Sweet Silver Bells

He flashed a set of straight white teeth. “Active and financial.” Since his return to the States, Joseph had rejoined his local chapter. He planned to drive to West Palm Beach one weekend each month to attend chapter meetings.

Crystal glanced at a spot over Joseph’s broad shoulder. She didn’t want him to think her rude for staring. Despite the stubble on his lean jaw, there was something about his features that made Joseph almost too pretty to be a man. “I’m financial but inactive. Unfortunately,” she admitted, “I don’t have the time to attend my chapter meetings.”

“Where is your chapter?”

“Miami.”

Leaning back in his chair, he crossed his arms over his chest. “So you’re a Gator.”

Crystal wasn’t able to discern from Joseph’s expression whether he was being derisive or complimentary. “Is there something wrong with being a Gator?” she asked defensively.

“Hell no, because you’re looking at a fellow Gator. Palm Beach,” he said before she could ask.

She laughed softly. “It looks as if we’re truly neighbors in every sense of the word.” Crystal paused, and then asked, “What are you doing in Charleston?”

Joseph picked up the menu, studying the selections rather than looking at Crystal. He’d never been one to engage in what he deemed inane repartee in order to glean information from a woman, yet that was exactly what he was doing with Crystal.

“I’m here on business.”

“So am I,” Crystal concurred.

He glanced up, meeting her direct stare. “It appears we have a lot in common. We’re both Greek, Floridians and we’re in Charleston on business.”

“That’s three for three.”

Joseph angled his head. “What about your marital status?”

“What about it?” she asked, answering his question with one of her own.

“Are you single?”

“I’m single and unencumbered.”

A beat passed. “Is that the same as not having any children?” Joseph asked

“It is.”

He went completely still. “That’s four for four.”

“What else do you want to know about me, Joseph?”

There was another pause before he asked, “How long do you plan to be here on business?”

“I estimate a couple of months.”

The slow smile that spread over his features did not reach his eyes. Joseph thought about the odds of meeting a woman, an incredibly beautiful woman who was staying in the same hotel as his, on the same floor and with whom he shared much in common. If he’d signed up with an online dating service, Crystal would’ve been the perfect candidate. He wasn’t looking for a relationship, but friendship—something he hadn’t had in a while.

And for him it had never been about how many women he could sleep with, because there had been more than he could count or remember who were more than willing to become his dessert after he’d taken them to dinner. He didn’t know why, but Joseph always thought about his sister and the lengths he would go to if some man sought to take advantage of her. His mantra of protect a woman as if she were your sister was never that far from his mind, and he knew that was why he’d continued to stay in his past relationship longer than necessary.

“Five for five,” Joseph drawled. He’d planned to live at the hotel for the next four months; the tea garden’s manager who was overseeing wanted to return to Nebraska with his wife, where she would give birth to their first child.

Crystal smiled as she glanced at the menu. It appeared as if she had more in common with Joseph than she’d had with Brian. The man with whom she’d lived eschewed fraternities and sororities, claiming they were socialized cults. The subject always started an argument where they wouldn’t speak for days. It wasn’t their only disagreement, but it was one subject she refused to allow him to vilify. Her mother had been an AKA and her mother before her.

Her stomach rumbled loudly and she hoped Joseph hadn’t heard it. She motioned to a waitress standing several feet away. “I’m ready to order now. I’ll have grits with soft scrambled eggs and one slice of buttered wheat toast.”

The waitress scribbled on her pad. “Would you like coffee, tea or juice, ma’am?”

Crystal closed the binder. “I’d like green tea and grapefruit juice.” Joseph had just given the woman his order when an ear-shattering piercing sound reverberated throughout the room.

The waitress slipped her pad into the pocket of her apron. “I’m sorry, but you’re going to have to leave the hotel. That’s the fire alarm.”

As if on cue, everyone began filing out, Joseph reaching for Crystal’s free hand as she gripped her handbag with the other. Hotel personnel were escorting guests down the staircases, because the elevators were shut down, through the lobby and out to the parking lot. The wail of sirens in the distance came closer and closer. Members of the police and fire departments were now on the scene, urging everyone to leave the parking lot and move across the street.

Joseph tucked Crystal’s hand into the bend of his elbow as they followed the crowd away from the building. An elderly woman complained loudly that someone on her floor had been smoking in their room and she thought it shameful they’d ignore the hotel’s smoke-free policy.

“It looks as if we’re going to have to forgo breakfast,” Joseph said softly, leaning closer to Crystal.

Her stomach rumbled again at the mention of breakfast. “Maybe you can, but I have to get something to eat. The last time I had solid food was more than eighteen hours ago.”

He went completely still, his eyes meeting hers. “Do you have an eating disorder?”

Chapter 3 (#ulink_dc945d21-4850-59fc-9be5-6fb5b6749ceb)

It took several seconds for Crystal to process what Joseph had just asked her. She wasn’t underweight and she definitely didn’t look emaciated, either. “No!” she said. “I didn’t get a chance to eat yesterday. I drove up from Miami and I wanted to get here before nightfall,” she explained when he continued to stare at her. “And there’s nothing anorexic-looking about me.”

Joseph blinked slowly before a slow smile spread over his features. His gaze moved over her body. “No, there isn’t.” He sobered quickly. “I know of a small restaurant not far from here.”

Crystal wasn’t immune to the hungry look in his eyes, and wondered if Joseph knew how much his eyes mirrored what he was feeling. It was apparent he hadn’t learned to hide his emotions behind a facade of indifference. “How far is not far?” she asked.

“It’s about ten blocks. If we start out now, maybe we can get there before it gets too crowded.”

Crystal eased her hand from his loose grip, reaching into her handbag for her phone. She had no intention of walking ten blocks in four-inch heels. “I have a cousin who lives downtown and I’m going to call him and let him know to expect us.”

Joseph narrowed his eyes. “Are you certain he’s not going to be put out with bringing a stranger into his home?”

“He’s not going to be put out. We Eatons have an open-door policy when it comes to family.” She’d proudly stressed her family’s name.

His smooth brow furrowed when she mentioned the name Eaton. “Are you related to Judge Solomon Eaton?”

“You’ve heard of him?” Crystal asked.

“Are you kidding?” Joseph couldn’t keep the excitement out of his voice. “I clerked for him for a year before joining my family’s business.”

Crystal couldn’t stop her hand from shaking as a shiver of unease eddied up her back, making her more than apprehensive. She did not want to believe she was indirectly connected to a man she’d met less than twenty-four hours ago. “You’re a lawyer.” The query was a statement of fact.

He nodded. “Yes.”

“And you’re certain it was my uncle you clerked for?”