Heir to Scandal (Secrets of Eden 3)

Xander turned away from her confusing expression to let his gaze flick back over the menu and then remembered what he’d chosen. “First I think I’ll take some iced tea with lemon. Then I’ll have the Texan burger with fries and one of your awesome chocolate milkshakes.”

Rose stopped writing on her pad and smiled. He could tell she recognized his order even though it had been eleven years since she’d brought him food to the counter. She looked up at him, her expression softening for the first time. “The usual, huh? Some things never change, do they?”

Xander shook his head and held her gaze. Her beauty hadn’t faded. His body’s reaction to her was just as immediate, powerful and distracting as it had ever been. Every inch of his body had grown tense when he caught a glimpse of her familiar curves and breathed in her perfume. It made him wonder if the magic they’d make under the summer stars would be just as explosive.

“They sure don’t. And I’m glad.”

* * *

Rose had to literally bite her tongue to keep her nerves from getting the best of her. The pain helped her stay focused, although it made it hard to smile with any sort of warmth. Whatever. What was important was that she could not panic. Not here. Not now. This was her first real test and she couldn’t flunk within a minute of coming face-to-face with Xander Langston.

Oddly enough, she’d spent a good part of the past five years fantasizing about Xander strolling into the diner just like this. Looking just like this. Smiling at her just like this. Maybe picking her up and carrying her off like the end of An Officer and a Gentleman.

And yet, in reality, the moment wasn’t all she’d hoped for. She was nervous. Anxious. Worried she would say or do the wrong thing and give her secrets away. And while Xander had the fire of unabashed attraction in his eyes, that was it. His blatant appraisal of her sent a rush of awareness through her body. A warmth rose to her cheeks and other places where a fire had not been stoked in a very long time.

Time had not dulled her reaction to Xander. How could it, when he had gotten only more handsome? Age had made his features sharper and his jaw more pronounced, but he still had the same kind eyes and charming smile. She could very easily let herself get swept up in the moment. Unfortunately, he wasn’t going to carry her out of the diner and marry her. He had come here looking for her, but she wouldn’t read anything into it. He’d missed their high school reunion     a few months ago. Perhaps he’d just come to appease his curiosity and see if she still looked good. As always, hot enough to sleep with but easy to forget about.

That meant the dull ache of arousal would go unsoothed. She wasn’t about to make the same dumb mistakes twice.

She forced herself to scratch out his order for the cook and spun off in the direction of the kitchen while she still had the strength to walk away from him. It had been hard enough the first time, knowing how much was at stake. Somehow, with nothing more than a dinner order between them, it wasn’t any easier.

It had been eleven years since she’d laid eyes on Xander Langston. Eleven years! And yet seeing him like this had lit an unwelcome fire in her libido as though they were back in school again. She’d seen him on the news from time to time, especially during the flood of ads around election season, but it didn’t do him justice. That sandy-brown hair, those enchanting hazel eyes, those firm muscles disguised by his expensive and well-tailored clothes—there was no resisting it. She’d never been able to tell Xander no. He had this charm about him. Once he set his sights on what he wanted, he could be very persuasive.

For some reason, Xander had wanted her. Rose hadn’t even wanted to date him at first. He was handsome, but they were on different paths. He was the high school senior-class president. He played varsity baseball. He was popular, likable and overflowing with what they called “leadership potential.” He had a full ride to Georgetown and a bright future ahead of him. Rose had none of those things, then or now. And yet once he’d decided they should date, there’d been no turning him away.

She pushed the ticket across the stainless-steel countertop to Oscar, the night cook. “I need a Texan with extra barbecue sauce.”

Oscar grunted and turned to the grill. Normally, Rose would take the tea out before she made his milkshake, but she wasn’t ready to face him again. Instead she busied herself scooping ice cream into the milkshake machine. It was easier than figuring out what she was going to do.

“It’s not a big deal,” she said aloud, dumping the thick shake into the tall fountain glass. And it wasn’t. He was going to come and go, just as he always did. He hadn’t spent more than a handful of days in Cornwall since he’d left. Usually it was for the annual Eden gathering at Christmas when the diner was closed. And then he was back to D.C. and his work at the Capitol Building. Neither his attraction to her nor the secrets she kept from him would change that fact.