“You’re pushing me around.”
“Honey, you’re about as weak as a wrecking ball.”
He turned the collar of his jacket up around her jaw and put his hands on her shoulders. “And I think you like me more than you’re willing to admit.”
Mae looked down and closed her eyes. This was not happening. “You don’t even know me.”
“I know you’re beautiful and I think about you a lot. I’m very attracted to you, Mae.”
Her eyes popped open. “Me?” Men like Hugh weren’t attracted to women like her. He was a well-known athlete. She was a flat-chested, skinny girl who’d never had a date until after she’d graduated from high school. “This isn’t funny.”
“I don’t think so either. I liked you the first time I saw you standing in the park. Why do you think I’ve been calling you?”
“I just thought you liked to harass women.”
He laughed. “No. Just you. You’re special.”
She allowed herself a moment to believe him. A moment to feel flattered by the attentions of a big jock she had no intention of dating. The moment didn’t last long before she remembered how he’d teased her the first time they’d met. “You’re a real jerk,” she said.
“I hope you give me a chance to change your mind.”
She grabbed his wrist. “This isn’t funny anymore.”
“
I never thought it was funny. I usually like girls who like me back. I’ve never fallen for someone who hated me.”
He looked so serious she almost believed him. “I don’t hate you,” she confessed.
“Well, that’s a start, I guess.” He moved his hands to the sides of her neck and tilted her chin back with his thumbs. “Are you still cold?”
“A little.” The warmth of his palms on her throat spread a quivering heat to her stomach. She was shocked and somewhat dismayed by her reaction.
“Do you want to take our drinks and go inside?”
Her shock settled into confusion. “I want to go home.”
Disappointment tugged one corner of his mouth downward, and he moved his hands to her upper arms. “I’ll walk you to your car.”
“I took a taxi.”
“Then I’ll take you home.”
“Okay, but I won’t invite you to come inside,” she said. There were some women who might consider her promiscuous, but she did have her standards. Hugh Miner was handsome and successful, and he was behaving like a perfect gentleman. He just wasn’t her type.
“That’s up to you.”
“I mean it. You can’t come in.”
“I believe you. If it makes you feel better, I promise I won’t even get off the bike.”
“Bike?”
“Yeah, I rode my Harley. You’ll love it.” He put one arm around her shoulders and they moved toward the entrance to the bar. “First I need to find Dmitri and Stuart and tell them I’m leaving.”
“I can’t ride on your motorcycle with you.”
They stopped by the entrance and allowed a group of people to exit. “Sure you can. I won’t let you get hurt.”