ordinary.
Sighing, she looked over her shoulder at the clock and silently begged it to tick a little faster. Her shift was over at six. The final football game of the season started at seven fifteen. While her high school was across the street, the field they played on was a few miles away.
“Hey. Are we going to Chad’s party after the game?”
Eve glanced at her friend Janice and shrugged. “I’m not sure. Depends if Robert’s going or not.”
Shaking her head, Janice went back to work wiping off the counters, her long, blonde ponytail swaying with her exertions. “You can’t avoid him forever.”
“I know. And I know he’ll stop talking shit about me when he hooks up with someone else, but in the meantime, I just want to stay out of his way.”
Crouching down, Eve opened the doors beneath the display case. She pulled out the glass cleaner and a roll of paper towels.
“He’s an asshole,” Janice muttered. “I’m glad you didn’t screw him.”
“Yeah.” Eve stood. “Me, too.”
She tossed one last longing glance at the Harley and froze. The owner was shoving a paper bag into one of the saddlebags. Then he tossed one leg over the bike and settled into the seat.
Wow.
He was tall, dark, and dangerous. His long legs and fine ass were draped in loose, low-slung blue jeans, his powerful biceps bared by the fitted white tank top he wore. His jaw was square and bold, his lips firm but sensual. Wicked. The lines that bracketed them only emphasized how gorgeous he was.
Completely unaware of her fascination, he turned the key and revved the engine, his black leather boots resting firmly on the asphalt, ready to push the bike back. The anticipation of his departure made her shiver.
Then he turned his head and saw her.
Eve knew the exact moment he became aware of her stare because he stilled, his large frame visibly tensing. The hand on his thigh reached for his sunglasses so he could push them up. As they lifted, they caught the overly long lock of glossy black hair that fell over his brow and took it with them.
Their eyes met. Electricity arced through the space between them. She shivered. The bottle of glass cleaner fell from her nerveless fingers and thudded on the linoleum floor.
“Wow . . .” Janice’s voice breathed the awe Eve felt. “He’s got to be famous.”
Eve didn’t break eye contact. She couldn’t. “Why?”
“No normal guy is that fucking hot.” Janice blew out her breath. “Hey!”
Fingers snapped in front of Eve’s face.
“Huh?”
“Stop staring at him. You’re going to give him ideas.”
“Maybe I want him to have ideas.”
Janice yanked her around and glared at her with narrowed green eyes. “Evie, no. First off, that guy is way out of your league. Second, he’s too old for you. Third, everything about him screams bad news.”
The rumble outside stopped and Eve looked back over her shoulder. He stood beside the bike—watching her.
“Listen, Eve. You have the worst luck with guys, worse than me, and that’s saying something. But this guy—hunky as he is—is serious trouble. Look at him. Men that look like that . . .” Janice snorted. “I see him, and I see teen pregnancy and welfare.”
That’s not what Eve saw when she looked at him. She didn’t know what it was, but something inside her was so drawn to him that she felt an invisible string pulling her, urging her to close the distance between them.
Hi, she mouthed, trying to smile, but failing. There was nothing to smile about.
His jaw tensed, his hand fisting at his side. His dark gaze was hot. Burning. No man had ever looked at her with that level of intensity. As if nothing in the world existed but her.
Biting her lower lip, she willed him to come closer. Talk to me. Come on.
She saw the nearly imperceptible shake of his head. He yanked his shades back down, shielding his eyes. He ignored her as he remounted his bike and restarted the engine. But she knew he still felt her stare.
He rode away without another glance in her direction.
The feeling of inexplicable loss stayed with Eve for days after he left.
A wet cloth swiping over Eve’s skin brought her to a distant awareness. The whirring ceiling fan blew air across the lingering dampness, cooling her fevered skin. Her tongue felt thick in her mouth and her hand lifted to her parched throat. As her forearm crossed her chest, she realized she was naked and groaned, hating the feeling of