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Laughter burst out of me that he’d so directly named my teasing. It was the right word, though.
“I suppose my flirting’s not much better,” he said. “When I spoke to you in the airport, I saw that coming off much better than it did.”
I stared at him. “Wait—that tourist jab was flirting?”
He grimaced. “Hardly counts when you have to be told, does it?”
“This puts things in a new light. I’m not sure you have room to criticize flirting skills.”
“Hmm. Perhaps we should work on our skills together.”
Damn, this man was good. Okay, the tourist remark not so much, but right now? He had game all over the place. “It’s probably a good idea. I’m out of practice.”
His eyebrows pulled together. “Why is that?”
“I spend most of my time at work. In-office flirting is heavily discouraged.”
“What about off-the-clock vacation flirting?”
I probably glowed so bright they could see me all the way in the States. “Heavily encouraged.”
He grinned, and my eyes traced the line of his mouth. What was it about this man that he could so easily tie me up in knots? His mix of confidence and charm proved absolutely intoxicating.
“Then I’ll prepare myself to receive your flirting. Preferably without further commentary on myadvanced age.”
I scrambled for an apology, but he laughed it off. “It’s the beard. It’s grown monstrously gray these last few years. Maybe it’s time to shave it again.”
He stroked his whiskers as though in deep contemplation. Lucky. I wanted to run my fingers over his whiskers, too.
“Oh, I like the beard. It suits you.”
He leaned just a touch closer to me, his eyes practically throwing sparks. “Then I’d best keep it.”
I tried to pretend I hadn’t lit up with warm fuzzies, but I was pretty sure he wasn’t falling for my ruse anymore. Not after all this forward business about flirting. “What else is on your list of things to do before you turn fifty?”
“Let’s see…I wanted to run a marathon, which I did this spring. My time was wretched, but I finished, which was all that mattered. I’ve visited new countries. I’m reading more.”
“I noticed that. What are you reading?”
“Into Thin Air.”
“People dying on Mount Everest isn’t exactly an inspirational vacation read.”
“The one before wasRobinson Crusoe.” He pulled an exaggerated face.
“I’m sensing a theme,” I said with a laugh. “You’re really charging at fifty head-on. Here I am just sort of lazily meandering my way toward forty.”
“Meandering is good, too. More time to enjoy the views.”
He wasn’t giving me a hard time about my picture-taking, but that’s where my thoughts went. Capturing moments from a distance. Living life through the lens instead of soaking up every moment.
“I don’t know if I’ve done that, either.”
“You know the best time to start, don’t you?”
I did.Now.
* * *
