‘Well, I don’t know if emotions can necessarily be so neatly corralled into order.’
‘Which is why I keep them out of my life.’
Her smile was indulgent. ‘You do, but I’m not so sure every single woman you’ve ever been with could say the same.’
‘It’s something I make clear before I get involved with a woman.’
She rolled her eyes, laughing a little. ‘That’s just a w
ay of absolving yourself of guilt. People change. Someone might think one thing and then circumstances conspire to alter their expectations. You don’t think it’s possible that even one of the women you’ve been with wanted more from you than you were able to give?’
‘If I thought that, I would end it immediately.’
‘To save her from being hurt?’
‘Exactly.’
‘You’ve got it all worked out.’
‘You’re mocking me.’
‘A little,’ she conceded, reaching behind her for her tea and lifting it to her lips, then placing it on the mat between them.
‘I think you’re wrong.’
‘Statistically, that’s not likely.’
A grin flashed across his features. ‘If you bring statistics into it then you have an unreasonable advantage in this argument.’
‘I didn’t mean for us to argue.’
‘You’re challenging my lifestyle.’
‘I’m pointing out that it might not be as perfectly neat as you imagine, that’s all.’
‘And all the evidence tells me it is.’ He lifted his broad shoulders and the hand on her hip began to shift, his fingers moving rhythmically over her flesh there, so holding onto her thoughts became difficult.
‘Now you’re pushing your own advantage.’
‘Am I?’ he challenged with mock innocence. ‘How?’
‘By making it impossible to think clearly.’
His grin showed he knew exactly what he was doing. Unapologetically, he dropped his hand to the bottom of her dress, sliding it up her thighs.
‘I’m more interested in your dating life than mine, in any event.’
‘What dating life?’ she said with a small laugh. ‘And why?’
‘Because what I do is not uncommon. What you do is—’
‘I know.’ She flinched a little, the fact she had been a virgin until recently something that confused even her.
‘You’re a beautiful, fascinating woman. I find it impossible to believe you hadn’t been asked on dates...’
At that, her feminism bucked hard. ‘My not having really gone on dates bears no correlation to whether or not I was asked.’
He laughed softly. ‘Naturally. So you just turned down any offers?’