A Touch of Crimson Page 0,3
mouth water. The last thing she needed before sitting on her ass for another hour straight was a carbohydrate bomb like a giant pretzel. Then again, maybe the rush of serotonin would soothe nerves jangled by the sensory input from the large number of people around her.
She ordered. “Pretzel sticks, please. With marinara sauce and a diet soda.”
The clerk relayed the total. Lindsay dug into her purse for her wallet.
“Allow me.”
God . . . that voice. Tantalizingly sonorous. Lindsay knew it was him.
He reached around her and she breathed in his exotic scent. Not cologne. Just earthy, virile male. Crisp and pure, like air cleansed by a rainstorm.
He slid a twenty-dollar bill across the counter. She smiled and let him.
It was too bad she was wearing her oldest pair of jeans, a loose T-shirt, and army-issue jungle boots. Great for ease of movement, but she would’ve preferred to look hot for this guy. He really was way out of her league, from the movie-star good looks to the Vacheron Constantin watch on his wrist.
Turning to face him, she held out her hand. “Thank you, Mr. . . . ?”
“Adrian Mitchell.” He accepted the handshake, with the addition of his thumb stroking across her knuckles.
Lindsay had a visceral response to his touch. Her breath caught and the tempo of her heartbeat accelerated. Up close, he was devastating. Both fiercely masculine and terrifyingly beautiful. Flawless. “Hi, Adrian Mitchell.”
He reached down and caught her luggage tag with long, elegant fingers. “Nice to meet you, Lindsay Gibson . . . from Raleigh? Or returning there?”
“I’m heading your direction. We’re sharing a plane.”
His eyes were the most unusual shade of blue. Like the vivid cerulean at the heart of a flame. Set within olive skin and framed by thick dark lashes, they were mesmerizing.
And they were focused on her as if he couldn’t get enough of looking at her.
He raked her from head to toe with a searing glance. She felt bare and flushed, left naked by the undressing he’d done in his mind. Her body responded to the provocation. Her breasts swelled; everything else softened.
A woman would have to soften for him, because there was nothing remotely yielding about his body. From the sculpted definition of his shoulders and biceps to the chiseled features of his face, every angle was sharp and precise.
He reached around her for his change, moving with a lithe and primal grace.
I bet he fucks like an animal.
Heated by the thought, Lindsay caught the extension handle of her suitcase. “So is Orange County home? Or are you traveling for business?”
“I’m going home. To Anaheim. And you?”
She moved to the pickup counter. He followed at a more sedate pace, but there was something inherently determined about the way he came after her. His pre-dacity sent a shiver of expectation through her. Her luck had definitely changed—her final destination was Anaheim, too.
“Orange County is going to be home. I’m relocating for a job.” She wasn’t going to get as detailed as naming a city. She knew how to protect herself if she had to, but she didn’t want to buy any more trouble than she already had.
“That’s a big move. One side of the country to the other.”
“It was time for a change.”
His mouth curved in a half smile. “Have dinner with me.”
The velvety resonance to his voice engaged her interest further. He was charismatic and magnetic, two qualities that made short-term relationships memorable.
She accepted the bag and soda the clerk passed to her. “You get right to the point. I like that.”
The calling of their flight number drew her attention back to the gate. A short delay was announced, causing the waiting passengers to shift restlessly. Adrian never took his eyes from her.
He gestured to the row of chairs near where he’d been pacing. “We have time to get to know each other.”
Lindsay walked with him over to the seating area. She canvassed the vicinity again, taking brief note of the numerous women following Adrian with their gazes. The sense of him being a leashed tempest was no longer so overwhelming, while outside the rain had abated to a heavy drizzle. The correlation was intriguing.
Her ferocious reaction to Adrian Mitchell and his unique ability to set off her inner weather radar cemented her decision to get closer to him. Anomalies in her life always bore greater investigation.
He waited until she was settled into a seat, then asked, “Do you have friends picking you up? Family?”
No one was meeting her. She had