An Heir For The Billionaire. Kat Cantrell

      You didn’t stare at an old friend’s rack, no matter how clearly she was inviting you to.

      There were probably some other rules he should be reciting to himself right about now, but hell if he could remember what they were.

      It had been too long since he’d had a woman in his bed; that was the problem. Nora Winchester O’Malley shouldn’t be the one inciting him to break that fast. If he wanted to make the evening about catching up with an old friend, that was in his power to do.

      “You’re right,” he allowed with a nod. “I didn’t answer the question. I invited you to dinner because I wanted to thank you for being a good friend to me. The scales were unbalanced.”

      “Oh.” Disappointment shadowed her gaze but she blinked and it was gone. “So dinner was motivated by the need to say thank you. For both of us, it seems.”

      “It seems.”

      That should have dispelled the sensual, tight awareness between them. That had been his intent. But she smiled and it lit up her face, inviting him in, warming up the places inside that had been cold since the plane crash that had changed everything.

      “I feel properly thanked. Do you?” she asked.

      “For what?” he nearly growled as he fought to stop himself from yanking her into his arms.

      “For the food, silly.” Her hands fisted on her hips. “That’s the whole reason I asked you to dinner, remember?”

      Yes, he did. They were two old friends. Nothing more. He had to remember that her labeling it a date might not mean the same thing to her as it did to him.

      “Everyone has been properly thanked.” He drained his wineglass and scouted for the bottle. The bite of the aged red centered him again. “Are you ready to eat?”

      “Depends on what you’ve got on the menu.”

      His gaze collided with hers and yes, she’d meant that exactly the way it sounded. Her smile slipped away as they stared at each other, evaluating, measuring, seeking. Perhaps he’d been going about this evening all wrong and the best course of action was to let their sizzling attraction explode.

      But he couldn’t help but think that if that happened, he’d miss out on the very thing he’d craved—friendship.