I don’t know how many people passed through. I didn’t keep count of the tuxedos or cocktail dresses snaking through the line. I reminded myself I was raising thousands of dollars. My wrist was starting to ache. I had barely glanced up when I heard a deep voice. A solid, strong hand slid my album cover in front of me.
“You can write it out to Luke.”
I cleared my throat. “Anything else?” I wanted to sound casual and normal, but there was something about Luke Canton that stirred something in my stomach.
I had only spent a combined total of two minutes in the man’s company, but I felt nervous and giddy. It wasn’t something I had felt in awhile. I was almost afraid to look up—afraid he would see what he was doing to me.
He leaned toward me. “Depends on how much you can put on one of these pictures.”
I wasn’t going to blush. I refused to let him get under my skin, even though he was blatantly flirting, and I was blatantly returning the cues.
I used the fuchsia pen and scribbled a few lines. I added my phone number at the end, eyeing him as I handed it to him.
His eyebrows rose. “Did you think I was asking for your number?”
“Weren’t you?” I challenged.
“I did pay a thousand dollars for the autograph.”
My eyes widened. “A thousand dollars?”
“It’s for the kids, right?”
I nodded. “Right. For the kids. But still, that’s very generous.”
“Yeah, that’s what they say about me.”
I dropped my eyes to the table. We both knew the things people said about him. It couldn’t all possibly be true, could it?
“And what if I dial this number? Is it going to be a Chinese restaurant?”
I pressed my knees together under the table. It had been a rebellious impulse to give it to him, and I was starting to question myself. Was I really this mad at Jake? Or was I willing to flirt with Luke Canton a little while longer?
“Try it,” I suggested.
He pulled his phone from his pocket and dialed the number. I bit my lip when we both heard my phone ring.
“Not a Chinese restaurant.” He grinned.
“No.”
He looked over his shoulder. He was the last one in line. Jake would be here any minute.
“Want to get a drink?” The way he asked it sounded as if he was asking for so much more than a nightcap at the hotel bar. Even his words dripped sex. Was there ever a woman who turned him down?
I nodded. God, yes. He didn’t know how thirsty I was. Thirsty for something other than schedules and order. Thirsty for a taste of something wild. Thirsty for something dangerous. Dangerous like him.
He leaned over the table. “Here’s the thing. I have to leave alone.”
I looked at him, trying to read between the lines. He didn’t explain what that meant.
“But, I can meet you somewhere as soon as I leave the hospital. Or.” He stopped and lowered his voice. “You could come back to my place.”
The good girl knew what to do. Lexi Wilde would not have a drink with the state’s biggest womanizer. And she sure as hell wouldn’t go home with him. Everyone knew about Luke Canton. I didn’t have to be a huge football fan to know he was the kind of bad boy girls like me needed to steer clear from. Jake wasn’t completely wrong. Luke’s image was the complete opposite of mine. Our paths colliding publicly would be an explosive disaster.
“Text me your address,” I whispered.
He picked up the thousand-dollar autograph I had signed and tucked it inside his tuxedo jacket.