Forbidden Temptation

The woman sat alone at a table near the narrow stage at the front of the bar, nursing a strawberry daiquiri and feigning interest in the altrock cover band currently grinding its way through an old Pearl Jam classic. Now and then she took a sip of her drink but mainly watched the crowd, her eyes alert. Daniel Hartman studied her from his seat at the bar, curiosity distracting him from his own agenda. There was an odd stillness about her, a composure that set her apart from the rest of the restless liquorsoaked crowd in the small club in the heart of Birmingham's Five Points South. Who was she? What was she looking for? The door opened and a man in a striped shirt and leather jacket entered, pausing in the doorway. Daniel dragged his attention away from the woman to give the newcomer a quick onceover. He was pushing forty, a little paunchy though his clothes hid it well. The wedding ring on his left hand quickly went into his pocket. Classy. Daniel looked away, losing interest. This place was a bust. He took another sip of Coke and considered moving on to another club a few doors down. But his gaze drifted back to the woman with the daiquiri, and he stayed put, watching her through narrowed eyes as she took another dainty sip of her drink and clapped politely as the cover band crashed its way to the end of the song. The paunchy man in the leather jacket approached her table, on the prowl. Of course he'd choose hera pretty woman all alone in the middle of a bar was too much temptation. Daniel sat forward, curious to see how she'd handle being hit on. Would she notice the imprint on his left ring finger where the wedding band had been? Would it matter? She looked up at the man, her brow furrowing as he spoke to her. Her gaze drifted to the hand resting on the back of her chair and the furrowed brow smoothed, replaced by a cool, neutral mask. She murmured to the man, who stepped away with a frown. Muttering something that made the woman's lips tighten, he moved on to the bar and ordered a bourbon neat. Daniel looked back at the woman and found her watching him. When she didn't immediately look away, he lifted his glass and nodded. Her frown returning, she looked down at her glass, stirring the red slush with slow, deliberate strokes. Her chin lifted, followed by her eyes. She locked gazes with him, her expression impossible to read. An electric shock zigzagged through him as he took the full brunt of her attention. Was it an invitation? A rebuff? He didn't know, and he'd always prided himself on being an accomplished reader of women. Of people, in general, given his chosen profession. He could look around this bar and guess, with accuracy, the stories behind the faces surrounding him: The balding salesman with the desperate comeon sitting with the aging beauty queen who'd accepted his offer of a drink because she was desperate for the attention she used to command without effort. The rawnerved coed drinking to forget her cheating boyfriend and her unfinished term paper. The tax accountant sipping a trendy dark ale and trying to look as though he was just one of the guys. Daniel could read them all. But not her. She looked across the room and caught the eye of a waitress, who came at once. They murmured an exchange and the waitress went toward the back, soon returning with the check. The woman paid her bill and rose from the table, darting a glance in his direction. He followed her with his gaze, memorizing the curve of her hips and the dip of her narrow waist, the way her calf muscles flexed as she navigated the crowded club and pushed her way through the exit door into the cool October night. His skin felt hot and tight. Part of him wanted desperately to follow her, to see where she went next. What was she looking for? Would she find it? But he had a job to do here, a job that didn't includeGraves, Paula is the author of 'Forbidden Temptation ', published 2007 under ISBN 9780373692651 and ISBN 037369265X.