Real Romance - By Ginny Baird Page 0,12

themselves at her legs. She was enchanting, David realized. Absolutely charming...

And, he remembered, as someone rudely nudged past him, engaged to someone else.

David was just regaining his balance, when a second person pushed by him, completely upsetting his footing. David cast one desperate glance in Marie's direction and saw her meet his eyes with a horrified look, as he grabbed the softcover book display and carried it with him as he crashed to the floor.

For what seemed like endless seconds, David kept his nose buried in a mound of tumbled paperbacks, praying he'd awaken from this nightmare.

And then he felt her hand on his shoulder.

"David?"

It was Marie's voice. Marie's beautiful, soft voice. David swallowed hard and looked up.

"Oh my God, David! What happened? Are you okay?"

Well, at least he didn't look damaged. Only embarrassed, as well he should be. Pulling her latest merchandise to the floor. Really. What was it about this man that was just so...

Hunky, Marie thought, as he brought himself up on all fours and stared into her eyes. Heavens, he looked like a panther in that pose. And his smell...

Marie's eyes flashed at the suggestion, but then she shut them tight, recalling where she was.

"Here," she said, extending a hand, "let me help you up."

"Marie," he said, dusting off his jeans. "I'm so sorry. I'll pay for the damage. And help pick up. Whatever you want me to do."

She tried not to let herself think too hard about that, and picked up a couple of books to examine their spines.

"I think they'll live," she said, trying to sound flip while struggling to control the butterflies in her stomach.

"I ruined your story hour," David said, his face sagging as scattered hordes of children made their departure.

Marie tugged at the neck of her dress that suddenly seemed too tight.

"Oh, no. Really. Story hour was just winding down."

David righted the cardboard display and started restocking it with books, his muscular buttocks tensing under denim with each swinging movement of his arm.

Marie found herself unwilling to leave him there all alone, what with the buxom brunette in the corner who seemed to be making the same study of David's anatomy.

"Say," she said, once he had neatly finished up. "You're pretty good at that. Need a job?"

"I'm not unemployed, if that's what you're thinking."

"No, but..." It was hard to keep the smile from creeping onto her lips.

"What? What is it?" David gave himself a quick once-over, as if to verify that his clothes weren't on backwards.

"I was just thinking," Marie said, "that you must be doing a doggone good job with Jupiter for Caroline to give you all this time off."

David gave her a disarming smile that made Marie wish she hadn't started this banter.

Slow down, girl, she told herself, drowning in his deep blue eyes. You 're getting in way over your head.

"She's given me the rest of the afternoon," David said, diving into her with his stare. "Got plans?"

Marie wanted to say yes, prepared to tell him to go take a long walk off a short pier.

But then he crinkled his eyes and his playful lips turned up in another uneven smile, and she told him she left work at six o'clock.

Chapter Five

"Where are we going?" Marie asked, as David held open the door to Books & Bistro, letting her leave first. He had a bulging green backpack slung over his shoulder and was wearing the same blue parka she remembered from the park.

"It's a surprise," he said, with a mischievous smile.

Marie wasn't so sure she should be setting herself up for surprises with this man. He'd already surprised, her enough, with the way he sent her pulse racing, and her emotions all out of kilter.

She scanned the small gravel parking area. Inside the ultra posh Books & Bistro, Marie could almost envision herself being in any cosmopolitan city in the world. But once she stepped out into the fading Virginia twilight and caught a glimpse of the Blue Ridge Mountains, she knew she was very much at home.

Covesville wasn't really much to speak of. There was this strip mall and a few downtown restaurants, plus a park, the mountain lake, and the small but distinguished women's college that sat high on a hill in the center of town.

"Where's your car?" she asked, noticing he had stopped on the curb.

"No car," he said, bending to open a padlock attached to a chain wound round a brick pillar and through the back wheel of a glistening ten-speed bicycle. "We're going