Page 81 of Halstead House

“Hi.” I smiled up at him, but it was dimmer than the smile I’d been wearing earlier.

“I wondered if you were still on the island. How much longer will you be here?” he asked.

“Oh, I have a few more weeks,” I replied.

“You want to dance?” He held out a hand, a hopeful expression on his handsome face.

“Careful, this one likes to lead,” Ana joked, hooking a thumb in my direction.

“Ignore her,” I said in response to the confused look on his face. I blew out a breath. I didn’t really want to dance with him, and my hesitation showed.

“Come on.” He snagged my chair and pulled it out, then reached out and took my hand, pulling on it to get me to stand. “It’ll be fun. We’re friends, right?”

“There you are.” I heard Lucas’s deep voice moments before I felt his arm wrap around my waist, his hand coming to rest on my hip.

Jonathan released my hand as Lucas turned me and leaned down for a kiss. It was no more than a peck, really. The type of kiss that long-time couples give to say hello or goodbye. Still, even though it was meant to be casual, it conveyed a primal message that Jonathan was sure to understand and that left me reeling, zings racing up my spine.

“Hi, Jonathan,” Lucas said as he looked back up. He tucked me against his side and smiled at the other man, with cool eyes.

“Hi,” Jonathan responded. His eyebrows shot up as he looked back to me.

I wanted to shrug or shake my head. I was as confused and surprised as he was, but I merely smiled in a friendly way. “It’s always nice to see you,” I said for lack of anything else to say.

He nodded slowly. “Yeah. Have a good night.”

I turned to face Lucas, startled and thrilled to have him there, just as another fast song started. People flooded the floor. Lucas let go of my waist, and we turned to the table to sit down. Ana was nowhere to be seen. How was that possible? She had been sitting right here.

“Where’s Ana?” I asked.

“Dancing.” He tilted his head toward the dance floor, and I caught sight of her dancing with a man I’d never seen.

I turned back to Lucas and found myself caught by his gaze. “I thought you had a business dinner.” A smile of pure delight bloomed on my face as it fully hit me that he was truly there.

His gaze warmed as he smiled back. “I played hooky.”

“Was it the guilt?”

“That or the fear that some other guy would snatch you up.” He pulled a face as he leaned an elbow on the table and reached to brush my bangs off to the side. “Which it turns out may not have been unfounded.”

The words were serious, but his eyes were teasing and I warmed at the thought that he would care about that.

“I’m really happy you’re here, but I’m sorry if you missed something important tonight.”

He leaned closer to me. “I’m going to tell you a little secret. Are you ready?” I nodded, spellbound by his light eyes and all that intensity focused my way. “I have lots of money.”

He stopped there and waited for, well, I’m not sure what from me. So I titled my head and said, “Yes, that’s true.”

“I’m not telling you this to brag or make myself sound like a jerk or something. I’m trying to make a point. Do you know what the one thing I don’t have is?”

“I have no idea,” I whispered. And I didn’t. I wasn’t sure where he was going with this. It was so unlike Lucas to lay it all out there in a way that could have been considered vulgar or arrogant.

“Time. Time is my most precious commodity. It’s the thing I have the least of. Days pass and I can’t get them back. So, instead of using that time for more business, I canceled everything and cleared my schedule. Tonight, if you still want it, my time is yours.”

My heart crawled into my throat as what he’d said penetrated. He’d blown off everything else to give the gift of himself. He could have sent me flowers, arranged for me to go to a spa, or had Chef Lou prepare me a special dinner. Any of those things would have been kind. But they also would have been easy. Giving of his time wasn’t easy. It was a sacrifice that required effort... and he’d done it for me.

“I want it,” I managed to say.

He laughed, his entire face lighting up with happiness. “Well, that’s a relief.”

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