Pursuit (3 page)

"
Yeah, I know. But they don't
all
have a radar--" She stopped as if waiting for Lauren to ask.

Lauren rolled her eyes.
"Fine, I'll bite. Which ones have a radar and which ones don't?"

Heidi glanced down at her french manicure and wiggled her ass on the desk as if she were settling in for the long haul, ready to impart knowledge of an almost biblical proportion.
"Well, in my experience, your average beta-type male doesn't have one. Your typical alpha-male, of course, does."

"
And you know this,
how?"

"
God, you're really just as sweet and innocent as you come off to be, aren't you?"

"
I'm not innocent, Heidi. That ship sailed a long time ago."

Heidi shook her head in disbelief.
"Could have fooled me, but whatever. Do you want to know or not?"

"
Sure. For kicks, I guess. Share your wisdom, oh, slutty one."

Heidi cut her eyes at Lauren.
"Watch it."

Lauren blew out a breath and looked at the clock on the wall.
"I'm sorry. Share your wisdom, Miss Voice-Of-Experience."

"
That's better. Okay. Beta males don't have a clue. If you go by the three-date rule, they'll just think you're a decent girl. Alphas, on the other hand, know all about the three-date rule and they'll be instantly suspicious if you sleep with them on the third date."

"
Three date rule?"

"
Oh, come on, Lauren. Seriously?"

Was this three-date rule something Lauren had missed in college? Something the sorority girls passed down that she
'd never heard about because she wasn't affiliated with them? "I'm serious. I don't know what you're talking about. Are you telling me there's an unspoken rule that women can have sex on the third date and still retain their dignity?"

"
Yes.
And
everybody
knows that a sign of a slut is if a woman has sex
before
the third date."

"
I didn't know that," Lauren said.

"
How could you have missed it?" Heidi fired back.

Lauren shrugged her shoulders.
"I don't know. By being in a long-term relationship for most of my college years and never having had a friend quite like you until I came to work here." Lauren smiled at her friend to soften the blow.

"
Well, it's a good thing you have me now! I won't let you go astray. So here's the thing. Like I said, an alpha knows all about the rule, so if you're dating an alpha, you have to wait longer than three dates. Probably like five or six."

Lauren was getting extremely bored with this conversation and needed to get back to work but she played along.
"Good to know. What else?"

"
Basically, your alpha-male is so experienced and has slept with so many women that he's a suspicious animal. You have to clean up all signs of prior men in your life and you have to pray that you never run into one of your 'flings' while you're out with him. Because if you do, he'll peg the guy right off as someone you've slept with."

"
So this is what you do?"

"
I'm not that slutty, Lauren. I don't have a trail of past lovers behind me. Besides, my plan is to find a nice beta-boy who won't know the difference and will worship the ground I walk on."

"
But really, you're saying that alphas are just out to sleep with a shit-ton of women but betas are your marriage material?" That was actually good information to know and Lauren was going to file it away.

"
Pretty much. I'm not saying that alphas don't want to get married.
Someday.
That's the key word. They want nothing more than to bang a long list of women, probably into their mid-thirties, and then at some point when their own mortality is staring them in the face, they'll pull a double standard and try to find a good girl to marry. And the bastards can always tell an inexperienced girl from an experienced one. Trust me on this. It's why you should have fun with alphas, but only set your heart on a beta."

"
But aren't betas supposed to be boring?"

"
Oh, my,
no
. Not necessarily. A lot of them are super good-looking, but they're just shy. You find one of those who will treat you right, and it's marriage time."

"
So how do you tell the difference between a beta and an alpha?"

"
The alpha is the one who acts like he's God's gift to women." When her friend said that, Lauren got a shivery feeling in her stomach as Heidi blathered on. "The beta may look as if he is, but he won't
act
like it. The alpha is the one who expects sex right off the bat because that's what he's used to. An alpha knows what he wants and goes after it, balls to the walls."

"
Like the guy yesterday," Lauren mumbled under her breath.

"
Yeah, probably so. If he flat out tried to get you to go home with him the first time he met you, the dude is an alpha. Stay away from him. Don't have sex with him, because nothing will come of it and you'll only get hurt."

"
But I thought you told me that I should be having sex with someone? And that alphas are good for having a good time with. Why not someone like him? I mean, if all I'm after is sex." Which was still up for debate, but Lauren wanted to know Heidi's reasoning.

Heidi tsk-tsked.
"Because I know you, Lauren. You wouldn't have sex just for the fun of it. I can advise you to do it, and you can lie to me and tell me you're going to, but trust me, I know it
ain't
going to happen."

"
Yeah, you're probably right."

Heidi gave her a sly look.
"Oh, honey. I'm always right about stuff like this."

****

On Thursday, mid-morning, Lauren sat her stuff down at her favorite table and lowered herself into the chair, blowing on her coffee. She looked across the room and her eyes clashed violently with the man who sat facing her.
Him.
His eyes held hers and refused to release her, and a thousand butterflies went crazy in her stomach, trying to get free. Her hand began to visibly tremble, and she sat the cup down before she spilt her coffee.

The dude wasted not a second, and got up and came across the room. He pulled out the chair opposite her, sank down with his legs spread wide, crossed his arms and put them on the table in front of him, and leaned in toward her.

He stared solidly into her eyes without saying anything, and Lauren began to hyperventilate. When he remained silent, she felt her eyes widen and she finally found her voice. "What are you doing?"

His eyes dropped to her lips before finding her gaze again.
"Not taking
'no'
for an answer." A cocky, mirthless smirk twisted his lips and the force of his commanding presence sizzled dangerously from across the table.

Lauren could feel his sexual magnetism, even with the space that separated them. It was so incredibly strong, and undoubtedly one of the reasons why he was so self-confident. A thought hit her:
Alpha
.

Her stomach made an odd kind of flip and she was aghast to feel a hot, liquid heat in her midsection, even as silent alarm filled her.

Her mouth opened of its own volition. "I'm not sleeping with you." Her eyes widened and her fingers gripped the table.
Oh, my God. Had she just said that?

A hint of laughter came from his throat and he raised his brows, his eyes raking over her as if she were the kind of dessert he
'd been waiting his whole life for. "All right."

Still dismayed that she
'd voiced her thought out loud, his casual agreement combined with the rapacious glitter coming from his eyes caused immediate suspicion. "You're okay with that?"

His gaze held a sheen of purpose: his eyes reflected a seductive promise as he waited a second too long before answering.
"Sure."

Liar. He was lying
. She knew he was.

But she
'd put her cards on the table so now she could play along for a bit. "Okay," she breathed out. She licked her lips and tried to think of something to say to break the loud, pulsing silence that beat between them. "So,
you
know
my
name." She arched an eyebrow as she thought better of what she'd just said. She was probably giving him too much credit. "You
do
remember my name?"

His features turned sharp and assessing, but something in them was unfathomable.
"Sure do," he answered with an air of placid ease that Lauren didn't buy.

She narrowed her eyes on him with a hint of disbelief.
"What is it?"

He squinted as he looked away for a moment, as if he were trying to figure something out. His fingers tapped on the table. Lauren
's nerves wouldn't steady as she looked at his long, tanned fingers. They had masculine, blunt nails and appeared tough and callused, as if he worked with them out of doors. He turned a teasing gaze back to her. "Let's see. Something with an 'L'. Lisa, Linda, Leanna, something like that."

Lauren gave him a look that was meant to shoot daggers, but she was afraid she
'd failed miserably. He grinned and as quickly as a snake striking, reached across the table and grabbed her hand, as if it was his to take. He laced his fingers through hers until the heat of his palm was searing into hers and he rasped in a heated tone,
"Lauren."

From the touch of his hand, she felt electricity course down her entire length and pool between her legs. Her insides felt like liquid marshmallow, and the weakness that overtook her body left her with no words and barely enough oxygen.

"Do you want to know my name?" He asked as he stared at her, his hand holding hers hostage in an unyielding grasp.

She took a shuddering breath as his deep, dark voice slid down her spine and his callused palm against hers made thinking almost impossible.
"I suppose . . . there's no way out of it."

He gave her a questioning look as if it was decision time.
"Yeah, there is. You can start screaming at the top of your lungs and I guarantee that the two cops sitting behind you will come running."

With the full force of his attention zeroed in on her, it took Lauren a moment before his statement sunk in. And when it did, she was discomfited and surprise dazed her.
"Are you serious? Are there two cops behind me?"

"
Maybe." He shrugged his shoulders. "Maybe not." His fingers tightened around hers. "But you just lost your window to scream." His thumb softly caressed the back of her hand as his eyes devoured her. "My name's Logan Crenshaw."

Logan Crenshaw. A strong, masculine name
. It suited him. Lauren let the name sink in and memorized it quickly as if it might have some major importance in her life. "Hi."

A dizzy current rushed through her as he scrutinized her with a smoldering flame.
"Lauren . . ." His voice trailed off with a question as if he expected her to supply her last name post-haste.

"
Lauren Jacobs."
Was she certifiably insane?
And then she made herself acknowledge the question that had been beating through her system since she'd glanced up and seen him a few minutes ago. "Did you know I'd be here today?"

He wore a blank, impassive stare.
"I had a hunch."

At his answer, Lauren quickly gauged where he might have received his
'hunch' and she glanced at the teenage boy behind the counter with a penetrating look. "I should turn him in."

"
Nah. He knows I'm harmless."

Lauren turned back and glanced pointedly at where Logan still had her hand captured in his, and then into his eyes.
"Are you?"

He didn
't pretend to misunderstand her. "Harmless?"

"
Yeah."

"
Sure," he answered succinctly.

A shiver ran through her.
"May I have my hand back?"

"
Absolutely." His grasp only tightened around her, negating his answer, while he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and tossed it between them. "Just as soon as you key your number into my cell."

A ribbon of sexual curiosity cast a spell over Lauren.
"You're holding my right hand." She glanced down at his smart phone that wasn't the same as hers. On a normal day, she'd have enough brainpower to figure it out. With him holding her hand?
No way.
"And I'm not used to your phone."

"
Okay. Rattle it off," he offered in a compromise, picking up the phone but still not letting loose of her hand.

Lauren
's nerves quaked inwardly. She still wasn't sure how she wanted to handle this, and tried to delay him with humor. "Seven-one-three," she began, reciting one of the more prominent Houston area codes. "Eight-six-seven-five-three-zero-nine," she said in a perfectly neutral tone.

He immediately began keying the numbers into his phone, but then he abruptly stopped and his eyes zeroed in on hers. She saw a hint of amusement and a glimmer of . . . something else.
"Ahh Lauren honey," he intoned softly, almost challengingly. "You're going to pay for that one, sweetheart."

"
You know your eighties dance music?" she asked, somewhat surprised.

"
Do you like to dance?" he retaliated swiftly.

"
Yeah, I do," she answered honestly.

"
When do you want to go?"

They might only be joking around, but in Lauren
's experience only about a quarter of the men out there cared to dance at all, and finding one wasn't the easiest thing in the world. "You're offering to take me dancing?"

His eyes held hers for three beats.
"All I need is your phone number."

He was probably only leading her on to get her number, but the thought of fast songs leading to slow songs and him holding her intimately was causing her limbs to tremble.
"I'm not so sure I'm ready to go dancing with you quite yet."

"
How about dinner?" He offered so softly and gently that Lauren knew beyond a shadow of a doubt what he wanted her answer to be.

The look he was giving her pierced her soul. She really wanted to go. But she didn
't believe him for a minute that not sleeping with him would be okay. He'd be after her; she knew he would. And the knowledge was inducing not only sexual heat but also a mild sense of panic.

And then she remembered what Heidi said would happen to her if she didn
't start dating again.

She didn
't believe it but she also didn't want to become a sad old lady with only a bunch of cats for company.

And he
was
amazingly, agonizingly hot.

Taking a chance, she inhaled deeply and rattled off her phone number.

He reared back in his seat. "Are you serious this time?"

"
Yes."

He released her hand, put both hands around his phone, and keyed the number in.
"Dinner tonight?" He swiftly tried to get her to commit.

"
I can't tonight." Lauren thought of all the hours of work ahead of her. "Are you busy tomorrow night?" she asked, rather daringly, shocking herself a little.

His gaze raked her, appraising her hotly.
"You want to give me a Friday night?"

What the hell did he mean by that?
"Just dinner, right?" she clarified firmly.

"
Yeah, I'll pick you up."

Now that he had her phone number, his answers were coming so swiftly that Lauren had the impression he was trying to rope and tie her down.
"No, I'll meet you somewhere."

He lifted one eyebrow and his expression was impossible to read.
"Don't trust me?"

Lauren lifted her chin a notch and crossed her arms over her chest.
"Absolutely not."

Any laughter that might have been in his eyes died, and he gave her a wholly approving look.
"Good girl." He held her gaze captive for several prolonged heartbeats and a warm, fuzzy feeling hit Lauren's stomach from his blatant approval.

He glanced back down and keyed something into his phone.

Her cell vibrated. She picked it up and read the text there.
Logan Crenshaw
. Just his name. And yet simple and powerful. Well, there was no way she could confuse his text with someone else's, now could she?

****

Lauren hadn't told Heidi about her upcoming date because she didn't want to hear the kind of lecture that she knew she'd be subjected to. So Lauren had no outlet for her nerves and when she walked into the restaurant on the south side of town where she'd agreed to meet Logan, her stomach was tied into knots of stress.

She stood in line at the hostess stand and surreptitiously looked around. Her phone vibrated almost immediately and she lifted it and read the text there.
At the bar.
Her nerves escalated as she realized that even now, she was being watched.

She declined to waste time sending an answer and walked around the line of people until she found the bar area. Almost immediately, she saw his tall figure stand to his feet at the far end of the bar, and she felt the butterflies dance around in her stomach and try to claw their way up her throat.
Jesus, he was good-looking.

The lights were dimmed for the nighttime crowd, and when she got close enough, he reached out and snagged her hand and pulled her into him, until her torso came flush against his with startling impact. Her breath escaped with a silent
'whoosh'
and without waiting for her consent, his head dropped down and his mouth covered hers in a kiss so unexpected that the surprise of it hit her full force.

His hand released hers and his arms wrapped around her, gripping her tightly to his large form. Her lips parted slightly from the impact and he took immediate advantage and pushed his tongue inside. Lauren shut her eyes and was swamped with the hottest wave of desire she could ever remember feeling. Every thought in her brain escaped her head and all she could do was hang in his arms as he kissed her as if she already belonged to him. She had a single crazy thought; it was as if they
'd been together forever and were meeting after work for the thousandth time. But that was just a weird feeling of déjà vu, and the hot jangle of excited nerves she was feeling told her it was
definitely
the first time.

As his tongue swirled slowly and firmly in her mouth, he turned his head and adjusted the way their mouths fit together. He took total control of the kiss, his arms claiming her, steel bands holding her in place. His mastery was absolute, yet she felt no threat from him, only a weird sense of sanctuary that blended with an all-consuming craving for more of his touch. Her hands landed on his biceps to find purchase, and his fingers slid down to her butt and clenched her flesh.

It was as if an electric wire connected them; his touch coiled through her and landed like a heated ache between her thighs. Her legs began to shake and just when she began to forget that they stood in a crowded room full of rowdy people, he lifted his head. She finally remembered to open her eyes, and when she did, she found his look centered wholly on her.

Any lingering smile he might have worn dissolved completely. In fact, his eyes narrowed and his expression was one she couldn
't interpret, but for some reason, he looked none too happy, but maybe she was reading too much into it. He continued to restrain her tightly within the circle of his embrace, and she cleared her throat in agitation. "Hi," was all she could manage.

His eyes dropped to her lips before slowly lifting again and tangling with hers.
"Hey."