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“You think I’m hot?” I ask, scratching my head and scrunching my face to prevent it from breaking into a huge smile.
“You know you’re a hot commodity on any continent. Don’t play dumb.”
“I don’t think I’ve ever been called a commodity,” I grumble, actually thinking about it.
“Do not try to change the subject! What was that?” She demands, as we follow the airport signs showing the direction of the hotel.
Again, I try for cute, “well, I was trying to quiet you down before you lost us our suite, then you jumped me.”
She gasps.
“I did not jump you! I…”
I lift a challenging eyebrow, and she looks away for a few seconds, seemingly mortified. Since I can’t stand that expression on her, I add, “I liked it. A lot.”
She peers at me through long lashes, then admits begrudgingly, “me too.”
Then she adds, making my excited smile falter, “but, that can’t happen again!”
“Why not?” I almost whine.
“I just broke up with my boyfriend of ten years.”
“Ryan of the poor skills?”
“Yes, Ryan, and please don’t call him that. What you heard was more about my sister being a drama queen than me complaining.”
I huff, unconvinced. “Your sister had to get that from somewhere.”
“I might have mentioned a lack of compatibility. That does not make it his fault.”
“Did he kiss you like I did?”
Silence. That’s what I thought.
Shit, what am I doing?Trying to convince a newly single woman to give me a shot? And then what? I’m determined to focus all my energy on getting what’s left of my career back on track, right? My gut tells me this woman is so much more important than all that.
I change the subject, before my big mouth gets us in more trouble than we already are.
“What’s your name?”
“Anna.”
“That’s pretty. Where is it from?”
“Senegal, West Africa. I’m from Côte d’Ivoire, but I was named after my mom’s best friend who’s Senegalese.”
“Cool. You’ve been in California a long time?”
“Thirteen years.”
“Wow, okay. I was born and raised in the Bay Area, but I’ve traveled a bit,” I volunteer, keeping the conversation light.
Now, we’re in the elevator that’s supposed to land us in the hotel lobby.
She looks up at me with hesitation.
“Do you still live in the Bay?”
