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Her gaze collided with his and she felt the connection like a physical jolt.
She had the jitters, and she couldn’t remember when that had last happened to her. It was his eyes. She was willing to bet those devilish eyes had encouraged more than a few women to throw caution to the wind. There was probably a label on him somewhere saying Handle with Care.
She tried to ignore the way she was feeling, but her heart had other ideas.
Oh no, Molly. No, no, no. Her inbox was filled with questions from women wanting to know how to handle men exactly like him, and while she might be excellent at giving advice, her expertise ended there.
Somehow sensing he was the topic of conversation, Valentine wagged his tail hard.
She’d found him abandoned when he was still a puppy.
She still remembered the look on his face. A little startled and a lot hurt, as if he couldn’t quite believe someone had actually chosen to dump him in the gutter rather than keep him. As if that action had caused him to question everything he had ever believed about himself.
She knew the feeling.
They’d found each other, two lost souls, and bonded instantly.
“I called him Valentine because he has a heart-shaped nose.” That was the only detail she was prepared to share. Time to leave. Before she said something, or did something, that might lead her on a path she had no intention of walking. “Enjoy your run.”
“Wait—” He put out a hand to stop her. “This isn’t the first time I’ve seen you. You live near here?”
The knowledge that he’d been watching her while she’d been watching him gave her pulse rate another workout.
“Near enough.”
“Then I’ll be seeing you again. I’m Daniel.” He held out his hand and she took it, her body ignoring the warnings of her brain. She felt his fingers close around hers, the pressure firm. She imagined he knew what to do with those hands and imagini
ng it gave her that breathless feeling that made it difficult to think properly.
She was having trouble focusing, and in the meantime he was looking at her expectantly, waiting.
“Let’s try this again,” he murmured. “I’m Daniel, and you’re—”
Her name. He was waiting for her to tell him her name. And judging from the amusement in his eyes he knew exactly why she was tongue-tied.
“Molly.” There were still days when it felt unnatural using that name, which was illogical because Molly was her name. Or one of them. The fact that she’d only started using that name since she’d moved to New York shouldn’t matter.
She gave him no more than that but still she saw him file it away and knew it would be remembered. She sensed he wasn’t a man who forgot much. He was smart. But even if he found out her last name and looked her up, he still wouldn’t find anything. She’d checked.
“Join me for a coffee, Molly.” He released her hand. “I know a great little place near here that makes the best coffee on the Upper East Side.”
It was somewhere between an invitation and a command. Smart and smooth. An effortless overture from a man who didn’t know the meaning of the word rejection.
But he was about to learn, because there was no way she would be joining him for coffee or anything else.
“Thanks, but I have to get to work. Enjoy your run, you and Brutus.”
She didn’t give him a chance to argue, or herself a chance to doubt her decision. Instead she ran. She ran through the dappled sunshine and the scent of blossoms, Valentine by her side and temptation nipping at her heels. She didn’t turn her head even though not doing so made her neck ache and was a bigger test on her willpower than anything she could remember for a long time. Was he watching her? Was he annoyed that she’d turned him down?
Only when she’d covered what she considered to be a safe distance did she slow her pace. They were close to one of the many ankle-level dog drinking fountains, and she stopped to catch her breath and let a thirsty Valentine drink his fill.
Join me for a coffee…
And then what?
And then nothing.
When it came to relationships she was great with the theory but bad in practice. How bad was a matter of public record. First came love. Then came pain.
