Page 45 of Cowboy's Last Stand
“What’s that?”
“Tai chi.”
“Tai chi?”
“It’s a meditative type of martial arts.”
“You know how to do it?”
“I’ve studied it a bit.”
“You’re a man of many interests.”
“My physical therapist recommended it,” he admitted.“For mental health benefits and improved self-control.”
Natalie liked the suggestion.“Do you need help with self-control?”
He shrugged.“I have an issue with enclosed spaces.”
“And crowded ones?”
“Yes.”
“Were you uncomfortable tonight?”
“Not as much as I expected to be.”
“Why did you agree to go?”she asked, baffled.
“Why do you think?”
“To score points with me?”
“I’m not keeping score.I enjoy your company.”
She gave him a skeptical glance.It wasn’t that she didn’t believe him about enjoying her company.The feeling was mutual.She just found him a little too good to be true.“There’s something strange about you.”
“Quite a few things.”
“I’m not talking about the way you avoid crowds and enclosed spaces.I’m talking about the way you are with me.”
“How am I with you?”
She tried to pinpoint the issue.“It’s like you already know me.From a past life.”
He arched a brow.“Do you believe in past lives?”
“No, I don’t,” she said, twining a lock of hair around her finger.“But I can’t think of another word to describe it.You act like you’ve known me forever, and you look at me like I’m the only woman in the room.”
“You’re the most beautiful woman in the room.”
“You’re attentive, and protective, to an unusual degree.”
“I’m your ‘guardian angel.’”
“Now you’re mocking me.”
“No.I’m not.”
