Page 19 of Luck of the Draw

And though this was basically a date, it was notactuallya date, and both she and Brennan knew that. He had to have known that. He clearly wasn’t stupid. This was merely the necessary precursor to what they both knew was coming in order to keep the appearance of class.

And this was the last time Skye would have to do this, so she was enjoying herself. Not only because it was the last time she’d have to do this, but also because Brennan was very enjoyable. If things were different, he was the type of guy she’d probably want to pursue in a realistic sense. She’d never met anyone so…kind.

Although, given his status as what she guessed was a trust fund baby, things would probably have to be very different for that to work out.

But all of that was neither here nor there, and for one night, Skye would unapologetically reap the rewards.

“What’s on your mind, sweetheart?”

Skye looked at Brennan’s face again with a smirk. “You sure do like that term of endearment.”

One side of his mouth quirked. “That’s what’s on your mind?”

“No,” she said through another giggle. “I was just noticing.”

“I do like that term of endearment.” He leaned forward slightly, looking at her through lidded eyes that were as warm and cozy-looking as his easy smile. “I’m just an old fashioned romantic.”

She rested her chin in her palm and held his gaze. “You’re old fashioned? I wonder if I should be disappointed.”

He raised his eyebrows. “Is old fashioned disappointing?”

“Not necessarily.” It was time to give this song-and-dance a little nudge in the right direction, so she reached her foot forward to stroke his calf under the table. “Depending on your expectations of me.”

He dropped his gaze briefly as if attempting to glance through the table at their legs. “I have no expectations of you.”

“Oh no?” Skye lifted one eyebrow and stroked his calf again. “Then why did you pick me up in a bar and take me to dinner?”

Brennan rubbed his index finger back and forth across his mouth, but she could see the smile playing on his lips anyway. “I think I just have hope.”

Skye drew her foot higher along the inside of his calf until she reached his knee, fully expecting him to grab her ankle and do something naughty. “Tell me about your hopes, Brennan.”

Rather than grabbing her ankle, he reached across the table and picked up her hand, turning it so her palm faced upward, and rubbed the inside of her wrist with his thumb. “I hope you’ll let me give you an adventure in New Orleans that you’ll never forget.”

Putting on her most alluring expression, complete with pouty lips and slowly batting lashes, Skye closed her fingers around his wrist. Coquettishness could only take you so far, and sometimes you had to go in for the kill.

“I did come here for an adventure,” she said, lowering her voice to a husky tone, “so I’m going to let you do whatever you want.”

Even a self-professed, old-fashioned man was still a man. Still had a penis. And every man constantly switched back and forth between thinking with it or directly on its behalf. Brennan was no different. Heat suddenly flooded his gaze to the point that his dark russet eyes may as well have turned crimson.

He lifted his opposite hand, snapping his fingers with apopso loud it sounded like a twig cracking in two, and the waiter was back at the table posthaste.

“How was it, Mr. Riley?” the waiter asked, picking up both plates.

“Excellent as usual, AJ. Thank you.” Brennan let go of Skye’s hand, pushed back from the table, and stood. “We actually need to get going.” Pulling out his wallet, he produced a wad of cash and slipped it into AJ’s breast pocket, and then he offered his hand to Skye.

She took it and stood as well, offering AJ a polite smile. “Thank you. It was delicious.”

AJ gave a cordial nod. “Please join us again, miss.”

“I absolutely will,” she said.

Yes, that was a lie, but little white lies never hurt anyone.

Brennan placed his hand on the small of her back, guiding her to the front door. Once outside, he continued to nudge her a few steps up the sidewalk until he wrapped one large palm around her waist and pulled her off to the side and into an alley. After they were out of sight, he pushed her back against a brick wall, hands grasping waist as he sucked on the skin of her neck with ferocity.

Skye’s hackles immediately went up.

Wow. Okay then, here we go.

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