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bothered most men.
    But right then Blake was too busy fighting down the urge to look back over his shoulder at the table behind him knowing Kira was seated there. He’d thought it odd that she wasn’t seated beside his father but figured they must’ve had a reason for being at two separate tables.
    He wondered who was amusing her so deeply at that moment; making her laugh with whole-hearted mirth. And then he remembered the black guy he’d caught staring at her had taken the same table and could very well be another boyfriend judging from the way she’d leaned easily on his arm like she’d done it a thousand times before.
    The thought made him burn with anger. Not so much that she might be cheating on his father but that she was with any other man besides him.
    It was official: Blake had a thing for his father’s sexy girlfriend.
    He wasn’t even sure what that meant except she distracted the hell out of him. He hadn’t expected to be this drawn to a black woman which had never happened before, not with this intensity. His body reacted to everything about her from her unconsciously sultry voice to the creamy flush in her smooth brown skin. Oh, he had a thing for her alright and there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it right then.
    “So, Blake…did you happen to leave any sweetheart yearning for you back in Britain?” Brittany cooed, cutting through his thoughts with a mischievous smile.
    Blake glanced around the table to meet his father’s neutral expression which didn’t fool Blake in the slightest. He knew his father was just as curious to hear the answer.
    Blake turned his attention back to Brittany. “I’m not exactly sure what you mean, Brittany.”
    “Oh yes you are,” she told him teasingly, as if aware he was merely stalling. “Are you seeing someone? Engaged, married?”
    Blake had to smile. “No; definitely not married,” he said, and sure enough he didn’t miss Brittany’s relieved sigh which closely matched his father’s. He was looking at his father as he added, “But I have been dating someone; she’s French and her name is Eve Durand. We’ve been together almost a year now. So you could say I’m…attached.”
    “Well, are you thinking of marrying this…Eve woman?” his father asked, speaking directly to him for the first time since they’d settled down to dine.
    At that question Blake noticed that the whole table went quiet and he could also tell that the guests at the other table were listening in too.
    Just the kind of attention he’d been avoiding, Blake thought as he hid his deepening irritation. Choosing his words carefully, he replied, “We’ve spoken about marriage, yes.”
    Blake’s relationship with Eve was one he’d felt comfortable with enough to consider taking things further just before his mother lost her battle with cancer. Once his mother was gone Blake began to notice a strain in his relationship with Eve which he knew came all from him. He’d been filled with a lot of anger and a sense of injustice against the world from losing his mother who’d been the sweetest woman in the world and the one thing that had really mattered to him.
    As things stood with Eve, their love affair had been put on hold at least. But they were still officially together. Eve was a great girl; a beautiful, vivacious brunette who worked as a successful fashion stylist. They’d met at a bar in London and the attraction had been mutual. They had a lot of things in common and though Blake wasn’t sure about the labels when it came to love and relationships, he knew she’d have made a perfect wife. He didn’t know yet why he was still holding back.
    His father’s next words snapped him out of his musings. “Well, maybe it’s for the best that you both never got past just speaking about marriage. Best forget it all together because I don’t think she’s right for you,” Bretton said shortly, reaching for his glass of wine and taking a brief sip.
    His dismissive tone