservation.” Norah looked around the bar as if the number of the people in that room would prove how easy it would be to change the dinner reservation. She cast her eyes around the room, carefully ignoring the throngs of people stuffed in the small space.
Cate shook her head. “Nope. I tried. They are booked solid for the bigger tables.” She turned to Lukyan and gave him a sly smile. “I did go ahead and order you dinner to go. I didn’t know what you would want so I ordered several things. There’s probably enough for the two of you to share if you want to, oh I don’t know, take it back to your room or something.”
Lukyan had always known that Cate was smart and cunning, she would have never been fated to mate an alpha if she hadn’t been, but this bit of manipulation was sheer genius. If it weren’t for the fact that Dimitris would kill him, he would be tempted to kiss her. He smiled broadly at Cate. “Thanks for thinking of me, Cate.”
“My pleasure. I hope I ordered something you guys will like. They’ll bring it to the bar when it’s ready.”
The group bid goodbye to Lukyan and his mate and headed to the back of the bar that connected to the resort’s restaurant. Still holding her hand in his, Lukyan turned to his mate. “Do you want to have dinner with me? It sounds like there will be more than enough.”
