Australia: In Bed with a Bachelor. Emma Darcy

everything—looks, intelligence, the sexiest eyes in the world, and he was undermining her prejudice at a rate of knots. Nevertheless, she couldn’t quite set aside an ulterior motive for this date with her. On the other hand, why shouldn’t she take pleasure in being with him, move her father to the sidelines, denying him any power to influence the play between her and Jake? After all, she was the one with the power to decide how far she would get involved with this man.

      She gave him a hard look of warning. ‘As long as it’s kept between ourselves, I’m happy to take a more positive attitude towards you.’

      ‘And I’m happy to be your secret lover,’ he replied, his eyes dancing with unholy teasing.

      Her heart performed a somersault. ‘I didn’t say anything about becoming lovers.’

      ‘Just assuring you that private moments will be kept private.’ He opened up his menu. ‘Let’s salivate over what’s on offer together. Did you see that the hottest dishes are printed in red?’

      He was the hottest dish.

      Laura dragged her mind off visualising him as her lover and reopened her menu. ‘I prefer spicy to hot, hot,’ she said, looking at the list of entrées.

      ‘Okay. We cross out the red print ones.’

      ‘You don’t have to. Choose whatever you like.’

      ‘There’s so much to like, it will be better if we can share, don’t you think? Have a taste of each other’s choices? Broaden the experience?’

      Sharing the taste… Laura’s stomach curled. It sounded intimate. It was intimate. And suddenly she didn’t care about other agendas. She wanted this experience with him.

      ‘Great idea!’ she said, and allowed herself to smile.

      His eyes twinkled with pleasure, completely dissipating the anger she had carried to this meeting.

      ‘You’re incredibly beautiful when you smile,’ he remarked. ‘I hope I can make you smile all evening for the sheer pleasure of looking at you.’

      She laughed. ‘No chance! I’m going to be busy eating.’

      ‘I’ll try for in between bites.’

      ‘I’ll be drooling over the food.’

      He laughed. ‘Speaking of which, what entrées would you like to try?’

      A smile was still on her face as she read the yummy list. The happy excitement about tonight with Jake had come bouncing back. He was right about making decisions for herself. She should trust her own instincts and go with what instinctively felt right.

       CHAPTER FIVE

      THE waitress advised them to choose only one main course with a side dish of vegetables to share since they were ordering two separate entrées. The helpings were large and they would surely want to leave room for dessert.

      ‘Definitely,’ Laura agreed. ‘I have to try the sesame ice cream with candied popcorn and chocolate.’

      ‘And I want the Dessert Cocktail,’ Jake said with relish. ‘Sounds wonderful—caramelized pear, London gin, lillet blanc and crème de cacao shaken and served with the chocolate, sesame and cashew bark.’

      It sounded very James Bond to Laura who couldn’t help grinning over the thought. Jake might not be 007 but he was certainly tall, dark, handsome and dangerous, especially to any peace of mind. Somehow peace of mind wasn’t rating highly at the moment. A thrilling buzz was running through her veins and she was now determined on milking maximum enjoyment out of the night, throwing caution and the Machiavellian shadow of her father to the winds.

      ‘That’s a big smile,’ Jake commented, his eyes simmering sexily.

      ‘Loving the idea of having a piece of your dessert,’ she tossed back, knowing she wanted a piece of him, too.

      ‘Food, glorious food!’ he quoted from the musical Oliver, half singing the words and making her laugh.

      ‘We have to decide on which one of our main courses to go for now,’ she reminded him.

      ‘We’ll go with your choice—the stir-fried pork, bacon, smoked tofu, garlic shoots, garlic chives and chilli oil—and I’ll pick the vegetable dish.’

      ‘Which will be?’

      ‘Stir-fried wild bamboo pith, snow peas and quail eggs with ginger and garlic.’

      ‘We’ll probably end up with garlic breath.’

      ‘We can try washing it away with wine.’

      He ordered an expensive bottle of sauvignon blanc.

      The waitress departed, having assured them of prompt service.

      Laura heaved a satisfied sigh as she sat back and relaxed, happy to enjoy the ambience of the restaurant and the company of the man she was with.

      ‘How was your week?’ she asked.

      He gave her a very sensual smile. ‘All the better for ending here with you. How was yours?’

      ‘Annoying.’

      He raised a quizzical eyebrow.

      She made a rueful grimace. ‘I couldn’t get you out of my head.’

      He laughed. ‘I’m glad the problem wasn’t entirely mine. The question is whether to feed the fever or starve it?’

      ‘I’m all for feeding tonight.’

      ‘So am I.’

      His eyes said he wanted to eat her all up and Laura couldn’t deny she wanted to taste him again, too, but she wasn’t ready to commit herself to becoming lovers on such short acquaintance.

      ‘I meant here at the restaurant, Jake. I don’t really know you, do I?’ She eyed him seriously. ‘My father obviously likes you very much, which isn’t a great recommendation. I think from your visit last Sunday, you can draw a fairly clear picture of my life, but I don’t have one of yours, apart from your mentioning that your mother has passed away. What about the rest of your family?

      He shrugged. ‘Both my parents died when I was eighteen. I was their only child. I’ve been on my own ever since. My life is not complicated by having to manage relationships, Laura. As I saw you doing last Sunday.’

      ‘You move to your own beat,’ she said wryly.

      ‘Yes.’

      ‘No live-in girlfriends along the way to here and now?’

      He shook his head. ‘I haven’t met anyone I wanted to be with every day.’

      She nodded, extremely wary of the live-in situation herself. ‘It’s a big ask, day in, day out. I can’t see myself even wanting to try it.’

      He smiled, eyes twinkling with understanding. ‘You wish to be a free spirit.’

      ‘I’ve seen my mother compromise too much,’ she shot at him.

      ‘Not all men are like your father, Laura,’ he said seriously. ‘My parents’ marriage was very happy. I grew up in a loving home. I wish I still had it.’

      She felt a stab of envy, though his loss triggered sympathy, as well. ‘You were lucky to have what you did, Jake, but I guess missing that home life leaves you feeling very lonely.’

      His eyelids dropped to half-mast, narrowing the flash of dangerous glitter. Some powerful emotion was coursing through him, belied by the offhand tone he used in his reply. ‘It’s been ten years, Laura. I’ve learnt to live with being alone.’

      She didn’t think so. She sensed anger in him at the loss, a deep abiding anger, so intense there was an edge