CHAPTER ONE
In all the years that Lola Sullivan had been teaching classes in her textile design studio, she’d never had a student like him. Several inches taller than six feet, Duncan Lyman had broad shoulders, a square jaw, and piercing blue eyes.
As she went to greet her new student, she had to resist the urge to check her hair and smooth her dress. She would never hit on a student. Besides, she was firmly in a there-was-no-point-in-dating stage in her life, as every date she’d had in the past year had been a massive disappointment. Without fail, no matter how promising a man seemed at first, he inevitably assumed she couldn’t possibly have such bountiful curves and also have the brains to add two plus two.
She approached him with a smile. “Hello, I’m Lola Sullivan. You must be Duncan?”
His handshake somehow managed to be warm, firm, and innately sensual at the same time. “It’s nice to meet you, Lola.” He held on to her hand for just long enough that her heartbeat started racing. “I’ve been looking forward to your class.” His voice matched his looks, all low and rumbly and gorgeous. Just the way he said her name made her stomach flutter. She’d never realized before how sensual Lola could sound.
At a surprising loss for words—she wasn’t known as the quiet one in her family, that was for sure!—she gestured for him to take a seat at the large worktable. Turning to speak to her ten students, nine of whom were women between the ages of forty-five and sixty, she said, “I’m so pleased you’re all here today. Before we begin, I’d love to know what each of you hope to get out of the class.”
All nine women were working toward second careers in textile and pattern design. Only Duncan had a different goal. “I’m interested in cartography. Hand-drawn maps, specifically. The reviews I read of your classes say you’re a gifted teacher.”
Lola felt like she was glowing from his compliment as she said, “I have an antique hand-drawn map hanging on my living-room wall, so I’m definitely a fan of cartography. I just hope I can help you with the skills you’re looking for.”
He gave her a smile that made her heartbeat pick up again. “I’m sure you will.”
It wasn’t until one of the other students cleared her throat that Lola realized she was still staring at him. More than a little alarmed by how quickly a handsome face and deliciously sexy voice had turned her head, she adopted a brisk tone. “If all of you would please turn to the printed materials, I’ll go over today’s class plan.”
Thirty minutes later, her students were working on the first assignment of the day. Though she enjoyed teaching beginners, she was pleased to see that they were an advanced group. And head and shoulders above everyone else was Duncan.
For the next several hours, she gave each student as much individual attention as she could. Unfortunately, as soon as she began working one-on-one with Duncan, her heart began to race again. It didn’t help that he smelled so good, like a refreshing breath of the sea, or that he was even more attractive close up. Sitting beside him now, she noticed not only the flecks of gold in his blue eyes, but also that he already had a hint of a five o’clock shadow on his jaw, though it was barely noon. He was wearing a beautifully tailored button-down shirt and had on a watch from an exclusive brand, but he still looked so rugged. Duncan looked like a man who’d been born to climb mountains and cut down trees. Or, given his appreciation for hand-drawn maps, to build and sail ships around the world.
Duncan was likely wondering why she continued to stare at him instead of teaching the new drawing skills he’d signed up to learn. She silently berated herself for acting like a schoolgirl with her first big crush. Working to clear her expression of any possible hints of attraction, she said, “Not many of my students have used dip pens and calligraphic nibs before. Watching you work with them this morning, I’m thinking you could teach me a thing or two.”
It wasn’t until the words were out of her mouth that she realized how they sounded. First, that she’d been watching him all morning. And second, that she was fantasizing about all the things he could teach her…
Her face flaming, she intended to move away, desperate now to put some space between them so that she could beat her unruly hormones back into submission. But his intense gaze held her captive. Spellbound in a way that no other man ever had before, without so much as a touch, or a kiss.
“I’ve been watching you too,” he said, his deep voice resonating through every cell in her body. “Your talent is astonishing. Even your quick sketches when you’re illustrating a point are more polished than I could ever hope for my work to be.” His gaze moved to her hands, then back up to her face, making her skin tingle as though he had actually touched her. “Show me, Lola. Tell me your secrets.”
Lola knew he was simply asking her for drawing pointers. And yet, somehow it felt like he was asking her for more. For something she hadn’t given a man since college. Not only for her deeply held secrets, but also for a piece of the heart she had learned to keep carefully protected.
The sound of laughter from two students at the other end of the worktable brought her back to reality. She forced a smile, the kind she would give to a friend, rather than someone whose sheer presence made her breathless. “Have you ever tried the Number Five Superior School Pen by Tachikawa?”
When he shook his head, she pulled one out of her tool drawer for him. “It holds ink well and is stiff enough to help you maintain thin lines, but has enough flexibility so that you can vary the thickness when needed.”
He drew several lines from .2 mm to .4 mm wide. “You’re right, this is an excellent pen.” The smile he gave her warmed her all over, in places that had been cold for a long time.
Jumping up from the seat she’d taken next to him, she said, “Who’s hungry?” When everyone agreed that they were ready to break for lunch she suggested, “Let’s go down the street to my mom’s café. She makes the most delicious home-cooked Irish food you will ever eat.”
When they got to the restaurant, Lola planned to make sure she sat at the very opposite end of the table from Duncan. Otherwise, she risked making a fool of herself…again. And yet, once all of her students were seated, Lola realized she had lost the game of musical chairs. Because the only seat available was the one beside Duncan.
A few of her students gave her surreptitious smiles. Lola barely held back a sigh. Clearly, some of the women had noticed her reaction to him and had visions of pairing them up.
Normally, Lola would be happy to play along and harmlessly flirt with him. But nothing felt normal today.
Still, once everyone had ordered and started to chat with one another, she couldn’t sit there and ignore him, could she? “You’re very talented. How long have you been working as a cartographer?”
“That compliment means a lot coming from you,” he said with a smile that made her heart skip around inside her chest some more. “Especially since I’m just a hobbyist. I have a long way to go if I ever want to call myself a cartographer.”
“Hand-drawn maps are a dying art, aren’t they?” Thankfully, talking about art helped her relax around him.
He nodded, then gave the waitress a smile as she brought over his coffee. Aileen’s face went bright red at his attention before she ran off to giggle with the other waitress. Clearly, both women found him extremely attractive.