“People are eating breakfast.”

“So?”

“We can’t talk about that.”

He leaned toward her. “Why not? Are you embarrassed about what we do in bed?”

“No. Of course not.” She was far more sophisticated than that. Sort of. “It’s just…I don’t usually…It’s fine.”

“Lexi?”

She glanced around to make sure no one was hovering, then lowered her voice. “That first time, ten years ago? You couldn’t get away fast enough. You thought it was terrible.”

He looked confused. “I thought it was great and wanted to come back for more, right up until I realized it was your first time. I wasn’t expecting that. It implied more responsibility than I wanted to take on.”

Responsibility? “I was expecting you to have sex with me, not pay for my college education. I was feeling all warm and fuzzy and you were scrambling for the door.”

She still remembered the humiliation of that morning. Cruz’s look of panic was burned into her brain.

“You recovered fast enough,” he told her. “You were very clear that I wasn’t anyone you wanted to be with.”

“After you rejected me,” she snapped. “I was nineteen years old, I just had sex for the first time and the guy in question was leaving skid marks on the floor in his effort to get away from me. I said what I had to say to protect myself.”

Cruz touched her hand. “I’m sorry. I didn’t get that. I wanted to see you again, Lexi. Who wouldn’t? But you scared the hell out of me. You were out of my league and we both knew it.”

Back then, she thought. Now-not so much.

“I was covering my ass,” he continued. He stared into her eyes, as if determined to let her see the truth. “I couldn’t be what you needed and I didn’t want to let you down. So I left.”

Had that been it? An overreaction on both their parts?

She stared at the table. “I thought I was bad in bed,” she whispered. “I thought that’s what was wrong, so I was scared to sleep with anyone else. When I finally did, I couldn’t relax. It was horrible. Everyone said I was cold and inhibited.”

“Bullshit.”

Involuntarily, she looked up. Cruz looked more annoyed than sympathetic.

“I can’t believe guys fed you that line just because they didn’t know what to do. There’s nothing wrong with you.”

She blinked at him. “Excuse me?”

“You’re not cold. You’re sexy and responsive and a hell of a ride.”

She wanted to ask him to say the words again so she could bask in the warm, squishy feelings they generated.

“Really?” she asked, her voice a squeak.

He gave her a look that spoke of male need so explicitly, she wanted to rip off her clothes and do it right there on the calico-covered table. “Yeah.”

“But I wasn’t like that with them. I couldn’t let go. I couldn’t stop thinking.”

“Their problem, not yours.”

“It felt like mine.”

He looked into her eyes. “Was Andrew one of them?”

This time she did blush. She also straightened, so she could lean back in her chair. If there had been a way to pull down a physical barrier, she would have done it.

She didn’t want to talk about him, about what had happened. She didn’t want to have to think about it. But Cruz wasn’t the type to be put off.

“How do you know about Andrew?” she asked.

“Jed mentioned him. At the cocktail party. He said he wanted you to marry him, but you refused and that you were right.”

Everyone had a past, she reminded herself. If only she could have a good one. One that was exciting and involved pirates or space creatures. But no-she’d taken a more traditional route, falling for a total jerk who nearly managed to convince her he was an actual person.

“I met Andrew about three years ago, through friends. He was in finance. We seemed to have similar backgrounds and interests. He was charming and friendly and very interested in me. He made it clear our relationship was serious for him, that he wasn’t playing around.”

“He was.” Cruz hadn’t asked a question.

Lexi nodded. “Or at least playing me. He’d gone to the prep school he claimed and to Yale, but on scholarship. I’m not saying that’s bad. The problem is he implied he came from money. He lied about his parents, his background. When I found out and confronted him, he said it was because he was afraid I would think less of him.”

“Did you?”

“Not for growing up like a regular person, but I didn’t like that he lied. I started seeing more things that made me uncomfortable. The way he didn’t have any friends from before college, how he was always looking at Izzy like he wanted to sleep with her. I thought I was being paranoid. Then I overheard him talking to his friends. He had it all planned out. Once we were married, he would go to work for Jed. They’d already talked about it. He didn’t want me-he wanted the Titan fortune. I was a means to an end. If I didn’t work out, he was going after Izzy.”

She remembered her first emotion had been a sense of inevitability. Why should she be surprised?

“What happened?” Cruz asked.

“I broke up with him and warned him off my sister. Dana had a couple of really big cops pay him a visit late one night and scare the crap out of him. He left town.”

“Did he break your heart?”

“No,” she admitted. “It hurt, but I recovered. Part of me wasn’t even surprised. The Titan name and money has always changed how people act around me. You’re only here because of the name.”

Cruz didn’t like that assessment, even though it was partially true. “I’m more interested in your connections on your mother’s side,” he told her.

“You know what I mean. My sisters grew up with it, so they’re okay, and Dana and I have been friends forever, so I can trust her. But there aren’t very many other people.”

Including him. “I’m not interested in your money or your name,” he told her.

“Not in the traditional sense,” she said. “You don’t need the money, but the name helps you get what you want.”

The right wife from the right family. Acceptance into a world that bored him, but still appealed to him.

“It’s okay,” she said. “You were upfront about it. We have a deal. I know where I stand with you. But with everyone else? It gets confusing. I thought I’d learned all my lessons, but Andrew fooled me. That’s what bothered me the most. I thought I was smarter than that.”

“You are smart. You won’t make the same mistake again.”

The waitress arrived with their breakfast.

Lexi commented on the food in an obvious attempt to change the subject and he let her. But he couldn’t stop thinking about what she’d told him. It wasn’t just the sadness in her eyes that got to him. It was the way she seemed…broken. When he thought of Lexi, he always pictured her strong and tall, confident. Perfect.

But she was as messed up as everyone else.

He found himself wanting to comfort her in some way. To find Andrew and beat the shit out of him. He wanted to…What? Be the good guy? That wasn’t his strength. Never had been. Besides, while he might like Lexi more than he’d first thought, she was nothing more than a means to an end, and when it was time, he would walk away without looking back.

“I NEED TO PICK up something at the office,” Lexi said when they left the Calico Café. “Do you mind? It’ll only take a minute.”

“Not a problem,” he told her as they walked down the street and turned right. Titanville wasn’t a big town, so nothing was very far. “Want me to wait in the car?”

She smiled. “You can come inside. The waiting area is open to men and women. Unless you’re afraid being around all that girly stuff is going to make you grow breasts.”

“It crossed my mind.”

That made her laugh. He enjoyed the sound nearly as much as he liked seeing the life in her eyes. Talking about Andrew had seemed to suck the joy out of her. He was glad it was back.

“There’s a safe, hormone-free corner.” She glanced up at him, looking too smug for his comfort. “Or I could check the massage schedule. I think there’s an opening.”

“No, thanks.”

“Come on. When was the last time you had a massage?”

“Professional or personal?”

“I’m ignoring that. Come on. It’ll be fun.”

He followed her into the foyer of the spa. Shelves filled with bottles and jars lined the open area. There were plants and floral smells, a rack of candles and some weird tinkling music that wouldn’t take long to get on his nerves.

She greeted the two young women behind the counter, then went to one of the computers and typed.

“Perfect,” she said. “Val will be available in fifteen minutes. I’ll get you ready.”

Not sure what to expect, he followed her through double swinging doors that led into a dimly lit hallway. A sign pointed to the women’s dressing room around the corner. Lexi led him into the men’s.

It was big and well-appointed, with a long counter, a couple of sinks, yellow robes hanging on counters and a half dozen lockers.

“Clothes in there,” she said, pointing to the lockers. “There are slippers on the shelf. Use one of the robes.” She paused, then grinned. “By the way, she’ll want you naked.”

“They all do.”

“I’m ignoring that. I’ll be outside when you’re ready. You’ll wait in relaxation. Val will come and get you. Oh, and no sprawling.”

“What?”

“Men tend to sprawl. They sit with their legs open. No one wants the view.” She glanced down below his belt. “Okay, maybe in your case they would, but we have a firm no-sprawling policy.”

She started to leave. He grabbed her hand and tugged her to him. “You can stay.”

“I own this place. I don’t need my employees talking about me.”

He kissed her. A light brush of his mouth meant to tempt more than satisfy. She caught her breath and swayed slightly, then stepped back.

“No,” she said firmly. “You’re going to have to do better than that.”