Message From Viola Mari (5 page)

“How reassuring. So you save the blood for the worst and the fainting for the best? Can I expect every meeting with you to end in a nine-one-one call?” His green eyes danced with mischief.

“Oh, I’m not sure I can deliver that much excitement every time.” I cleared my throat, feeling awkward. When I tried to stand up, I swayed, still feeling lightheaded.

His strong hands gripped my upper arms and he leaned in to brace me.
If you want me to stay conscious, stop turning me on, will you?
As we stood facing each other, the contours of his pectoral muscles pressed against my breasts. A strand of hair fell into my eyes, blocking my view of the
V
at the top of his button-up shirt, where wiry strands of chest hair stuck out. As I pulled slowly away from him, one of his hands brushed the hair from my eyes.

“Should I call the paramedics?” asked our waitress.

“No, I think she’ll live. If she stops breathing, I’m prepared to resuscitate her.” Justin raised an eyebrow and licked his sumptuous lips. My lips quivered at the thought of kissing him.

“Yes, I’m fine, really. Just a little low blood sugar, that’s all.” I reluctantly pulled myself from Justin’s grasp and walked over to the table to pick up my purse.

“So are we on for Friday, then? Say about six.”

“That works for me.”

He pulled his cell phone from his pocket and I told him my address and phone number so he could save it. “Thanks for your help and for lunch. I won’t forget this meeting for a long time.” I blushed.

“Yeah, me either.”

He walked me to my car and asked if I was okay to drive. I assured him I was fine.

“I’ll see you on Friday.” The seductive gaze he gave me seemed to add
in bed
.

If you don’t stop looking at me like that, I’m going to cum in my pants.
“Sounds good. I’ll see you then.” My voice sounded hoarse.

He shut my car door and peered through the glass at me for a moment before walking away. Warm tingly spots lingered everywhere he had touched.
You shouldn’t get infatuated with your teacher. You should focus on your manuscript, like a good student instead of thinking about jumping his bones on a waterbed whenever he encourages you to persevere.

It was a seafood dinner we sought, among other things. We sat across from each other in front of an enormous picture window overlooking the ocean. The sky was a brilliant pink, the sea a dark wet blanket stretched out below.

“I’m feeling rather festive tonight,” Justin said. “Could I interest you in bottle of champagne?”

“Sure.” I pulled at the shoulder strap on my black dress, tugged at a golden loop in my ear, and crossed and uncrossed my legs until the backs of my thighs felt sticky with nervous sweat.

“Marissa, relax,” he said softly. “You’re making me nervous.”

I dropped my hands into my lap. A girl with blond hair tightly pulled back and a flawless complexion stopped by the table to take our drink orders.

“We’d like a bottle of your house champagne, please,” he said.

“Good choice,” she said cheerfully. She jotted a note and then walked briskly toward the bar.

When she returned with our champagne, Justin motioned for me to sample. My gaze on him, I sipped and then nodded. The waitress filled our glasses, leaving them bubbling in front of us.

Justin raised his glass. “Here’s to an evening free of emergencies.” When he smiled, happy crinkles formed at the corners of his eyes.

“I’ll drink to that.” I raised my glass and tapped it against his and then sipped. Its dry taste made my tongue tingle.

“So tell me how you spend your time when you’re not studying rocks and oceans or taking writing classes.”

“Ha, the inquisition begins.” I laughed, leaning toward him.
How to say this without revealing any telling information.

“Well for one, I love swimming. I swim to the buoy and back in the Cove most mornings.”

“A swimmer? I had you pegged as a triathlete.”

“Why on earth would you imagine that? The last time I tried cycling, I ran into a telephone pole.”
The plan was short and sweet, not detailed and embarrassing.

“You just look like you’re in great shape.” His gaze roved over my body. I crossed my arms over my chest defensively while electric sparks tickled my nerve endings.

“Well it’s pretty clear you work out, too.”

“I run and lift weights. Most years I run in the La Jolla Half Marathon.”

“Really? I ran that race last year, but I don’t remember seeing you. I mean if I had, I would have…Oh, never mind.”

“What?”

“It’s nothing important.”

“Okay, so at least finish your sentence so I won’t obsess about it all night.” He leaned in toward me, resting his elbow on the table and his fist against the side of his face. The flecks of gold that ignited his green eyes made me think he had a pretty good grasp of the racy imagery bouncing around inside my head.

“All right, fine. It’s just that I’m sure if I’d seen you, I would have remembered. You’re not a guy I’d overlook.”

He smiled. “That kind of honest compliment should keep my ego comfortably inflated for a month. So you swim, run and avoid cycling like the plague. Any other recreational activities you enjoy?”

“Recently, I’ve taken up golf and tennis, but I can’t say I enjoy them much.”

“If you don’t like them, why do you bother?” He raised his face from his fist and stroked the side of his face with one finger.

“It’s a long story—I’d really rather not trouble you with the details.”

He raised an eyebrow and grasped his chin between two fingers. “Let me guess. A well-meaning family member suggested you learn how to play the yuppie sports so you can meet some eligible bachelors.”

I don’t remember writing that in my manuscript!
“And what makes you think that?” I pouted and crossed my arms, leaning away from him.

“I’m pretty observant, you know.”

“I see. What else about me is crystal clear, Mr. Teacher Psychoanalyst?”
Why ask when I really don’t want an answer?

“Ah, yes.” He tucked unruly gold curls behind his ear. “I do have some theories. I think you bury yourself in work because it protects you from what scares you the most—getting close to people.”

“What kind of data did you use to come up with that brilliant conclusion?” A sensual combination of anger and raging attraction burned in my chest and quickly moved down between my thighs. I shifted uncomfortably in my chair. For some reason, the more he enraged me, the more enticed I became.
I’m going to have to have a long talk with a therapist about this.

“Signing up for a writing class you didn’t want to take was my first clue. Agreeing to play sports you hate is the second. At work, you focus on the goals you want to achieve. Everywhere else, you try so hard to please people, your own needs get lost in the shuffle.” He leaned in closer.

“Why are you telling me this?” Resisting the intoxicating pull of his magnetic field, I pushed my chair a couple of inches back and dropped my hands in my lap.

“Because I think we could enjoy each other’s company more if you gave yourself permission to just do what you wanted once in awhile. Please, give me your hand.”

I placed my hand on the white linen tablecloth, allowing him to entangle his fingers with mine.

I teetered on the edge of something I wasn’t prepared for. Revealing myself, sharing my emotions.
How can I let a man in my life now? I’ve always been the rescuer. If everyone on Earth perishes it will be my fault. Maybe I can save them if I focus, if I work longer hours. If only there could be some distraction—my cell phone would ring or someone at a nearby table would pass gas vociferously or…

“Are you ready to order?” asked the bouncy blond.

That works.
I unraveled my hand from Justin’s and picked up my menu. I hadn’t had time to review it, but I didn’t much care.
I’ll swallow raw oysters if it’ll keep me from having to talk about my feelings.

“I’m sorry—we’ve gotten a bit absorbed in each other’s company.” The way his gold-flecked green eyes interlocked with mine when he spoke aroused me all over again. “Please just give us a few more minutes.”

Oh, no. What am I going to say now?

She nodded and smiled before doing a quick reverse.

“So what do you think about what I said before?”

 “I think psychology is way out of your scope of practice. Now can you please give me a minute to look over the menu?”

Fortunately, he clenched his jaw and remained silent until after the waitress returned to take our order and left.

“Now it’s my turn to ask the questions,” I said.
Now I can test my guys-who-ask-questions-never-answer-them theory.

“I’ll answer them if you promise to relax a little.”

“I’m completely relaxed.” I placed a sweaty palm over top of my other hand.

“I hardly think so. What you’re really doing, which I noticed by the way from the first minute we met, is grinding your teeth together to keep from saying anything that would let me see through your tough exterior.”

“Is that so? So you, being Mister Nice Guy, are going to open me up and make me vulnerable, so you, like every other man I’ve ever dated, can take advantage of me?”

“No, of course not. I want to show you I’m dependable.” He sat up straighter in his chair.

“A man, dependable? Ha. What kind of seduction scheme is this?” I reached for my wine glass and took a large swallow of champagne. Too many bubbles went up my nose and I masked a cough.

Once the waitress placed our plates on the table, I reached for my fork, thrust it into the Mahi Mahi on my plate and sliced off a piece with my knife.

Justin’s brows tipped inward. “I bet you don’t get asked out on many second dates.”

“Excuse me?” I poised my fork ominously in his direction.

“You heard me.” His gaze dropped down to the
V
on my low-cut dress and he licked his lips.

A rush of desire surged between my legs. Damn men. The black widow female spider has got it right. Better to fuck them and then kill them off before they do permanent damage
. “Can’t you look me in the eye when we speak? Anyway, where did you get your information about my relationships?”

“If you had dates galore, your mom wouldn’t have you lobbing balls over the fence and into the sand pit at the Beach and Tennis Club, would she?”

I sat up rigidly in my chair and crossed my arms over my chest.
No more peep show for you, buddy.
“For your information, I’m a very good player,” I lied. “No men interest me right now—end of story. Others I know annoy me almost as much as you.”

“I’m only trying to break the ice. In the Arctic Circle, I might add.”

“Very funny. Well can you break the ice without psychoanalyzing me? Maybe we should move on to politics—that might be less controversial.”

“Are you sure about that?” Justin shook his head and looked down at his plate while he sliced off a piece of steak. His jaw tightened as he chewed and his full lips glistened with meat juice.
How can someone who irritates me so much look so damned enticing?
I wanted to put down my fork, jump over the table and devour him. Everything about him looked delicious from his hair to his sparkling eyes and swollen lips. The sculpted muscles of his body filled out his clothes so amazingly. Unclothed, I could only imagine…

A pout spread from his eyes to his lips. “What is it?” he asked.

“The fish is delicious,” I said.

“I’m glad you like it, but somehow I don’t think that’s foremost in your mind.”

Is it the drooling that’s giving me away?
“There you go again.”

“Sorry—I really can’t help it. So tell me I’m wrong.”

“No, you’re right, actually. But I can’t say what I was thinking about at the moment because—
it’s X-rated
—it’s completely weird and unimportant.”

 “Marissa, you’re a scientist. Why can’t you just say what’s on your mind?”

“Because whenever I’m honest, I end up in trouble. But if you insist, I’ll at least try. My former fiancé ruined me for romance. Since him, I’ve dated a stalker who called me several times a day at work and a guy who asked me to marry him on our first date. It wasn’t that difficult to handle, really. I didn’t even have to say
no
because I choked on a piece of meat and this man at a neighboring table had to do the Heimlich on me.”

“That must have been an exciting evening. But I can relate to what you’re saying. I’ve had my share of bad dates. Women who want to know where I am every hour of the day. The worst are women looking for a rich guy. Once they find out I eat TV dinners and drive a Toyota, their libido drops dramatically.”

“I actually thought I loved my fiancé,” I said, looking off into the distance. “And that he loved me. He wanted me to quit work and squeeze out babies. I said that wasn’t what I wanted and three weeks later, he told me he’d met someone else.”

“What a jerk.” Justin tightened his grip on his fork and wrinkled his brow.

His protective reaction incited comforting warmth inside my chest. It felt so much better than the cold, steel weight of my former lover’s rejection. “Why do you say that? You’ve implied I’ve got issues. If that’s true, why wouldn’t he leave me?” Suddenly, the pain of being abandoned returned. Tears rushed to my eyes.

“You just need to find someone who values your career ambitions. Anyone who doesn’t has an ego problem. I personally find everything about you intoxicating.” His gaze wandered over me, undressing me. They transformed from warm green to a glowing yellow, like some rare species of wild animal.

The fluttering in my belly overwhelmed me. “I…”
You’re going to have to settle for body talk tonight.

“Let’s not play games,” he said, leaning in so close I caught a whiff of his manly, musky cologne. “Let’s not make promises.” He raised a brow and flashed me a seductive smile. “Let’s just see where this night leads us.”

“That works for me,” I said. An aching, sensual need pulsed between my thighs. The desire to mate with him felt so urgent, I wanted to pull him under the table and unzip his pants. Instead, I placed my knife and fork neatly together across my plate.