Page 16 of The Disputed Legacy
Me?
I stifled the urge to let out an incredulous laugh that a sexy man like him would be checking me out before the other two.
Yet, as I watched him, feeling the intensity of his addicted stare like a hot brand of interest, I couldn’t help but want to be flattered. It’d been a long time since a man had made me feel the beginnings of butterflies in my stomach. And I’d never subjected myself to seeing what else such a handsome guy could make me feel.
There’d never been a point to embracing the mystery of attraction before.
With my oft-repeated insistence that I wasn’t in the market to go looking for a guy to date or belong with for a one-night stand, I saw no point to flirting with this customer.
“Welcome to Tiny’s diner,” I replied at last, breaking the spell of silence that had come with the realization that he was checking me out so slowly, like he was someone used to getting his way.
Dammit.I cleared my throat, annoyed at how breathy I’d sounded.
He wasn’t the first hot guy I’d ever spoken to, and I bet he wouldn’t be the last. The only other detail that could matter was how little he’d make me change my mind.
Sexy or not, I still had no motivation to let a man into my life.
Into my son’s life.
Determined not to blush or sigh under his patient, intense stare, I maintained direct eye contact and hoped I looked chill as I reached for a laminated menu and slid it over to him. “Whatcha hungry for?”
Ever so slowly, he grinned. Like a wolf. Like a starved man.
Oh, my God. Cut it out.
I couldn’t beflirtingwith him.
Tacking on a quick smile to show that I was just being playful and extroverted—two descriptions I wouldn’t usually apply to myself except in the manner of being a good waitress—I arched one brow.
The heady gaze he locked on me suggested he was hungry for something not on the menu.
Then with a lazy look over me, all that he could see from my waist up, he sighed as though he were two seconds from asking if he could have a taste ofme.
Watching him want me felt… good.
Because unlike Irene pushing me to talk to Jayden and faking it that I was enjoying a conversation with him, having this man appreciating the sight of me felt easy.
No pressure.
Just looking.
And waiting.
Instead of getting flustered under his obvious look of interest, I stood my ground and gave him a chance to speak. To reply. The ball was in his court, and I was intrigued to know what would follow.
This cat-and-mouse game would go nowhere, but it was crazy how uplifting and simply fun it was to flirt with him like this.
Without lowering his gaze or losing his smile, he let out a long, steady breath and used his fingertip to slide the menu further from me and closer to him.
“What do you suggest…?” He emphasized his search for my nametag, one I never wore because I hated being so obviously identified.
“The chicken BLT,” I said, ignoring his clear question of what my name was. He didn’t need to know my name, just like I wouldn’t bother asking him for his. Flirting was fun. It wasn’t going to go anywhere, so why not enjoy it while it lasted? “Although you look like you would want something more to sink your teeth in.”
Ever so slightly, he narrowed his eyes. As if taking the challenge, he smiled wolfishly again. Propping his elbow on the counter, then resting his chin in his hand, he openly stared at me with desire. Enough of it that I felt it in the air. Tension ratcheted up between us instantly, and I damned my body for betraying me.
There wasnoway I was actually getting aroused from an appreciative look from a stranger. No way. I refused to believe it.It was impossible for me to be acting like one of those characters from the old romance paperbacks I used to obsess over when I was a teen, the only source of imagination and romance I could ever rely on in my life.
“It just so happens that I’m very hungry,” he admitted in that smoky voice.
