and they were all eyeing me like a potential target they wanted to bull’s-eye.
I had to wonder whether the females were even drinking age yet.
But it seemed like I was sought out by every single woman in the city above the age of eighteen these days.
My gut hurt as I watched them elbow each other, knowing they were going to invade my table within moments.
Fuck!
I was almost into my midthirties. Did they really think I’d want to get busy with a female who was barely an adult?
Disgusted, I started to put away my laptop as the young women made a beeline for my table.
I was just wondering whether or not I should stand up and make a break for it when a familiar face dropped into the chair across from me.
“They’re getting younger,” my new companion observed in a familiar voice.
I relaxed and kept my ass planted on the seat.
I wasn’t about to lose my chance to chat with Riley Montgomery face-to-face.
In fact, the current situation definitely brought a sense of déjà vu.
The beautiful redhead across the table from me had rescued me just like this once before. Only the woman trying to get my attention back then had been a little bit older last time.
Same place.
Same circumstances.
Same woman who had sat down and pretended to be a love interest to scare away the woman who had been throwing herself at me.
I grinned. “We really need to stop meeting like this.”
Riley Montgomery rolled her eyes. “If you’d stop sitting in my favorite coffee shop attracting superficial women, maybe we could.”
I scowled as the gaggle of young women reached our table.
Riley put up a hand. “Scram, ladies. Mr. Sinclair doesn’t do jailbait.”
The pretty blonde glared at Riley. “I’m twenty.”
I watched as Riley held her ground and gave the younger female what I had to admit was a pretty intimidating stare. “He’s taken. Back off.”
The almost-teenager finally let out an indignant huff and moved away with her friends in tow.
There was no denying that Riley staking her claim had gotten my cock harder than it had been in a long time.
She was pretty damn hot when she was defending her territory, even if it was only pretend. My dick didn’t seem to recognize the difference.
She wasn’t dressed for business today. Riley Montgomery looked way more approachable than she had last time we’d met. Casual was a good look on her. I hadn’t gotten more than a glimpse of her blue jeans, but the light sweater she was wearing that fell off one shoulder made my eyes drop to her breasts, trying to figure out if she was wearing a bra. Today, her fiery hair was pulled back in a messy bun, with loose tendrils framing the creamy skin of her face.
Jesus! She was breathtaking. I was having a hard time not staring like a horny teenager.
“Eyes on my face, please,” she ground out, sounding extremely unhappy.
Okay. Yeah. I had still been focused on her breasts. I looked up as requested, and it was like a sucker punch to my gut when I met her eyes. They were hazel, but in the low light of the coffee shop, they almost looked green. The gold flecks I could see dancing around in her irises were pretty damn mesmerizing.
However, it was the sharp intelligence I could see in her steadfast gaze that really drew me in.
Riley Montgomery was the whole package.
Physically stunning.
Sexy . . . without trying to be.
Kind . . . well, at least she was when it came to endangered animals.
And way too intelligent for a guy like me who had barely graduated from high school.
Something told me that there was a plethora of emotions behind those beautiful eyes, even though she was still shooting me an admonishing look. One that would probably make a lesser man cringe.
Maybe I wasn’t college educated, but I was stubborn. And not the least bit intimidated by the gorgeous, redheaded vixen. No matter how fierce she looked sometimes.
“Sorry, not sorry,” I said with a grin. “It’s a little bit hard not to get distracted.”
She crossed her arms over her chest. I was pretty sure she was trying to make it look like she was angry, but I sensed a slight vulnerability there, too. So I was nearly repentant about getting caught leering at her chest.
Almost. But not quite.
“You really should stop sitting in this place,” she grumbled. “Unless you like the attention from all the single women in the city.”
I shook my head. “I think you know