“I can’t,” she said, running her fingers through her wet hair.
“Come on,” he coaxed.
This would be easy. One more dinner, a few more guilt-trips about how much her brother missed her, and Ellie would be sitting next to him on a plane back to San Francisco.
“No, I really can’t.”
“Why not?” She’s getting desperate. She knows you’ll win this little game.
And then she threw him for a loop. “Because I have a date.”
Chapter Four
I have a date.
Why, why had she said that?
Ellie collapsed on the plush white sofa in the center of the living room and let out the sigh she’d been holding. Luke had left only five minutes ago, but those five minutes, saying goodbye, walking him to his SUV, had been the longest of her life. Especially when he’d thrown in a few innocent questions about her date, questions she had no answers for.
As she’d watched him speed off, all her confidence had sped away with him.
No way could she beat Luke in a battle of wits. He could be sly, ruthless when he wanted, and he just oozed confidence. Sure, she’d had the upper hand for most of the afternoon—the string bikini had worked to her advantage—but she’d had to blow it by coming up with a ridiculous lie.
A date.
Ellie groaned. Where on earth would she find a date? If she knew Luke—and really, she could read him like a book—he’d undoubtedly show up at the club tonight, the location of her so-called rendezvous. No way would he stay away.
Okay, I can do this.
She rose from the couch and began pacing the hardwood floor. The living room was spacious and airy, the perfect place to think. Too bad her brain was mush. Had been that way the second Luke had shown up at her house today.
How she’d managed to get through the afternoon was beyond her. When Luke had taken off his shirt earlier, revealing his broad, golden chest, her knees had grown wobbly and her heart thudded in her chest. Why did he have to be so good-looking? Why did sex appeal pour out of him like lava from a volcano?
She cursed her brother for sending Luke here. Josh had tons of friends, why hadn’t he sent Martin Hodges, his stuttering poker buddy? If Martin had been in that ocean with her today instead of Luke, she might have been able to focus.
Instead, she’d fought back wave after wave of desire until the ache had become unbearable. She thought about the way they’d played around in the water, the oddly gentle firmness of his touch when he’d grabbed her shoulders and dunked her in the waves. So many times she’d had to bite her lip to stop herself from begging him to kiss her.
Kiss him! When she should want him gone.
Her plan had seemed so simple, so easy to orchestrate. At least it seemed that way yesterday. Today she was a bundle of nerves, uneasy with the realization that scaring Luke off wouldn’t be as simple as she’d thought. Doing it required control, and whenever Luke was around, all her self-control flew out the window.
Which provoked her to do stupid things. Like conjure up pretend dates. But really, how could she have survived another dinner with Luke? After the way her entire body throbbed at his mere proximity, seeing him again tonight hadn’t been an option.
“Viv,” she muttered, suddenly making a beeline for the telephone.
Of course. If anyone could find her a man in less than three hours, it was Vivian.
Ellie dialed her boss’s number and waited for Vivian’s cheerful, “Hello?”
“Viv, it’s me. I need your help.” Her voice came out in a hurried rush.
“Ellie, I’m afraid I’m a little busy right now. The pool guy’s here, trying to fix the filter. We think something’s jamming it.”
She paused. “The pool guy? How old is he?”
“I don’t know. Twenty-seven, twenty-eight. Why?”
She took a breath. “Do you think he’ll go out with me tonight?”
There was silence on the other end. Ellie could picture Vivian’s perplexed expression, and if she weren’t so desperate right now she might have laughed out loud. Trying to arrange a date with Viv’s pool boy was probably the most absurd thing she’d ever done.
“Okay, what’s going on?” Vivian finally asked. “What did you—”
Before Vivian could finish, the entire story spilled out of Ellie’s mouth, starting with her swim with Luke and ending with the childish lie she’d told him.
“All right, honey.” Vivian gave an audible sigh. “Let me talk to Miguel. Hold on.”
Holding the phone to her ear, Ellie paced the room.
“Okay, I have good news and bad news. Pick your order,” Vivian said a few moments later.
“Good news first.”
“Miguel agreed to take you out tonight.”
Relief flooded her chest. “And the bad news?”
“He’s gay.”
Hysterical laughter bubbled in her throat but she swallowed it back. Great, the only available bachelor she had, and he didn’t like women. How would this ever work?