Page 16 of The Professor's Wife
“It was a worthy effort.”
Tristan’s cone was nearly finished when I threw mine away. My hands were sticky, and my skin felt damp from the heat. He passed me another napkin, his fingers brushing mine.
The warmth of his skin lingered longer than it should have.
I wiped the sticky trail from my wrist, but the slight tremor in my hand wasn’t caused by the ice cream.
I blew out a breath and tossed the napkin away. Then I pushed the loose strands of hair from my face. My skin was damp, and my dress clung uncomfortably in the heat.
It didn’t help that I was under the effects of this man.
I must have looked like a mess.
“You look out of breath,” he observed.
“It’s very hot.”
His eyes narrowed thoughtfully as he looked toward the water. Then he said, “I can help with that.”
The way he said it made my stomach tighten.
“How?”
He hesitated.
“My van is in the parking lot. I could turn on the air conditioner.”
I eyed him. “You have avanin the parking lot?”
“I do.”
“Is it white with tinted windows?”
His eyes clouded with amusement. “You’ll be delighted to know it is neither of those things.”
“I’m very happy to hear that.”
“It’s also parked in a very public place.”
“The sun is about to go down.”
“It stays busy around here at night.”
I took a moment to consider it.
Tristan watched my face and immediately shook his head.
“Forget it.”
“Why?”
“I just invited you into my van to cool off. It sounds dodgy as hell.”
I smiled. “It’s only dodgy if you make it dodgy.”
His expression grew serious. “I wouldn’t. I’m not that kind of man.”
“What kind of man are you, Tristan?”
