“We’ll eat together. I ordered Chinese for two earlier. It should arrive any minute now.” His voice is firm. “Unless you don’t like Chinese?”
“I like it.” If I’m honest with myself, I like being around him. I feel happy, happier than I’ve been in months. Logan disappears in the corridor, returning with two small bags of takeout food. After I hang my jacket on the back of Ava’s chair, I help him put the food and drinks on the table. Our arms brush by accident, and I immediately jump, biting my lip. Great. I’ve been in the same room with this man for five minutes, and I already want to climb him. How will I survive lunch?
I slump in the chair behind the desk while Logan sits across from me. Having a desk between us should make things easier.
“How come you’ve ordered for two?” I ask, attempting to grab some chicken with my chopsticks. Just when I think I finally got it, the piece falls back in the plate. There were no forks in the paper bags. Logan’s proficient with the chopsticks, which is probably why he didn’t bother to ask the restaurant to send us forks too. On a sigh, I concentrate on attacking my chicken again. This will be a long lunch.
“I was supposed to eat with Pippa, but she stood me up,” he explains.
Alarm bells ring in my mind. Looks like I have to kill Pippa too.
“What did you do today?” Logan asks me.
I wave my hand. “Boring stuff. Lots of business permits. Very annoying, but I kicked everyone’s ass.”
“If you need help with anything, tell me. I know people everywhere.” He says this with such nonchalance you’d think he was talking about a neighbor.
I roll my eyes. “So, you know everybody in San Francisco?”
“No.” Logan shrugs. “But a lot of people know me.”
Leaning back in my chair, I point my chopsticks at him. “Are you trying to impress me?”
“Maybe. Is it working?”
I smile, deciding to tease him. “Maybe.”
“I see. Do I have to bring up my lady skills again to impress you?” He wiggles his eyebrows.
I swallow, heat rising in my cheeks. “You have a filthy mind, Logan Bennett. It doesn’t go with your nice brother image.”
“It’s worth spoiling my image if I get you to blush. You look lovely.”
“Logan. . .” I lick my lips, eyeing my plate.
“What?”
“You know what. Stop what you’re doing.”
“What am I doing?”
I stare at him, tilting my head to one side. “Flirting.”
“Glad you’re not misinterpreting my intentions. Why should I stop? Am I making you nervous?” A rebellious flash crosses in his eyes. “Uncomfortable?”
“You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”
He grins. “Immensely. I don’t want to ambush you, though, so let’s change the subject. Are you continuing to sew until you open the shop?”
“Yes. I bought some beautiful fabrics yesterday. Back in my hometown, I had to travel to the nearby city to have a decent selection. I love the choices in San Francisco. I could’ve bought the entire store.” As usual when I talk about my dresses, I ramble. “The lighting is bad in my apartment, but as soon as I have a shop, I’ll move the sewing machine there.”
I remove the straw and lid of my paper cup, and take a sip of water.
Eventually, I get the hang of this chopsticks thing, so I eat quickly and don’t speak at all, afraid that if I pause for too long, I’ll lose this recently discovered dexterity. The second my plate is empty I rise from my chair, grabbing my jacket, and my almost-full water cup. I need to leave here right away; I still have a million butts to kick today. Logan blocks me on the way to the door. Oh, boy. I take a step back as a precaution, but still catch a whiff of his cologne. I swear that thing has pheromones in it. My nipples perk up instantly. Down, girls.
“What are you doing tomorrow night?” he asks.
“I’m busy,” I say quickly.