Larkin’s chin jerked upward. “Then I’ll owe you.”
“You can work it off at Dantes or we can just call it even for the time you’ve invested.”
“I’m not a taker,” she insisted fiercely.
He fought to keep his voice even. “I never said you were.”
He could see the frustration eating at her. “There are things you don’t know about me.” She began to pace. Kiko paced with her. “I got so caught up in your job offer and then your kisses that I haven’t been able to stop long enough to catch my breath. To…to explain things.”
He zeroed in on the most interesting part of her comments, unable to suppress his curiosity. “My kisses?”
She whirled to face him. “You know what I mean. I understand that it’s simple sexual chemistry, but I’m not… That is, I’ve never…” She thrust her hands through her hair, ruffling the curls into attractive disarray. “I flunked chemistry, okay?”
“Okay.”
“The whole Inferno thing made me lose my focus. I got off course.”
Something was seriously upsetting her and his humor faded, edging toward concern. “It’s not a problem, Larkin.”
“It is a problem.”
She practically yelled the words, pausing to control herself only when Kiko whimpered in distress. The dog paused between the two of them, at full alert, her ruff standing up, giving her a feral, dangerous appearance. Larkin made a quick hand gesture and the animal edged closer, rubbing up against her hip.
She forced herself to relax. “I’m sorry,” she said, though Rafe couldn’t tell if the apology was directed at him or the dog.
Okay, time to approach the situation the same way he did a business dilemma and apply some of his infamous Dante logic. “You told me you came to San Francisco to find someone. Is that what’s upset you? You feel like this job is distracting you from finding this person?”
“Yes. No.” She crouched beside Kiko and buried her face in the dog’s thick coat. “My search is only one of the reasons I’m here.”
“That’s not a problem,” he argued. “There’s no reason why you can’t continue with your search while working for me. In fact, I might be able to help. I know someone who is excellent at finding people. He’s the one who ran the security check on you last night.”
“It’s…complicated.”
Rafe hesitated. “And you don’t trust me enough to explain how or why or who.”
“No,” she whispered.
“Fair enough.”
He approached and crouched beside her. Kiko watched him but no longer appeared distressed, and he slipped his fingers through the dog’s thick fur until he’d linked his hand with Larkin’s. He could feel the leap and surge of their connection the instant they touched. Though he continued to reject the possibility that it was The Inferno, he couldn’t deny that something bound them together, something deep and powerful and determined.
“Here’s what I suggest,” he said softly. “Let’s do what we told my mother and Nonna we’d do. Let’s take this one day at a time. We’ll also give my suggestion a shot and get to know each other a little better. You tell me about yourself. Or at least, as much as you’re comfortable telling me. And I’ll reciprocate.”
She peeked up at him. “An even swap? Story for story?”
“Sounds fair.”
She considered for a minute before nodding. “Okay. Who goes first?”
“We’ll flip for it. Winner’s choice.” He lifted an eyebrow. “Agreed?”
She considered for an instant, then nodded. “Agreed.”
Satisfied to have them back on course, he released her hand and stood. “It’s getting late. Why don’t we throw together a simple meal, open a bottle of wine and sit outside and enjoy the evening? I think we’ll find it more comfortable to reveal personal details in the dark.”
“Definitely.”
They worked in concert after that. He grilled up most of the portion of the steak he hadn’t fed Kiko while Larkin threw together a salad. Then he nabbed a bottle of wine, a pair of glasses and a corkscrew on the way out of the kitchen. He set everything on the glass-and-redwood table on his patio. “There’s some crackers in the cupboard and cheese in the fridge,” he called to Larkin. “Oh, and Kiko will want the last of the beef that’s in there. Middle shelf.”