“Why should it?” He shrugged then stretched out his arm and rested it over her shoulder. “Like I keep telling you, we’re both adults. Who cares if Luke knows?”
An exasperated breath flew out of her mouth. “I care. Especially if he tells your sister that I lied to her. Which he won’t, of course.” She frowned. “Not if I do what he asked.”
Josh returned the frown. “What the hell does that mean?”
“He wants me to fire Ellie so she won’t have a reason to stay in town.”
“I agree. Fire her, Viv.”
She stared into his serious blue eyes, flabbergasted. How could he sit there so calmly while they discussed messing up Ellie’s life for no good reason? They had no right playing God and telling Ellie she couldn’t dance anymore. Did Josh even know that his sister’s ballet career was over? He had to know, he was too intelligent not to. So how could he look so unfazed by taking away the only connection to dancing Ellie had left?
“She can find another gig,” Josh added. “If she wants to dance in a nightclub, there are plenty of places in San Francisco that would hire her.”
Vivian sighed. “What if she’s not ready to go back?”
“Look,” he said, rubbing her bare shoulder before pulling her closer to him. “We both know the car accident changed her life, but she can’t hide away forever. She needs to rebuild her life.”
Vivian grew quiet. Maybe he was right. If Ellie went home, she could finally begin putting the pieces of her life back together instead of pretending the accident never happened. And she’d have her big brother to lean on while she did that.
Seeing the situation in a new light, she said, “I think…you and Luke might be right. Hiding away in this town isn’t the answer for Ellie.”
“So you’re going to do it? Fire her?”
She nodded. Tried to look past her own guilt and see the good that would come out of it. “I’ll do it tomorrow.”
“Thank you, Vivian.”
“I’m not doing it for you, Josh.”
“I know. But I’m still grateful.” He brushed his hand over her face again, then slowly drew her into his arms and pressed his lips against hers. When he pulled back, he murmured, “Now maybe it’s time we talk about what’s happening between us.”
Her palms grew damp. She knew it was a conversation they needed to have but it still made her apprehensive. They’d had one great date, sure. A few hot kisses, yes. And she couldn’t forget how they’d nearly had sex in her living room the night before. But what did it all mean? She wasn’t sure.
Josh had made it clear he wanted a relationship from her but could she really give that to him? She had no clue.
What she did know, however, was that she couldn’t have this talk until she figured how she felt about it all.
“I need to go back to the club,” she said, disentangling herself from his embrace. She stood up and reached for her purse, then swiped her cell phone from the coffee table. She glanced at Josh in time to see disappointment flashing across his face.
“You can’t keep avoiding it, Viv.”
“I’m not avoiding anything,” she lied. “I really do need to go. I just came back for my cell. I’ll probably be home late since we close at three, but we can talk tomorrow, okay?”
He rubbed the nape of his neck, looking frustrated, but after a moment his features relaxed. “Fine. We’ll talk tomorrow.”
Making it through dinner alive was the hardest thing Luke had ever done in his life. He hadn’t been able to eat a bite, not when Ellie sat across from him in that traffic-stopping dress of hers. And concentration? Well, all that had flown right out the window once they left the restaurant and strolled toward the boardwalk, while his eyes stayed glued to her swaying hips and that enticing way her breasts bounced as she walked. When he’d realized she wasn’t wearing a bra under that damn dress he’d almost made a run for it.
How on earth was he supposed to show her he was in control when he was far from it?
“I haven’t been to a carnival in so long.” There was a little spring to Ellie’s stride as they approached the end of the boardwalk.
The carnival was set up on the outskirts of the little market Luke had yet to visit and as he and Ellie walked up to the entrance, she shot him a smile, looking elated by the noise and flashing lights. She’d been right; aside from a few children’s rides, the enormous Ferris wheel seemed to be the only attraction, its lit-up cars sparkling under the dark sky.
But the game area made up for the lack of rides, offering everything from ring toss to target shooting to a We’ll-guess-your-birthday stand. Luke had always enjoyed carnival games as a child, and immediately led Ellie in the direction of the loud mechanical rings and frustrated shouts.
“Look, the strength-o-meter,” she said.