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“Okay, in-laws dining out,” he responded, but the gleam in his eyes said he recognized she hadn’t said no yet.
“We’ve got nothing to talk about.”
“Sure we do.” He consulted his watch. “We’ve talked our way through this therapy appointment. Time flies.”
She looked heavenward. Were all the Serenghettis this stubborn?
“There’s plenty to discuss. The latest news from our joint family for one,” he said, counting on the fingers of his hand again. “And your aversion to hockey and wariness around men.”
Around him. “I have nothing against hockey.”
“What about men?”
She sighed. “I’m not allergic to men. Saturday night should have put that notion to rest.”
He lifted the corner of his mouth. “Yeah.”
She took another deep breath. “Obviously, physical therapy isn’t the only type you need. We need to add mindfulness because you have to learn to live in the present and stop cycling back to the past.”
“I am living in the moment. And aren’t you the one caught in a loop about being burned in the past?”
Back to that, were they? Still, she knew Jordan was only guessing if he was referring to anything beyond their kiss on a beach. There was no way he could know about Neil.
“I want to prove you wrong about me.”
She was suspicious, cautious...curious. “Why?”
Jordan gave a small smile. “You’re funny and smart. You’re a hard worker who went back to school to earn her degree while putting up with smart alecks like me at the Puck & Shoot. You’re caring. You trained for a profession that makes a difference in people’s lives.”
She started to melt and then straightened her spine. Still, she couldn’t help asking, “Smart alecks? How about glib lotharios?”
He leaned forward, his look intensifying. “I know I have a reputation, but the other night between us was special. I’ve never felt a connection that fast with a woman before.”
“Because I’m good with a comeback?”
“Angel with a smart mouth, yeah. You’re one of a kind.”
How many times had she wanted to be special and valued for herself? And she especially didn’t want to be known as Sera who needed to be protected—as her family saw her. Still, she had to keep these sessions focused on business—she had her work reputation to think about, even if Bernice was the kind of boss to appreciate a good-looking guy. “I’m a therapist, and you’re my client. We have to keep this professional.”
“We are. I’ve been doing the homework that you’ve assigned.”
Sera nearly threw up her hands. He was persistent and had a counterargument for everything.
“I hear that you box,” Jordan teased. “I’d ask you to meet me for a date at Jimmy’s Boxing Gym so we can hit the punching bags together. It’s one of my regular haunts but—” he nodded at his knee with an apologetic expression “—I doubt I’m up to that kind of exercise yet.”
“Let’s take a rain check, then,” she said, dodging the invitation before glancing at the clock on the wall. “I’m about to be late for my next appointment.”
Jordan looked at her as if he saw right through her.
She wished she could take that rain check for their therapy sessions. Because if Jordan kept on with the charm offensive, it was going to be hard to keep up her walls against him...
* * *
By the next week’s session on Wednesday afternoon, as he waited for Sera’s arrival, Jordan had realized he needed a plan B. The problem was he’d so rarely had to resort to a backup strategy where women were concerned, he wasn’t even sure what plan B was. Except that he needed one.
Ever since their fateful Saturday night encounter, he couldn’t get Sera out of his mind. Her scent lingered, her touch tantalized, her taste made him yearn for more. Sometimes a great memory was a curse. He must have been an ignoramus eight years ago.
The direct approach—an invitation to dinner—hadn’t worked with Sera. She wasn’t biting, so he needed to sweeten the offer for her. How? Couldn’t Cole and Marisa invite some family over for the baby’s sleeping-through-the-night celebration or something? He’d debated his options, had searched his brain during interminable repetitions of his physical-therapy routine at home—when all he could think about was her—and had finally come up with a scenario that involved recruiting his mother.
