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“Right, but gorgeous?” Her smile is wider now. “No one’s ever called me that before.”
My brows wrinkle. “How has no one called you gorgeous?”
She shrugs. “Have you seen my sister, the blonde? The curvy, little blue-eyed bombshell?”
“I have,” I clear my throat, hoping my next thought doesn’t get me into trouble, “and I’d wager to say that you’re the prettier of the two of you.”
“What? She’s beautiful. You can’t deny that.”
“She is, in a straightforward sort of way, but you… you’re gorgeous. The second I saw you at the diner I was…” I bite my lip and wonder if I should back pedal out of this conversation. I don’t want to come off as the creepy old dude who’s only noticing her soft lips, long hair, big breasts, and thick thighs. “You’re pretty. More than pretty, you’re stunning. And if people aren’t telling you that, they’re stupid.”
She looks away and twists her hair onto her shoulder. “Thank you. You’re pretty handsome yourself.”
Suddenly, cleaning her smooth leg is starting to feel wrong, so I drop the cloth back into the pot. I’ve gotten the most of it, anyway. “You never did tell me what illusive thing you were looking for in a relationship.”
“Oh, well, that’s cause it’s ridiculous. I know my standards are way out of whack with reality.”
“Try me.”
Her gaze holds with mine for a second. “The list is too long.”
“Let’s hear it.”
She grins slightly and clears her throat. “Okay… I mean you’re going to make fun of me.”
“I’m not going to make fun of you. Okay, maybe I’ll make fun, but you’ll just have to find out.” I laugh and stretch my legs out in front of me.
Her dark eyes move around the room as though she’s formulating her thoughts. “I don’t know. I want an old-fashioned kind of love. It’s the premise of what I started my business on, you know? The kind of love where things go wrong, but people stay and work it out. The kind of love where a guy is naturally protective and both partners put each other’s needs first.”
“That doesn’t sound hard to find.”
She snorts out a laugh and gathers herself again, tugging her long hair to her left shoulder. “You’re more out of touch than I thought. The last guy I dated came home miserable and only cared about his day and what he was doing. Oh, and any emotion I had was strictly prohibited.”
My brows narrow. “Okay, that sounds like a bad experience. How long were you together?”
“Embarrassingly long.”
“How long?”
“Almost a year.” She gasps. “A year!I spent a year with a guy who didn’t respect me at all. Why?Why did I do that?”
I can’t imagine why a woman like Nora would ever put up with anything less than perfect. She deserves it.My tone drops as I say, “Why did you do that?”
“Desperation, maybe.” She shrugs. “He was this ex-military guy who I made all these excuses for. He had some good qualities, but they weren’t enough to make up for how he made me feel.”
“When did you break up?”
“Oh, God, almost two years ago now. He moved up to Eagle Crest to open up a tactical shop.”
My chest tightens as the words spill into the air. There aren’t many people up here, even less tactical shops, and only one Eagle Crest. “What’s his name?”
“Mike Teagan. Come to think of it, he’s a little older too. In his early forties.”
Well, fuck! Of all the people she could be talking about, why did it have to be my shitty, fucking half-brother? When my dad went off to start his second family, I hated him and his new kids. As an adult, I tolerate that side of the family, but we’re not particularly close. In fact, I’ve gone years at a time without talking to Mike. Unfortunately, we’ve been back and forth lately because he’s selling a boat trailer and I’d like to get my boat out of the water before the freeze.
“Anyway, isn’t it weird that men used to go to war to protect women and children, and now they can’t be bothered to open a door, pull out a chair, or say anything kind at all? I mean, my grandpa wrote my grandma love notes all the time. When he was at war, he’d send her these long, elaborate letters and she cherished every word. I still have them under my bed.”
“You still read them?”
