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her.
    “Wineglasses but no wine?” Cassie asked. “You’ll be run out of Sonoma County if anyone finds out,” she said with a smile.
    “Yes. A bit like moving to Santa Fe and not liking Mexican food.” Luke paused, as if deciding whether to continue or not. “Not liking it wasn’t my problem,” she said. “Beer, whiskey, wine … I liked it all. Too much. So, I quit.”
    “Totally?”
     
    “Totally, yeah. That’s when I started working out. I ended up trading one addiction for another.” Luke’s face broke into a smile. “And it’s become that. I’ve got a small gym out back. Just the basics, but enough to keep me satisfied.”
    “How long now?”
    “Since I’ve had a drink?”
    Cassie nodded.
    “I was thirty-two. Six years now, I guess,” she said. She pulled out a stool at the opposite end of the bar, and Cassie’s eyes folŹlowed her. They studied each other for a moment, silently.
    “You have the most incredible eyes,” Luke said softly. “Bluest I’ve ever seen.”
    Cassie felt her heart catch, then race, sending fire through her body. Her eyes widened as Luke watched her.
    “I’m not a … I’m not gay,” she finally stammered.
    Luke laughed and snapped her fingers. “Damn! I keep forgetŹting that rule not to compliment straight women.”
    Cassie blushed crimson. “I’m sorry. I just thought I should …”
    “Warn me? In case I had designs on you?” Luke laughed again, a deep, husky laugh that Cassie found enjoyable, despite her embarrassment. “You’re perfectly safe. Trust me,” Luke said.
    “I’m sorry,” Cassie said again, now totally humiliated. “You probably have a … someone … in the city.”
    “Actually, no. I’m just not looking.” She got up to stir the pot again and Cassie forced her eyes to remain on her empty wineŹglass. “Usually it just screws up a good friendship,” Luke said. She turned back around to Cass ie. “But I thought you were … you know, gay.”
    “No, I’m not,” Cassie heard herself say, surprised at the ease that statement came to her.
    Luke shrugged and put the lid back on. “A good day for chili,” she said. “Vegetarian, though. I hope you don’t mind.”
    Cassie’s lips parted in surprise. She was a vegetarian, too? She shook her head. “No, I don’t mind at all.”
     

Chapter Seven
    Cassie got up to get a second bowl of chili and carried it to the bar. Luke apologized again for not having a dining table.
    “It is supposed to go over there,” she said, pointing to an open spot. “But now I’m not sure I want one. I’ve gotten used to having the space.”
    “Unless you entertain a lot, I find they’re a waste,” Cassie said. The chili was wonderful, thick and spicy and she dipped the homeŹmade bread into it.
    “How long have you lived out here?” Luke asked.
    “About six years. Kim, the woman you met at the fair, moved out here when she met Lisa. I came to visit them all the time.” Cassie laughed. “I’m sure Lisa was glad when I finally moved here. I was becoming a permanent fixture in their spare room.”
    Luke grinned. “I thought you were going to tell me Kim wasn’t gay either.”
    Cassie smiled. “No, Kim is definitely gay. She thinks the whole world is gay, they just don’t know it yet.”
     
    “Meaning you?”
    Cassie nodded. She wasn’t about to discuss this with Luke, however. “This chili is delicious,” she said.
    “You’ve already said that. Twice. But I can take a hint,” she said. “We’ll change the subject. I saw an adorable little squirrel you did. It’s at the grocery store in town. That’s how I found out your name.”
    “Carl had a pet squirrel. Not really a pet. Just tame enough to sit in his hand and eat,” Cassie said. “It just disappeared one day. Carl likes to think that it ran off for some wild sex or something,” Cassie said with a laugh. “Most likely he became dinner for some owl or hawk, though. Anyway, I gave that to him as a remembrance of