Page 16 of To Steal a Heart
“Yeah.” A crooked grin lifted a corner of his lips. “It’s no big deal.”
“Can you see without them?”
“Well enough for tonight,” he said offhandedly. He folded the glasses and placed them in the pocket of his pants. “I have contacts back at my place that I can put in.”
It was impressive how Crew had handled himself. “How did you know that I was in trouble? Where did you come from?”
He jutted his thumb toward one of the shops. “I had just left the record shop and heard the commotion.” He gave her an appraising look, his eyes lingering on her long enough to rustle warm awareness over her skin. “You’re something. I almost felt sorry for that swindler. You might’ve done some real damage had I not come along.”
Her eyes narrowed. “It would’ve served the thug right! I can’t believe he was trying to steal my car.” She looked through the open door at the dangling wires. Now she’d have to get Norman to a repair shop to have everything put back together. “I thought Carmel was supposed to be a safe area,” she grumbled.
“A theft can happen anywhere.”
She sighed. “I suppose you’re right.”
He looked down at the squashed bag, humor brushing his chiseled features. “Was that your dinner?”
“Wasis the operative word,” she said dryly as the two shared a smile. Energy blitzed through her. He was downright sexy without his glasses. She noted how a lock of hair had swooped over one eye. Crew was tough. He’d punched a guy. And yet he was refined … possibly even refined enough to impress Grandmother. Was he real or a hero from one of her novels? She couldn’t have written him any better.
She hated that his glasses had gotten damaged but, boy oh boy, he looked terrific without them. He no longer looked intellectual but bad-boy reckless. All he needed to complete the picture was a motorcycle. Her gaze went to his lips, and she imagined kissing him with a reckless abandonment that she’d never experienced in person but only written about. Attraction stirred through her, bringing a deep yearning that she didn’t fully understand. People didn’t fall head over heels at first sight in the real world. Yet, if ever there was a chance of her doing so, it was at this very moment. A man like him could cause a girl to forget herself and swoon right over the moon. She had to fight the urge to fan her face. What a night it had been!
“Maybe we should call the police,” Crew suggested.
Her first thought was to agree. No, wait! Bad idea. If she did so, then Crew would discover her real identity. “Nah, the guy’s long gone.”
He gave her a searching look. “You sure?”
“I’m sure.” She looked at the tangle of wires spilling out beneath the steering wheel. “You wouldn’t happen to know how to hot-wire a car, would ya? Somehow, I’ve got to get back to my place.”
A slow grin stole over his lips. “I think I can figure it out. If not, we can always Google it.”
She sniggered. “I suppose that’s true.” Should she Google how to stop drooling over some guy she’d only just met?
He tipped his head. “How about this? I’ll get your car started and follow you back to your place. If you’d like, we can order a pizza.”
The prospect of spending an evening alone with Crew swirled her cells with delicious anticipation. “Sounds great to me,” she said a little breathlessly and then thought of something. “Wait a minute. Can you see well enough to drive without your glasses?”
“I’ll be fine,” he said offhandedly.
In a deft movement, he bent over and swiped up the bag. The movement caused his bicep muscles to roll smoothly beneath the cuff of his short-sleeved polo. “I’ll just deposit this in the trash. No sense in littering.”
“Captain America saves the damsel in distress and then picks up trash. Impressive.”
He took her compliment in stride with a casual, “I’m just doing what anyone would have.”
“No, I can think of a lot of guys who would’ve run the other direction at the first sign of trouble.” An image of Hector flashed before her eyes. She couldn’t imagine him ever punching anyone. Furthermore, he probably would’ve raked Arden over the coals for going haywire and trying to pull the guy out of the car. “You don’t give yourself enough credit.” A wicked grin flitted over her lips. “I suppose I’ll have to keep showering you with compliments, so you’ll realize how great you are.”
He blinked before a boyish smile filled his face. “I could get used to that.”
It was all she could do not to grin like a possum. Take that, Hector Covington and all the other duds in the world. This was how a real man was supposed to act.
CHAPTER 6
Crew pointed to the last slice of pizza. “Do you want it?”
“No sir. I can’t eat another bite.” That wasn’t exactly true. Arden had only allowed herself to eat two slices of the veggie thin-crust pizza. Over the past several months, she’d managed to lose the extra weight by eating smaller amounts of regular food rather than having to count calories or carbs. She didn’t want to undo all of her hard work by overeating. Normally, she would have been satisfied with two slices, but the run-in with the thief and then the excitement of Crew being here had increased her appetite. Oh, well. She’d just have to drink lots of water and make herself some herbal tea before going to bed to curb her appetite. She motioned. “Help yourself.”
“Thank you,” he drawled in a cavalier tone. “I believe I will.” He reached for the pizza and took a large bite. Crew had quite the appetite. Arden was usually pretty good at judging people by first appearances, which is why she was perplexed at how she’d totally missed the mark on Crew. He’d struck her as reserved when she first met him at the dance class, but as the evening wore on, it was obvious that he was the complete opposite. Almost as if she were with another man altogether. Maybe that meant Crew was enjoying her company as much as she was his. When he finished the pizza, he wiped his hands on the napkin and sat back in his seat. “That was superb.”