"Bloody weed," Em muttered, trying to wrestle the lettuce from the pot. She poked at the base with the spade, trying to dislodge it so she could put it in the bigger pot. It wasn't cooperating, and she was worried that she'd leave part of the root in the dirt-a big no-no according to Ben.
"Uh, Em?" Ben squatted down next to her, brow furrowed in concern. "That's chard."
"It's bloody stubborn chard." She grunted as she felt it loosen in the dirt. "Almost."
"No, Em, you're supposed to replant the baby lettuce."
She frowned at it. "Isn't that what this is?"
"No, this is chard."
"So you don't eat it?"
"Well, yes, you do."
She looked down at it. It was leafy, and you could eat it, but it wasn't lettuce? How did that make sense?
Ben cleared his throat as he lifted the chard away and set a different pot in front of her. "Your enthusiasm is nice though."
The new plant in front of her looked exactly the same as the last, but instead of pointing that out she just smiled sweetly.
He patted her shoulder and got up. She watched him walk over to where some teenagers were supposed to be raking and cajole them into getting back to work.
He was so good with kids. She poked at the plant in front of her, trying to picture him next to her as they brought their first child home. He held them in his strong arms, cuddled on their couch, smiling in wonder at what they'd created. She'd turn her head and look up into his face-
Only the face she saw was Joe's, and he looked at her and the baby adoringly. He also sat there bare-chested, and it was nice.
She shook her head, trying to change the channel in her mind to get back on track, but she couldn't get her mind to imagine Ben sitting next to her where he belonged.
A shadow fell over her, and she sighed as she grabbed the lettuce by the bottom of the stalk where it disappeared into the dirt. "I've got it this time."
"You've more than got it." Joe crouched in front of her. He wore jeans and a soft-looking sweater under his coat. "Fancy meeting you here."
She denied the zap of excitement that hit her right in the chest by frowning. "Are you following me?"
"Perhaps." He smiled winningly. "But it's charming as opposed to creepy, because you like me."
She couldn't stop the hint of a smile from curving her lips. "Do I?"
"Definitely. Come to lunch with me, and I'll prove to you how much you like me."
"I have lettuce," she said, wilting as she looked at all the plants waiting to be repotted.
"Carpe diem, darling. There will always be lettuce."
"Em." Ben towered over them, hands in his pocket as he frowned at Joe. "Is everything all right?"
"Why wouldn't everything be all right?" Why was he looking at her with disapproval? She had the right plant this time-he'd made sure of it.
Then he transferred his glare to Joe.
Was he jealous?
She mentally snorted. Couldn't be. More likely he was annoyed that Joe had interrupted her work. She yanked the plant out of the dirt, wincing because she swore she heard it screech, like how she always wanted to when she got her eyebrows waxed.
The real question: What should she do? Send Joe away?
She really didn't want to, and that thought surprised her more than anything.
"Em?" Ben asked, his frown deepening.
She smiled brightly. "Joe's just-"
"A friend," Joe said, standing up. "Trying to convince Em that she needs to eat."
"Are you hungry, Em?" Ben asked, as though confused by the possibility.
She resisted the urge to roll her eyes.
"She's always hungry"-Joe winked at her, his tone overly suggestive-"and I appreciate her appetite."
She gave him a look that clearly told him to shut it.
He just smiled at her unrepentantly and then faced Ben. "Knowing Em, she's your most valuable worker, but tell her she can come have lunch with me."
Ben's frown increased in displeasure. "Do you want to, Em?"
She wanted him to ask her to eat with him, but apparently that wasn't a logical conclusion to draw. Annoyed, she stuck the plant in the new pot and tossed the spade down. "Yes, I do."
She felt vindicated when his face clouded over. She gave him an icy smile as she took off the gloves and handed them to him. "Perhaps you can have the boys finish this."
"Yes," Ben said faintly, as if perplexed by the turn of events.
She faced Joe and gave him a look of retribution. "Shall we?"
"By all means." He held his hand out, motioning her ahead of him.
Like she was the queen, she held her head high and marched out of the greenhouse into the café. She glanced back at him. "Give me a moment to wash up?"
"Of course."
She didn't have second thoughts until she rejoined Joe. He leaned against a wall, hands in his pockets, waiting for her. His face lit with a smile when he saw her, and her belly quivered in response.
That was not good. Neither was the fact that he looked temptingly sexy and available. She should tell him that she couldn't go, that she needed to return home to work on her collage.
Only then he took her elbow. He smelled so good, and he looked at her like she was his sun. How could she resist him?
"Ready?" he asked.
Not at all. She tried to smile, hoping if she looked hungry he'd mistake it for food and not for him.
He led her to a dark sedan parked at the curb, opening the door for her.
"This is your car?" she asked in shock.
"I didn't steal it, if that's what you're asking." He arched his brow, waiting for her to get in.
She'd expected him to have a racy sports car, something sleek and sexy-not something that belonged to a family man. Trying to cover her confusion, she asked the first question that came to mind. "How did you manage to park right here?"
"Parking karma, darling." He flashed her a grin. When she was settled in, he closed the door securely and went around to his side.
She liked having the door opened for her. It was probably very un-feminist of her, but she didn't care. It had nothing to do with needing someone to help her and everything to do with someone showing he cared for her, the way a mother should for her child.
She'd never had that, from her mother or a man.
She wondered if Ben was the chivalrous type. Try as she did, she couldn't picture it.
The driver's side door closed, snapping her out of her thoughts. She looked around the car, inhaled the leather, and then looked at the gorgeous man next to her. This was what going to a hotel for an afternoon of debauchery would feel like. Exciting and decadent.
She did not belong here.
"I think you'll like this restaurant," Joe said, smiling at her. In the close confines of the car, the smile was much more intimate than any she'd ever received from him, and it dared her to be wicked.
Murmuring something incoherent, she strapped herself in and edged closer to the door.
They didn't drive far, pulling up to what looked like an average home in a modest neighborhood. There was no sign or anything that suggested the posh sort of restaurant she'd expect Joe to select. He guided her to the door and pressed the buzzer.
They were let in by a motherly woman with a warm smile. She matched the décor: charming and cozy, nothing modern or pretentious about it.
It was quite busy for a Sunday afternoon, but they were seated quickly, in a warm spot by a fireplace. Em brushed a streak of dirt from her pants, glad she'd dressed cute instead of practical for gardening.
Joe handed her a menu. "You know what's going to happen now."
"We order food?"
"Ben will ask you on a date." He arched his brow, focused on her instead of the menu in his hand. "He saw another dog sniffing around his discarded toy, and now he suddenly realizes he wants the toy for himself."
She wrinkled her nose. "Am I supposed to be pleased being compared to a dog's toy?"
"It's the most apt analogy I could think of on the fly."
Ben certainly had looked territorial-in his way. She should have been happy about it, but at the moment Joe's concern over the situation thrilled her more.
That wasn't good-at all.
And tomorrow she'd get her head firmly back in place, but for now she was going to enjoy his attention. "Have you eaten here? Is there something you'd recommend?"
"Em, I hadn't realized how heartless you were until this moment. To think I once thought you were a good girl." He lifted a hand for the waiter.
The waiter arrived and Joe ordered a bottle of wine before she could stop him. She didn't like wine. She sighed. Now she'd have to pretend to drink some so he wouldn't get offended.
The waiter returned with the wine and two glasses. Joe tried a small sip after the waiter opened the bottle and nodded his approval. The waiter poured some for her and took their order.
Joe lifted his glass to her. "It's more of a summer wine, to have on a picnic, but I think of warmth and sun when I think of you, so it seemed appropriate."
She narrowed her eyes. "Are you putting me on?"
"No, I'm not." He smiled indulgently as he took a sip of wine.
She looked at her glass. It was a golden color instead of the pale color most wines were. She took a careful taste and blinked in shock. "This is delicious."
He nodded, looking amused.
Alarms began to go off in her head. "What are you up to, Joe?"
"What do you think I'm up to?"
"Making another conquest."
"A conquest?" He smiled, but there was nothing humorous about it.
Why did he look unhappy at that assessment? Confused, Em took another sip of wine. "I don't see what else it could be. I'm just a receptionist, and you usually go out with exciting women."
He arched his brow. "You keep track of who I go out with?"
"You know what I mean."
"Maybe I'm not who you think."
Em snorted.
"You're rather judgmental, aren't you?" he said, crossing his arms.
For a full thirty seconds she gaped from that statement, it was so inaccurate. "Of course I'm not."
He studied her, but she couldn't tell what he saw. What surprised her was what she wanted him to see: an exciting, smart, sexy woman.
Which was so wrong. She didn't need anyone to think of her as sexy. She just wanted Ben to love her. She pulled her sweater collar up. "I don't need your approval, Joe Winslow."
"We have a lot in common, Em Shepherd. The only difference is that I've learned to put the chip on my shoulder down."
"I don't have a chip." She quickly checked her shoulder, just to be sure.
His mouth quirked. "Would it surprise you to know that my family was so poor that my brothers and I used to steal bread from the baker?"
She blinked in shock. "What?"
"Of course, I found out years later that the baker was letting us steal the bread. He was a nice man to let us keep our dignity, such as it was." Smiling softly, he sipped his wine.
"But you went to Oxford. If your family was so poor, the odds against being accepted were high."
"Yes, but I was determined. I put myself through school on my brains and fists. You should be able to understand that."
She frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Like recognizes like, Em. I know where you've come from, because I've been there myself, and I respect what you've done to change your life."
"Working as a receptionist?" she asked with a sarcastic lift of her brow. "That's hardly the same as becoming a partner in one of London's top firms."
"To each his own."
The waiter returned. Em glanced down and picked the first thing that caught her eye. She'd have expected Joe to be fussy, but he ordered quickly.
He waited until the waiter left to ask, "What do you see in Bob?"
It took her a moment to understand who he meant. "Ben."
"He's not worthy of you," he said as if he didn't hear her. "He's an idiot."
"He isn't." She herself heard the lack of conviction in her voice. "He's a pillar in the community."
"He can't see the treasure he has in front of him, and that makes him an idiot." Joe frowned at her from behind his wine glass. "Really, Em, I'm beginning to question your good sense."
Eyes narrowed, she lifted her chin. "That's only because I've refused to fall at your feet."
"So far." He grinned wickedly. "I'm holding out hope."
She snorted again.
"In any case," he continued, "you're much too passionate to be satisfied with the sort of bland existence Ben will offer you. You'll combust and take him with you. You can't seriously see yourself toiling in dirt for him, can you?"
"I can tend his garden."
"But you don't like doing it."
She wasn't going to confirm that. "Why do you say that?"
"When you dislike something, you get two lines of discernment between your eyebrows."
She put a hand to her forehead. "I do?"
He smiled like the Sphinx.
Their food arrived, thankfully. It gave her the perfect excuse to ignore him while she pulled her thoughts together.
The bad thing was that the meal wasn't long enough for her to compose herself. Normally she had enough willpower to withstand temptation, but Joe was tearing down her defenses. She pushed her empty plate away, perplexed.
"Dessert?" he offered wickedly as if he could read her mind.
She crossed her arms. "I don't do dessert."
"Not today, but one day." He reached across the table, cupped her head, and leaned forward to kiss her.
She told herself it was surprise that made her part her lips, not because she desperately wanted it.
He took advantage of the opportunity to taste her-briefly, deliciously. Then he drew back.
She ran her tongue along her lips, still feeling the tingle of his. She knew he'd quickly pulled away to leave her wanting more.
It'd worked.
And now she also knew that kissing Joe Winslow was like heaven.
"Shall we?" he said, leaving money on the table and pushing his chair back.
Shall we ... what? Kiss more? Go someplace and get naked? Make mind-blowing love?
She shook her head. No. No, they shan't, because she needed sweet Ben, not wicked Joe.
Only she liked wicked Joe.
She gaped at him. She liked him. She liked flirting with him and verbally sparring, but she also liked sitting with him and getting to know him.
She liked him.
This was a disaster. How could she have let it happen?
"Em?" He slipped on his jacket. "Are you coming?"
She wished. She wished his hands were in her panties as he kissed her like he just had, across the table.
"No." She shook her head vehemently. She didn't want that.
"You want to stay?" he asked, looking confused.
"No. Sorry." She needed to leave before she launched herself at him. She got up so quickly her chair almost toppled over. "Let's go."
He touched her back as they walked out. "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine." She gave him a bright smile, even though she was far from okay. She assured herself when she got home, she'd focus on her collage and Ben. She'd wipe this infatuation with Joe Winslow from her mind.
She hoped.