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Chapter Six
“Ivo?” Alani blinked up at him as he stepped out completely into the light. In the shadows, he made quite the intimidating figure. But once his devilish smirk melted into something a little friendlier, she could feel her racing heart slow just a hint. “What are you doing here?”
“I was out for a walk,” he told her, his arms crossed.
Her eyes darted down to his impressive biceps, hidden away that evening under a leather jacket and what might be a plain white tee. Her mind flashed back to the day they first met, where he’d been completely shirtless. Totally droolworthy. She swallowed hard and slipped her keys into her pocket, not wanting to seem like she was ready to invite him in.
“And you figured you’d just lurk in the garden until someone showed up?”
“Not someone,” Ivo insisted with a slight shake of his head. “You.”
Her eyebrows shot up, as did her heartbeat. “How did you know I’d be here?”
How did he know where she lived, more like? Sure, they’d seen each other a few times outside the gallery—once at the coffee shop up the street, Cup of Beans or whatever it was called—but they hadn’t actually talked. More like admired each other from a distance.
When she’d seen him those times, Alani hadn’t felt all that intimidated, not like she had when he’d sized her up at his front door. Now she was somewhere in-between—feeling somewhat taken aback by his sudden appearance, but also intrigued. Why did this gorgeous man keep popping in and out of her life? Was it just a coincidence? Was she reading too much into it? After all, Angel Fire was such a small town; many of its faces were familiar to her at this point.
“I’ve seen you go into this building a few times,” Ivo admitted, sounding a little more sheepish than he looked. “I hope you don’t mind, but I asked Tanith about you… She told me you were renting in town, and I know the building is mostly renters. I just put two and two together.”
Her lips pursed. “Oh.”
He’d asked Tanith about her? Her stomach twisted in a way that one might take as excitement, but Alani wasn’t quite sure yet.
“And now I’ve found you.”
She glanced up at him from beneath her thick dark lashes, assessing him with a shy gaze. “That you have. You probably could have found me at the studio too. I’m there most days.”
Ivo shrugged, looking toward the street—avoiding her eyes. “Yeah, probably. But you already told me off once for disturbing you while you were trying to work. I didn’t want to turn that into our thing.”
“Our thing?”
“Yeah.” His grin made her stomach flip-flop again, and she bit back a smile of her own. “I mean, I don’t want you to think of me as the guy who ruins your, uh, flow or whatever.”
She finally let herself smile. Nobody took art seriously as a career. No one actually cared about interrupting her work time, as if she was working on a hobby and not something serious to her livelihood.
“Well, I guess I can appreciate that.” She tucked her hair behind her ears, suddenly a little less eager to get out from under his somewhat intense stare. “Thanks.”
“No problem.” The smirk he shot her made her knees weak. “I’d love to take a look at your stuff sometime.”
And cue blush—for the way his eyes flicked down to her chest before hastily darting up to her lips, then her eyes. If anyone else looked her over like that, paired with what he’d said, Alani would consider it skeevy, but with Ivo—somehow it wasn’t. Somehow it made her heart flutter in the most unexpected way.
With a soft throat clear, she stepped back to put some distance between them. Although she almost liked the way his presence made her feel, the rational side of Alani knew she shouldn’t get involved with anyone while she was in New Mexico. Her stay here was only temporary, after all. Besides, this wasn’t real life. Real life was waiting for her back home. Real life was her twins and her work. It was finding the best way to open a gallery and teach future artists. A guy would just distract her.
“So, can I help you with something?” she asked, breaking the tense silence that had settled between them. Ivo’s lips parted, and she tried not to stare at the way his tongue swept across his lower lip, and before he could speak, she quickly said, “Do you need to get into the building, or—”
“No, I was waiting for you,” he said, which made her press her lips together. Alani knew that already, but she’d hoped that if she gave him an out, like he wasn’t just there to see her, maybe he’d take it. No chance. “I wanted to see if you’d go out with me.” He scratched at the back of his neck when her eyebrows shot up. “I mean, I figured I’d ask again after you’d had a chance to cool down. I’ve tried to walk really lightly ever since you came upstairs to yell at me.”
A somewhat humorless chuckle slipped out before she could stop it. If anyone had been throwing attitude around that day, it had been Ivo. But that wasn’t the issue. He’d asked her out. Right there on the spot—he wanted to go out with her, and Alani just couldn’t let that happen.
“Look, Ivo, I’m sure you’re a nice guy, but—”
“Come on,” he urged, reaching out and tugging at her bag. She planted her feet and held firm, refusing to be pulled toward that gorgeous, lean body of his. Alani knew precisely what she’d find and feel under that shirt, so she had to stay strong. Ivo’s arm fell back to his side, and she briefly saw his hand curl into a fist before he slid it into his pocket. “It doesn’t need to be anything serious. We’re both busy people.”
“Yeah, I’m very busy,” Alani told him, readjusting her bag full of art supplies, the strap biting into her shoulder. “I’m at the studio most days… I have a full course load this semester, so—”
“So you can’t take one night to blow off a little steam?” He huffed, then shook his head and seemed to school his features, hiding what Alani swore looked like a rush of irritation. It wouldn’t surprise her. A guy this stunning probably had girls falling all over him.
“I’m definitely not at the place in my life anymore where I can waste a night blowing off steam,” she countered, shrinking back a little when he took a step toward her—but not running. Not quite yet. “Ivo, I appreciate it. I’m sure it’d be fun, but I just can’t.”
