“Yes,” she said. “I knowhim.”
Luke glanced to either side of her, but both stools were occupied. “Could we move to a table?” he askedher.
“Sure.”
She reached for her drink, but the bartender stopped her with a hand on hers. “I’ll bring your drink over for you, Shari.” She almost laughed at the deliberate way he used her name in front of Luke. Oh, yeah. She’d made her point. The bartender turned his attention to Luke. “What can I getyou?”
“A pint of whatever you have ontap.”
“Coming rightup.”
They made their way to an empty table and settled themselves. Although there were waitstaff, the bartender brought their drinks over himself. He placed Shari’s drink in front of her, a large frosty mug of ale in front of Luke and a black plastic bowl of nuts in the middle of the table. “There you go, Shari,” he said with the ghost of awink.
“Thanks, Les,” she said, enjoying chapter one much more than she’d thought shewould.
“Yes, thanks,Les,” her datesaid.
“No problem, man,” hesaid.
Luke lifted his beer in her direction, then drank deeply. She followed suit, sipping her owndrink.
“IhopeI didn’t horn in on anything,” he said when he’dswallowed.
“Pardon? Oh, you mean the bartender. No. Not at all. He was just being friendly to a womanalone.”
He glanced at her, a devilish gleam in his deep green eyes. “Do I need toapologize?”
“No.” She allowed herself a tiny, self-satisfied smirk. “I think I’ve made my point. So, now what do wedo?”
“Hell if I know,” he said, slumping back in his armchair. “You’ve completely thrown me off myagenda.”
She nodded, pleased. “That’s good. I think being spontaneous is morefun.”
He leaned closer, his gaze never leaving hers. “Then, can I be completely spontaneous and tell you that you look good enough to eat?” He reached over and ran his index finger up her arm and over her shoulder, coming to rest lightly at the juncture of shoulder andthroat.
She shivered at the contact of his finger, cold from the beer mug, on the naked flesh of her shoulder. “Is that in chapter one?” she asked, feeling bereft when he put his arm back at hisside.
“Yes.”
“What else is in chapterone?”
He was wearing a navy polo shirt. At least, she thought it was navy; it appeared black in the dim light. It molded to his chest and she saw the muscles of his arms shift the fabric every time he moved. A trio of piano, bass and drums played softly in thebackground.
He leaned closer and stared right into her eyes. It felt as personal as a kiss. “We talk about you all night,” hesaid.
O-oh, something about the way he said those words made them feel like a caress. She shifted on her chair and gazed right back at him. His lips were nice, she thought. Full without being punched-in-the-mouth puffy, and firm. Darkness pooled in the cleft in hischin.
“We talk about me. Okay. I can do that. Thenwhat?”
“Then we gohome.”
Of course. She wasn’t sure when the kissing part took place in the book. If that didn’t happen until chapter four, she wondered what they’d do for the next three weeks. At the pace of this book, Total Morons would be into their golden years before they saw anyaction.
“So,” he said, half joking. “Tell me aboutyourself.”
“I’m a Capricorn,” she said in a bright, ditzy voice. “I like considerate people and I hate guys whosmoke.”
“Come on, help me out here, willyou?”
