He reached into the breast pocket of his dinner jacket and pulled out a small velvet drawstring bag. Placing it on the table, he slid it across to her, but held on when she would have retrieved it.
“The deal was dinner,” he said. “I’ll give you the jewelry now and hope you don’t make a break for it the minute it’s in your possession.”
She flushed, whether from embarrassment or guilt he wasn’t sure. Maybe she had considered it.
“My ego is taking one hell of a beating,” he said, voicing his earlier thought. “Am I that unattractive, Josie? I didn’t imagine your response to me in the park. You were as aware of our chemistry as I was. But you act like I’m carrying the plague and you don’t want to breathe the same air as I am.”
Her fingers curled over the bag, brushing against his. Instant warmth traveled up his arm to his shoulder. At just her touch. Such a simple thing. Nothing behind it. It was incidental and yet the air was instantly charged with awareness. No, he wasn’t the only one who felt it, but he was the only one embracing it.
“I think you know you aren’t unattractive,” she said lightly. “I doubt you need me to tell you that. I’m sure you hear it all the time. Women probably fall over themselves to compliment you.”
“I don’t give a damn what other women are thinking,” he said bluntly. “I’m more concerned with what you think.”
She carefully drew her hand back, the bag with the jewelry tightly fisted in her grasp, as if she were afraid he’d prevent her from taking it. When he made no move to intercept it, she quickly opened the bag a nd gently pulled out the two rings, a necklace and a bracelet.
Relief was evident in her eyes. The aqua pools lit up as she lovingly traced the lines of the jewelry. A faraway look entered her eyes and when she raised her gaze back to Ash, moisture glistened around the edges.
“Thank you for giving my mother back to me,” she whispered. “This is all I have of her. My grandmother too. One day I want to pass it down to my daughter. My grandmother and mother were exceptional women. I want my daughter to have this legacy. Though my daughter will never know them, I want her to know about them. Who they were and how important they were to me.”
“What happened to her?” Ash asked gently.
Her lips trembled, but she held herself together, her gaze never faltering, though it grew suspiciously brighter with the evidence of tears.
“Cancer,” she said, her voice aching with sorrow.
“Recent?” he asked in a quieter tone.
The last thing he wanted was to upset her, but it gave him absurd pleasure that she’d open up to him. Communicate. It was a start. The start of something more permanent if he had his way. And he had every intention of getting his way. It was just going to require a great deal more patience than he was used to having to employ.
Adrenaline spiked, burning through his veins. She was a challenge. One he looked forward to conquering. It had been a long time since he’d been excited about anything. And Josie definitely excited him.
“Two years ago,” Josie said, sadness creeping into those beautiful eyes. “But she was ill for a lot longer. In the end . . .” She broke off, her voice cracking at the very last.
“In the end what?” he prompted gently.