Page 22 of A Legal Affair

She nodded. “You?”

“Born and raised.”

“Ever wanted to live anywhere else?”

“Can’t say that I have. You?”

“Not a chance.” She slanted him a whimsical smile. “Guess we’re kindred souls.”

He chuckled low in his throat and shifted in his seat, heightening her awareness of him. He smelled yummy, like warm male skin and fresh soap scented with a hint of sandalwood. She drew in a deep lungful and fought to keep her mind on the road, and not the way his jeans molded the iron-hard muscles of his thighs. God, what she wouldn’t giveto straddle those thighs just once. Okay, maybe twice. Anything more was just being greedy.

“Youdoknow there’s a coffee shop on campus,” he drawled. “And a Starbucks right around the corner.”

“Yeah, but I figured you might prefer to go somewhere less…populated by your students and colleagues.”

His mouth twitched with wry humor. “If I was afraid to be seen in public with you, Miss Moreau, believe me, I wouldn’t be here. Maybeyou’rethe one who’s afraid to be seen with me.”

“No way,” Daniela said quickly—too quickly.

A lazy smile was his only response.

Two minutes later, she pulled into the parking lot of Anthony O’s Coffeehouse and killed the engine. Together they climbed out of the convertible and walked toward the café.

Caleb held the door open for her and she brushed past him, the brief contact raising a prickly set of goose bumps along her skin. When she looked over her shoulder to thank him, she found his hooded gaze on her mouth.

She trembled, actuallytrembled, and somehow forced her legs to keep moving toward the hostess station.

At that early hour, the café wasn’t crowded. Natural light poured in through floor-to-ceiling windows, and soft jazz wafted throughout the dining room that featured an inviting turquoise color scheme.

They were shown to a booth near the back and presented with menus. Caleb ordered a cup of the house blend along with the beignet Daniela had promised.

“I’ll have an espresso,” she told the young blond waitress, “and a small serving of vanilla ice cream.”

When the waitress slipped away to fill their orders, Caleb cocked an amused brow at Daniela. “Coffee and ice cream?”

She grinned. “Ever tried it?”

“No.”

“You should. It’s one of those simple pleasures everyone should experience at some point in their lives. Like watching a sunset…or riding a motorcycle.”

Caleb chuckled, leaning back in the booth. His Henley stretched across his wide shoulders and broad chest, displaying defined muscles that bunched and rippled enticingly. “Still lobbying for that free ride, huh?”

Her grin widened. “Can’t blame a girl for trying. I’m nothing if not persistent.”

“I’ll be sure to remember that.” With his arms spread over the back of the leather cushions behind him, he looked relaxed and content, not to mention heartthrob-sexy. His thick brows, black-lashed eyes and perfectly sculpted beard only heightened his utter maleness. The badass tattoo didn’t hurt, either.

“Nice ink,” Daniela said, hitching her chin toward his right hand. “Is that a Komodo dragon?”

He nodded.

“Verycool.” She studied the intricately drawn dragon, brilliant in dark blue and smoky gray. Her fingers tingled with the urge to trace the tattoo and the warm flesh beneath. “Any special significance?”

“Does there have to be?”

“No, but there usually is.”

He shrugged broad shoulders. “It’s not that deep. I like Komodo dragons. Thought it’d be cool to have one tattooed on my hand.”