Anyway, she needed junk food tonight with a passion that would brook no denial. She smiled faintly. And her mother drought her devoid of passion. Not when it came to food.
She was halfway through her fries when something made her look up toward the door, in time to see Jake Wyczynski, his tall body shielding another man, the soft murmur of voices reaching to her booth. She ducked her head, hoping he wouldn’t see her but simply follow his friend out, but luck was against her. Ure other man left, and Jake ambled toward her, with that sexy, graceful slouch that had become unaccountably annoying.
He slid into the other side of the booth without waiting for an invitation, and helped himself to one of her French fries.
“Now who would have thought I’d run into the ice princess at a sleazy all-night diner?” he said, leaning back against the cracked vinyl banquette. “This hardly seems like your kind of place.”
“You don’t know anything about me. What makes you think you’re an expert on what my kind of place is? Some people head for a bar, I head for French fries when I need to—” She’d almost said “drown her sorrows.”
“When I need to think.”
“What do you need to think about?” He took another fry. “Never mind, you’re going to tell me it’s none of my damned business.”
“I’m not that rude.”
“Not to most people, I’ve noticed. But with me you’re able to rise to the occasion.”
“You bring out the worst in me.”
“Why?”
She closed her eyes briefly and sighed. “This is a crazy conversation. Go away, Jake. I have more important things on my mind.”
“I like the way you say my name.”
Her eyes flew open. “Don’t!”
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t flirt with me. And don’t deny that was what you were doing. I’ve got enough on my mind without that.”
He reached for another French fry and popped it in his mouth. She had to admit he had a disturbingly sexy mouth. “What’s on your mind, then? Cold feet? Having second thoughts about dear old Edward?”
“No,” she said flatly. “Edward is everything I’ve ever wanted in life, and we’ll have a wonderful life together. It’s only natural to feel nervous when you’re about to take such a major step in life.”
“You don’t take too many chances, do you?”
“Not if I can help it I like security. Surprises disturb me.”
He sighed. “You can’t control life, Susan. It has a habit of throwing curve balls when you least expect it. You need to learn to duck or bat.”
She liked the way he said her name, too, she drought dismally. “I was never very good at softball,” she said. “I can simply refuse to play.”
“Life is hardball. But you’ll miss a lot if you’re too scared to take chances.”
“I’m not scared.”
“Aren’t you?” He reached for another French fry, and she glared at him.
“Take one more and you die,” she said. “Order your own if you want fries.”
“I’ll take that as an invitation.” He rose and went to the counter, and her eyes followed him with dubious fascination. She should be home in bed at this hour, not having a midnight rendezvous with a dangerous man. And there was no question about it, Jake Wyczynski was a dangerous man indeed, at least to Susan Abbott.
He slid back into the booth, a cup of coffee in his hand. Edward would have stayed put, snapping his well-manicured fingers until the harried waitress came to take his order.
“You can’t find truly great French fries outside of this country and Canada. It could be what I miss most,” he said.
“Every place in the world has McDonald’s.”
