“What?” she asked, knocked off balance by his abrupt statement.
“I can’t see your eyes. It’s dark back here.” His low, gruff murmur mesmerized her, even though she should have been alarmed by the fact that his firm mouth had just lowered another inch toward her lips. “Go ahead, Natalie. Take them off. I want to look at you.”
Chapter Five
When she remained frozen, a small smile tilted his lips. The spoon thumped to the wood table. He reached with both hands and gently drew off her glasses.
“There. That’s better,” he said as he placed her glasses on the table. “You okay?”
She blinked. Thankfully, her eyelid didn’t quiver or droop. Liam had been right. The light back here in the alcove was indeed dim enough for comfort. She nodded, despite the fact that her heart had started to hammer out a warning in her ears. She wasn’t used to having anyone staring at her as frankly—as warmly—as Liam Kavanaugh was at the moment.
“It makes you uncomfortable, when people look at you,” he said, making her wonder if he was a mind reader.
“If you’d had people gaping at you like you were a freak since you were eleven years old, you might not adore the experience, either,” she said stiffly. She turned away, wishing that her scars faced the wall and not Liam’s sharp eyes. The scoffing noise he made caused her to whip her chin around, though.
“Sorry.” He must have noticed her insulted expression. “But come on…no one is looking at you like you’re a freak. That’s just stupid.”
Anger rose in her, swift and fierce. “What do you know about it?” How could he, a man who had probably never known self-consciousness once in his entire life, stand in judgment of her experience? “You saw the way Roger Dayson stared at me once he realized who I was.”
“I’m sure he was curious once he figured out who you were, but that’s not why most people are staring at you.”
She gaped at him, incredulous at his confidence. He noticed and shook his head. Natalie got the impression he really did consider her something of a bizarre novelty.
“They’re looking at you because you’re beautiful,” he said, his brows cocked, his manner saying loud and clear he was telling her the obvious…like, hello.
She made a scoffing sound. When his expression remained earnest, if puzzled, she sighed.
“What difference does it make?” she asked irritably.
He leaned closer, so that when he spoke she felt his breath brush against her temple.
“It makes a difference to me,” he said. “It should to you. Natalie?”
“Yes,” she mouthed.
“I wish it made a difference to you.”
She looked up at him slowly. Sure enough, his mouth hovered just inches away from her own. He’d moved closer. Her left arm lay flush against his torso. The tingling tip of her left breast pressed against his ribs.
His mouth lowered, and Natalie realized distantly she’d entered that fog of sensuality that had encapsulated her several days ago in Liam’s driveway. Despite her heart pumping out a warning, she couldn’t seem to gather sufficient will to do much of anything but anticipate Liam’s mouth closing on her own.
A man spoke and a woman laughed shrilly. Natalie started and saw two men and a blonde woman walking toward the booth in front of them. She recognized Betsy Darnel. Betsy had taken off her jacket. Her top looked more like a draped silk handkerchief tied around her neck than a blouse. It covered her chest, but left her shoulders, back and a strip of belly almost completely bare. The two men who had accompanied her to the table were shamelessly checking out Betsy’s rear-view as she came toward their booth, but Betsy only had eyes for Liam.
“Hi, Liam,” Betsy said.
“Hey, Betsy.”
“Let me out. Please,” Natalie hissed quietly.
“When I saw you at the Shop and Save yesterday you said you were too busy to come to Jake’s tonight,” Betsy reminded Liam, unaware of Natalie’s mutterings. Natalie put her glasses back on and grabbed her bag. Her need to get out of the crowded bar had just grown exponentially. “I guess you changed your mind about coming,” Betsy continued, sounding a little sulky. “How come you’re sitting way back here, where you can’t even hear the music very well?”
“We were talking. We needed some quiet. And some privacy,” Liam replied. Natalie shoved her bag into his ribs, making him grunt.
“Talking, huh?” Betsy mused. Liam gave Natalie a surprised, annoyed glance and scooted out of the seat, probably because he didn’t want to be jabbed again. Once Natalie’s way was clear she shot out of the booth as if she’d been stored under pressure. “I hope I’m not interrupting a personal moment or anything,” Betsy said as she gave Natalie the once-over.
Natalie hitched her bag onto her shoulder, highly aware of Liam’s tall form hovering over her the whole time.
“No, nothing personal,” she told Betsy coolly. “It was just a business meeting. Good night.”