He knew he’d have to be on guard. Still, after all they’d shared he couldn’t believe she’d callously milk a story from him with no thought to his privacy.
Still, she hedged. “It’s just dinner, Raven. No strings attached.” Unless you want them to be.
Her expression softened and she nodded. “All right. I’ve heard these machines are real torture anyway. Dinner with you has got to be preferable.”
The teasing glint in her eyes shot through his heart, igniting feelings that had eluded him since he’d watched her walk away. She still had him. Hook, line and sinker, his heart belonged to this woman. All she had to do was say the word and he’d bring out that velvet box containing her engagement ring and pick up right where they’d left off.
Maybe he had a future after all. And maybe that future was wrapped up in Raven Mahoney.
Chapter Four
Raven couldn’t believe her luck. She stared across the table as Matt gave the waiter his order and handed back the menu. How was it possible that he’d grown even more handsome during the past fifteen years? A few lines etched the skin next to his eyes and around his mouth, but these served only to give him a mature, distinguished appearance. A few silver strands of hair near his temple added to the effect and Raven found herself wanting to giggle like a nerdy high school girl who had landed a date with the captain of the football team.
One disturbing question probed her mind. How could she have ever led herself to believe she was over Matthew Strong?
He glanced up. A slow grin spread across his face. “I caught you.”
Raven quickly averted her gaze to her own menu, feigning nonchalance. “Caught me what?”
“Staring.”
“Oh, please.” Raven smiled despite her embarrassment. “Still full of yourself, I see.”
“What some people see as egotism, others—Mom, for instance—consider confidence.”
“Confidence, huh?” Raven tried to control her breathing. Keep it even and light. Not give away her out-of-control feelings. But one look into Matt’s eyes and she knew she was fooling no one. Least of all, Matt. The one person who could read her like a copy of the Washington Post.
She didn’t resist when he reached across the table and took her hand, lacing her fingers with his, forming a steeple. “Why, Rave?”
“W-why what?” She swallowed hard, kicking herself for not preparing for this inevitability. Of course Matthew would grab her heart again. She just hadn’t realized he would do it in five seconds flat. That had to be a world record.
“Why did you walk away?”
“I just—had to, Matthew. It’s nothing I can put my finger on, really. I just knew it wasn’t right between you and me.”
“It was right.” His thumb traced the sensitive skin between her thumb and forefinger, making it hard for Raven to concentrate. “We were right together.”
“I—I don’t think so. Life was too complicated. I wasn’t ready to commit.”
“Doesn’t it seem strange to you that we’re both still single? Neither of us moved on.”
Raven snatched her fingers away and hid her hands in her lap. “What makes you think I haven’t moved on?”
Disappointment washed Matthew’s features as the intimate moment between them passed. “No ring.”
“Maybe I don’t believe in conventional tokens of commitment.”
He gave a short laugh. “Diamonds are a girl’s best friend. Even unconventional girls.”
Raven had to smile. Then she grew serious once more. “Just because I haven’t tied myself down to a man doesn’t mean I haven’t moved on, Matt. It just means I’m not interested in a relationship. What I have moved on with is furthering my career.”
“I see.”
And Raven could tell by the smug relief on his face that he did indeed see. And not what she was claiming, either. He saw into the very truth of the matter. A truth that had taken her by surprise—the fact that he still had her heart. But she wasn’t ready to deal with that issue herself, let alone admit it to Matt, of all people.
She fixed him with a dubious rise of her brow. “Oh, please. Don’t make this about you.”
He held up his hand in truce fashion. “Far be it from me to be so egotistical.” But his eyes glinted with amusement.
Raven rolled her eyes. He exuded ego.
“What about you? Why haven’t you moved on?” Desperate to get the focus off of her own life and motives, Raven took a chance on the question, knowing he would more than likely open up all the raw wounds between them. This news story had better be worth all the pain.
He studied her, his blue eyes squinting with intensity, as though probing her mind. She squared her shoulders, meeting his gaze evenly, hoping against hope that she had met her objective and accomplished an expression of passive interest.
“Why haven’t I moved on?” He leaned back in his seat as he repeated her question. “I guess I never found the right girl. No one measures up to Raven Mahoney. Didn’t you know that?”
He was mocking her. Raven knew it and she felt the blush creep to her cheeks in hot trails.
He smiled. “Actually, I’ve just been too busy. First, with law school. And I have to thank you for all my good grades, by the way—if you hadn’t dumped me, I’d have been much too distracted to pass the bar.”
“You’re welcome,” Raven said dryly.
He gave her an appreciative smile for taking the joke as it was intended. “After law school I worked for three years in the offices of Tyler, Hillman and Long.”
“Very prestigious. I’m duly impressed.”
“As I intended you to be. Thank you.”
“You’re most welcome.” Raven’s heart nearly soared at the banter. They had settled into the easy back-and-forth just as though time hadn’t moved forward fifteen years without them.
“Then I went to work as an intern in Senator Grady’s office. Eighty-hour work weeks don’t make for a romantic atmosphere. I barely had time to sleep and spend time with my d—”
An arrow of sharp instinct lodged into Raven’s senses. She raised her brow? “Your what? Dominoes? Diary? Dear old aunt?” She grinned.
With an indulgent smile at her attempt at humor, he gave her another studied look, then almost in defeat, sighed. “My daughter.” He reached into his jacket and pulled out a billfold. He handed her a photograph. An adorable little girl with brown hair and marked freckles grinned back at her, revealing two missing front teeth. “That’s a couple of years old. Her teeth have grown in.”
Matt’s pride in the girl was obvious.
Questions tripped over each other in Raven’s mind until she wanted to give them expression, but she sat up a little straighter and forced herself to hold back. A professional never overwhelmed the interviewee. Tread carefully, Raven. Don’t scare him off.
“She’s cute.” She smiled. “Doesn’t look a thing like you, though.”
“She’s adopted.”
“Wow, Matt. That’s amazing.”
“You don’t sound amazed.” A frown creased his brow.
“I’m just wondering why a single man with a busy and promising career would feel the need to adopt. It’s not like you even have a wife to give the child a mother. Why not just find a woman, get married and have a little princess of your own?”
He