“No, Kier –” I stop dead. “Wait, how did you know that?” Before she says anything, the dawning realization of what she’s done crawls up my spine like icy spider’s legs. “Asha, no ...”
“Edie, don’t be mad. He really likes you, and God knows you need to stop sleeping with losers and dropouts and put some effort into a good man for a change.”
“I don’t put effort into guys. I have sex with them. End of story. You’re setting me up on a date? What the hell? I don’t want or need a boyfriend.”
“You just think that, because you’ve never had one. You should consider this guy for the position. He’s lovely, and good-looking, and he smells amaaaaazing.”
“Asha!”
“Just one date. For me. If you honestly don’t feel anything and decide not to see him again, there’s no harm done, right? But if you do like him ... Oh, Edie. It would be nice to see you with someone worthy of you for once.”
I can’t deny part of me wants to find out what happens with the sexy Irishman, because I have a feeling he would be dynamite in bed, but a bigger part murmurs that he’ll be a distraction I neither need nor have time for. I’ve gone twenty-five years without succumbing to a co-dependent relationship. Despite my attraction to Kieran, I’m not giving that up without a fight. I have zero interest in messy emotional entanglements.
I peek out from behind the artwork and eye him again in his suit. A messy physical entanglement, however, might be all kinds of fun.
I close my eyes and exhale. No, not a good idea.
“What happened to you liking him?” I hiss at my sister.
“After you left last night, he bombarded me with questions about you. It was pretty clear which Tate sister he was into, and it wasn’t me.”
“What? How is that possible? You were adorable last night.”
“Believe it or not, dear sister, not all men fall at my feet. In fact, it’s the guys I like who snub me the most. It’s ironic that I’m the one who actually wants a boyfriend and can’t find one.”
At the front of the restaurant, Kieran steps forward to talk to the hostess. After chatting for a few seconds, she gives him a flirty smile before leading him in my direction. I pull back and make myself as small as possible.
“Dammit, Ash, I can’t believe you set me up like this. He’s coming over. What should I do?”
“Sit down and have dinner with him. I’ve already paid for it, so if you leave before eating something, I’ll kill you.”
“Not if I get to you first. You realize retribution is coming, right?”
“If things work out the way I think they will, you’ll be thanking me, not punishing me.”
“Unlikely.”
“Please hang up now. You have a gorgeous man waiting for you.”
“You’re evil, and I hate you.”
“Neither of those things is even a little bit true.”
As I hang up, a deep voice beside me says, “Eden?”
I turn and plaster on my best fake smile. “Heeeey, Kieran. Hi.”
“Hi.” He smiles back, and his isn’t the least bit fake. In fact, he looks so happy to see me, I almost feel bad about hiding from him. “Thank God you came. When Asha said she could convince you to go out with me, I didn’t have much hope, but here you are.”
“Yes.” I nod and bite my tongue. “Here I am. Asha is a miracle worker.”
His smile falters. “Wait ... please tell me you knew I’d be here. That you reconsidered your whole ‘no dating’ rule because of your overwhelming attraction to me?”
I drop the pretense. “I’m sorry. Asha set this up as a sister date then pulled a bait and switch at the last minute. If I didn’t love her so much, I’d be throttling her right about now.”
His face drops further. “Oh, I see.”
My stomach squirms from the disappointment in his expression. “No, wait,” I say, “I don’t mean I’m unhappy to see you, because I’m not. It’s just the situation ... the setting-up thing, you know? She’s such a brat for the deception.”
He puts on a brave face, which makes me feel even worse for blurting out hurtful nonsense. “Eden, it’s fine. I half expected to show up and find an empty table, so even if we leave now and go our separate ways, I’m still ahead of the game. I’m sorry your sister did this to you, I really am. Let me escort you outside to get a cab.”
Before he can turn away, I put my hand on his arm. The contact surprises us both. He takes in a breath as he looks down at my hand, and I’m ashamed to say I blush. How can such a cursory touch flash so much warmth though my whole body?
“We’re both here now,” I say as I pull back my hand and clutch my purse with tense fingers. “We might as well eat. I’m super hungry. How about you?”
He takes a long look at me. “Starving.”
The flush of heat happens again, and it’s not helped when he places his hand in the center of my back to guide me to my seat. When he pulls out my chair, I’m struck by the realization I’ve never had a man do that before. It’s a little jarring to register that even moving furniture is sexy when Kieran does it.
After he makes sure I’m seated and comfortable, he unbuttons his jacket and sits opposite me. I fiddle with the edge of the tablecloth as I admire the view. The man sure knows how to wear a suit.
“So,” he says, looking a little uncomfortable in the formal surroundings. “Do you come here often?”
I laugh. “That’s your go-to ice breaker?”
He nods. “When faced with extreme beauty, I lose all cognitive ability, so I stick to small words and short sentences. There’s less likelihood of me screwing things up that way.” I can’t believe someone as attractive as he is could feel nervous around any woman, let alone me. And yet the sincerity of his words makes my stomach flutter. I look down at the table.
Shit. This, right here? This is what it’s like to be a girly-girl. To get all giggly and blushy over a man who calls me beautiful without a hint of irony. Goddammit.
I take a breath and try to stifle the euphoria that’s bubbling inside of me. It’s foreign and unwanted. I don’t do bubbly. I’m better than that.
“So,” I say, composing myself, “what brings you to America? Are you just here on vacation?”
He nods. “Yeah. I came for eight weeks to spend some time with Pat, but now that I’m here, I’m finding fewer and fewer reasons to go home.”
There’s that look again. The one that makes me want to forget about all of my reasons for staying single.
As a welcome distraction, a waitress arrives with a G and T for me and some sort of exotic beer for Kieran. We lift our glasses and clink before both drinking deeply. I’m not sure if he’s feeling as out-of-control as I am, but alcohol seems to be a comfort to us both right now. I signal our waitress to bring the same again before taking another giant sip.
After draining a good portion of our drinks, we lapse into an awkward silence and assess each other. I squirm a little when Kieran makes no attempt to hide his approval of my appearance.
“Have I mentioned that you look beautiful tonight?”