The Right Time

“Delicious.” She stirred the spritzer and took another quick sip. “Now you know all about me, how about sharing a little about you? Are you in the Bahamas for business or pleasure?”

“A little bit of both. I’m here for a wedding.”

“Are you in the wedding business?”

She uncrossed and crossed her legs, drawing his eyes. Ransom wondered if she did that on purpose. She had to know she had amazing legs—shapely, toned, and definitely eye-catching.

“The bride and groom are colleagues of mine.”

“Oh really? What do you do? Wait, let me guess. Banking?”

“No.”

“Are you a consultant of some kind?”

“You could say that.”

Her eyebrows arrowed down. “Okay, tell me.”

“I’m a civil attorney for a law firm out of Chicago. I protect my clients against frivolous lawsuits. Wait a minute, what was that look?”

Sophie fixed her face. “What look?”

“The look you just gave me, as if I’m scum and all of a sudden you wish you hadn’t agreed to have a drink with me.”

“Scum might be a bit of an exaggeration,” she said, her gaze scurrying away from his.

“But?” Ransom prompted.

“Okay, I might as well come clean. I sort of suspected you were an attorney, but I hoped you weren’t. The a-hole I told you about…he’s a lawyer, too. Interestingly enough, he says civil attorneys are among the worst of the lot. You don’t exactly have a good reputation.” She wrinkled her round little nose.

“I’m a little offended,” Ransom said, mildly amused but accustomed to people either being impressed by his profession or viewing him with suspicion. “Everyone deserves representation.”

“You’re not the least bit concerned about the poor individuals being taken advantage of?”

“Poor individuals?” he scoffed, plastering an exaggerated expression of shock on his face.

Sophie laughed, and her entire face lit up. She twirled a lock of silky-looking hair around a finger. “Oh right, you’re on the side of the companies. But come on, all lawsuits are not frivolous.”

“The vast majority of them are, trust me.”

“A man who truly enjoys his work, I see.” She swirled the thin straw in her glass. “Don’t you feel any guilt at all?” She sipped the spritzer, eyeing him through her lashes, blatantly flirtatious.

“Like I said, everyone deserves representation.”

“Are you telling me you have zero guilt?”

“None whatsoever. If I didn’t represent these companies, someone else would. If you saw the way people try to squeeze my clients dry for millions of dollars, often due to their own negligence, you’d understand.”

She studied him for a moment, eyes soft, chin resting on her hand. “I guess we’ll have to agree to disagree. Do you enjoy your work?”

That was a tough question. In the early years, he did, but nowadays he considered practicing law a means to an end. His profession allowed him to live a different life from the one he’d known, growing up on a struggling farm in Oklahoma. He drove a luxury vehicle, owned a condo in the commercial core of the third most populous city in the country, and had a closet filled with enough high-end suits to open a men’s clothing store. So while the thrill of winning was no longer there, he earned a more-than-comfortable living. The career he really wanted to pursue—the one that no one knew about—could not offer him the lifestyle he now enjoyed.

“After practicing for eleven years, I make a good living,” he said. “What about you? Do you enjoy your job?”

“Most days.”

“What days do you not like it?”

“When we’re disrespected or treated like slaves. Or when we’re diminished to being mere sex objects instead of professionals with a job to do.”

“Does that happen a lot?”

“Often enough that it’s bothersome, but not enough to make me quit.”

His eyes flicked over her, appreciating her curvaceous body. Round hips. Full breasts. He understood why men might view her in a sexual way. She was certainly easy on the eyes.

Sophie groaned. “Not you, too.”

“What do you mean?”

“The way you looked at me is exactly the kind of thing I hate.”

“You’re wrong about me.”

“It was in the eyes.” She pointed two fingers at hers.

“Oh, the eyes. What else do you see in my eyes, Sophie?” He folded his arms on the bar and leaned closer—unnecessarily so—to feel her out. She didn’t move away. In fact, she shifted closer.

“I see a man who probably works very hard,” she said, voice dipping lower.

The corners of his mouth tipped up into a slow smile. “I do work hard, and I’m very good at what I do. Sometimes I need to let off a little steam.”

“Would you like to let off some steam now?” she purred.

“As a matter of fact, I would.”

She tilted her head. “What did you have in mind?”

His lurid thoughts might be too much for her right now. “I’m open to suggestions. What would you like to do tonight?”

“Are you asking me out on a date?”

“Only if you’d say yes.”

She clasped her hands atop her knee. “I haven’t had dinner yet.”

“Well then, we should get you fed.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You’re not going to get me into any trouble, are you?”

“We’re in the Bahamas. Of course there’s going to be trouble.” He enjoyed teasing her.

“Getting into trouble is not exactly my forte.”

“Lucky for you, it happens to be mine. So why don’t you keep a lonely attorney company?”

“I don’t believe you’re lonely.”

“I won’t be if you’re with me.”

Sophie pursed her lips, thinking. “All right. Where to?” she asked.

“Follow me.”

He extended his arm, she took it, and they left.