Mark watched Lana go from a cute shade of pink to snow-white and felt a moment of guilt for teasing her. She was just so damn adorable, he couldn’t help himself. He’d honestly spent most of his adult life fantasizing about a woman who was tall like she was but he figured he’d better dial things back before she died of embarrassment. He thought it was cute, but based on the horrified look in her eyes, she genuinely had no clue how beautiful she was.
“I’m kidding,” he said softly. “Not about how beautiful you are or that I like tall women, but you know, we should wait at least a week or two before I propose.”
“You’re going to give me a heart attack,” Lana murmured, carefully picking up her glass and taking a ladylike sip.
“I’m sorry,” Mark said. “I can’t seem to help myself. I think you’re beautiful and usually when I meet someone who looks like you they’re stuck-up and prissy.”
Lana’s big green eyes widened as she looked at him, her cheeks turning pink again. Then she smiled—a ravishing, full-mouth, glorious smile that essentially sucked all the air out of his lungs. “You think I’m pretty enough to be stuck-up?”
He made sure his face was completely serious as he said, “I think you’re beautiful enough to be both stuck-up and prissy, but I’m glad you’re not.”
Lana stared at him for a moment without blinking, as if deep in thought. Then she abruptly downed the rest of her drink, dug a ten-dollar bill out of her purse and laid it on the bar. “Thanks for the company and the compliments, but I have to get a few things done before the flight. Take care, Mark.”
Mark let out a sigh as he followed her retreating back. She was incredible and he wished he hadn’t spooked her. She would be a challenge, but she was going to Anchorage and he’d been attracted to her for a long time, so he wasn’t giving up hope yet. He needed to backpedal a little, though, because she was distinctly uncomfortable when he flirted with her. According to Erin, she was a great publicist and their mutual friend Kate, who was Lana’s boss, had asked her to become a partner in her firm. That didn’t sound like a woman who couldn’t hold her own, but he’d have to come up with a gentler way to get her attention. What he’d done so far had only managed to scare her away.
He picked up his beer thoughtfully, wondering what he needed to do to show her a little flirting was fun.
Mark finished his beer, paid the tab—including Lana’s drink—and headed towards the gate. Disappointed she hadn’t wanted to hang out, he thought about the times he’d seen her. Kate was Erin’s best friend and Lana spent a lot of time with both of them. He’d run into Lana quite a few times, but she usually made a beeline in the other direction the moment he got near her.
Kate said she was shy, but it was easy to see she was self-conscious about her height and probably her weight too. In his opinion, she was perfect, but women seemed to think there was something wrong with them if they didn’t have flat stomachs and some weird space between their thighs. As far as he was concerned, the only time a woman needed space between her thighs was when he was getting ready to go down on her.
He loved and respected both women and sex, but at thirty-three, he was tired of the game involved with new relationships. He’d all but given up on finding a woman who would not only try to understand what he’d lived through on some of his missions but wasn’t afraid to listen when he talked about them. The last woman he’d told about the day Shay had died had stopped returning his calls. Not that he’d loved her or anything, but he’d thought she would at least give it a chance. That had been five years ago and he’d resisted relationships since then. His gut told him Lana would be different, but she didn’t let him get close enough to find out.
His melancholy thoughts fled as he spied Lana standing near a bay of windows, her phone at her ear, talking animatedly. She was lovely, he thought, pausing to lean against the far wall so he could watch her. Her shoulder-length dark red hair fell over the side of her face as she talked and she would use her free hand to brush it back, where it would slowly cascade down until it moved across her cheek again. From the profile, her nose was slightly upturned at the tip, giving her a girlish appearance, especially when she laughed.
Something drew him to her, and he was transfixed, taking in the way she looked, the way she sounded…the way she moved. On one hand, she wasn’t even remotely his type; on the other, she wasn’t just his type, she was his fantasy. He’d thought so from the first time he’d ever seen her two years ago.
Taking in her figure, she had what he considered a real woman’s curves, with breasts that were full and round, a sweet ass he could already envision in a pair of shorts, and those legs…if she had less than a thirty-eight-inch inseam, he’d eat his uniform. Breasts and asses were great, but he was a leg man. A woman with long legs got him every time and hers were exquisite. She was wearing jeans today, but there was no hiding how long her legs were and once again, he wished he could see her in shorts.
She turned, spotting him in her peripheral vision, and for a moment showed no signs of being shy or awkward, acknowledging him with a nod of her head as she finished talking. It wasn’t until she hung up and made eye contact that her cheeks got a little pink and she stumbled over an invisible wrinkle in the carpet.
“This is yours,” he said, handing her the ten-dollar bill she’d left on the bar. “I’m the reason you spilled your drink so the least I could do is buy it for you.”
She smiled, the motion lighting her face and he thought again how pretty she was. “Thank you.”
“Will you go to dinner with me when we get to Anchorage?”
She sobered instantly, all humor gone, her eyes going wide as she stared at him.
“Oh, come on,” he cajoled softly. “Don’t hurt my feelings by saying no. I’m just a boring military guy, not like the celebrities you’re around all the time, but I think I’m a decent conversationalist and I promise I won’t bore you with war stories.”
Lana still didn’t say anything, her eyes never leaving his.
“Lana?”
“I puked on the last guy I went on a date with,” she whispered.
Mark cocked his head. “Was he a jerk? Did he deserve it?”
“Oh, um, yes. Definitely. He was an asshole.”
“I’m not a jerk or an asshole, so there would be no reason for you to puke on me, would there?”
“No.” She shook her head. “But roller coasters are never a good idea for me.”
“Duly noted. No roller coasters.” He gave her his most charming smile. “You’re safe because Kate and Erin would kick my ass if I wasn’t nice to you, and I’m not afraid of much, but Erin? Holy shit, don’t run into her in a dark alley.”
Lana relaxed as a giggle escaped. “I’ve never seen that side of her, but I’ve heard stories.”
“All true.”
She paused. “I’m not sure what my schedule is going to be—Aaron Ferrar is supposedly on a tear. That’s why I’m going to freakin’ Alaska.”
“We’ll work around it. My schedule is pretty flexible.”
“Okay. Thank you. Dinner would be nice.” Her phone rang and Lana jumped, sending her phone toppling out of her hand. She fumbled to grab it and promptly sent it flying.
Mark snaked out a hand, catching it in mid-air, and handed it back to her. “You’re not flying the plane, are you?”
She dipped her head, sighing as her call went to voice mail. “I told you—cute guys make me nervous.”
He chuckled. “Be that as it may, I’m really looking forward to dinner.”