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And after the day he’d had, Luke decided he was going to enjoy the hell out of drinking cocktails with a gorgeous woman in a classy bar, a pianist playing smooth jazz in the background.

“So.” Anna’s tongue did a distracting sweep of her lips. “Are you going to tell me where you were all day, or do I have to guess?”

He wasn’t ready to tell her. Having finally been called for a second interview, his hopes were already too high. If he talked to her about the job, she’d get excited for him because that was her nature. When he didn’t get it, he’d have to pretend he wasn’t bothered, that there’d be other jobs. And sure, there would, but if he didn’t get this one, and hadn’t got the other ten he’d applied for, why would he get the next? Plus this had felt right, the work they did with kids exactly what he wanted to get involved with.

He took a sip of his cocktail. Colin had always had fancy, expensive tastes, even before he’d started earning the big bucks. He could still vividly remember his eighteenth birthday, when Colin had tried to convince a bartender to give them a bottle of champagne on the basis that Luke was a Brit, and Brits could drink in a bar at eighteen.

“Hello?” Anna waved a hand in front of his face. “Where did you go?”

“Sorry, just remembering the first time I tried to drink with your brother in a bar. We both got thrown out.” He leant back on the padded leather chair and decided to have some fun with her. “Why don’t you try and guess where I’ve been today.”

She smiled, and each time she did that, each time she looked at him like she had when she’d opened the door of her room tonight, it melted a bit more of his resolve. With another ten days still to go, he was terrified he wouldn’t make it to the end of Colin’s advent without giving in to his baser needs. Kissing her until neither of them could remember why they shouldn’t be kissing. Peeling off her dress so he could get a better look at those incredible curves that promised so much.

He needed to stop staring at her cleavage.

She coughed and guiltily he dragged his gaze away, feeling the tip of his ears redden as she gave him a knowing look. Thankfully, instead of calling him out on it, she played along with his game. “I guess you went back to the ice-skating rink because you enjoyed it so much yesterday.”

He laughed. “Not even close.” He smirked. “Freezing cold, in fact.”

She tapped her fingers against her chin. “Okay, how about you went to the spa to have the manicure you missed out on.”

“You’re missing an important point with both your guesses.”

She sipped at her Manhattan. “Oh?”

“The only part of both days I enjoyed, was your company.” Whatever she’d done to her eyes, it emphasized their pretty color, made the blue sparkle with shards of silver. Under the soft glow of the lamp on their table, she looked warm and sexy. Alluring. And temporarily struck dumb if her silence was anything to go by. “Have you finished guessing?”

“Umm, no.” She looked down at her drink, then back at him, her expression watchful, considering. “Though I do have an idea for another game.”

He didn’t know whether to be relieved he’d escaped more questions, or worried for what came next. “Try me.”

“Yesterday you said I could ask about your relationship history when you had a drink in your hand. I believe a Manhattan counts as a drink.”

“It does. But I used the term our relationships. And as a gentleman always lets a lady go first, I’ll start this game.”

She gave a big roll of her eyes. “Fine. I’m an open book.”

To give himself time to think, he picked up the coaster in his left hand and turned it round in his fingers, smiling to himself when he caught her watching. He could be wrong, but he thought it wasn’t only Pearl who had a thing for his hands. “What is the longest relationship you’ve had?”

“Thirteen months.”

Her answer came back so fast, he instinctively knew the ending was still fresh. “Is that the latest one? The one you said ran for the hills when you told him you were falling for him?”

She blinked, like she was surprised he could remember. “Yes. I met Phillip at work. I thought we had something, but obviously I was wrong. And not for the first time. Looks like I have a type.” She waved a hand towards him. “But it’s your turn, same question.”

Unlike her, he did have to think. “Probably a couple of months.”

“You’ve never had a serious girlfriend?”

“I’m not against the idea,” he defended.

“Let me guess, after a few months the woman you’re enjoying having sex with, starts to ask you questions about how you feel. Probably also tries to get you to open up and actually talk to her about important things. And that’s when you back away and call it quits.” She gave him an ironic smile. “Sound familiar?”

He wanted to argue that the women he’d dated hadn’t been that bothered about talking either, because he’d always chosen carefully, made sure he dated women like himself. Women who’d wanted the enjoyment of sex without the emotional complexity of a relationship. But Anna was talking about her own experience, so he kept quiet. More than that, he thought she was making a point.

“Unfortunately, some women can’t resist the strong silent type,” she added. Her following laugh lacked any of her usual humor. “I should know, I’m one of them. Of course, we naively think we can change them, but we can’t. At some point the giddy sexual attraction that fogs our brains clears, and we need to know where we stand. It’s why we ask the questions, put our own feelings out there.” Her voice began to crack. “That’s when our strong, silent man proves instead to be a weak, cowardly man and shuts down. Suddenly we realize that while we were happily falling in love, believing we were moving towards something important, he was just enjoying the sex and a home cooked meal.”

He could almost feel her pain. “You’re saying you need to give men like me a wide berth.”