“I am. Are you?” he asked, not wanting to give anything away that he recognized her name or knew who she was, although she carried the same last name as the hotel.

“Yes, I’m enjoying myself.”

No doubt at my expense, he thought, when he saw she had no intention of mentioning that she was the hotel’s owner. “I think you might enjoy it even more if you have dinner with me.”

A feeling of uneasiness crept over Cassie. The moment her fingers had slid into the warmth of his when they had shaken hands, she had felt a surge of sensations that settled in the middle of stomach. This guy was smooth and the problem was that she wasn’t used to smooth guys. She dated, but not frequently, and definitely not someone like Brandon Jarrett. It was quite obvious he knew how to work it and it was also quite obvious that he thought he had a chance of working her. That realization didn’t repulse her like it should have. Instead it had her curious. He wouldn’t be the first man who’d tried hitting on her, but he was the first who had remotely triggered her interest in over a year or so.

“We’re back to that, are we?” she asked, chuckling, feeling a little more relaxed than she had earlier.

“Yes, I’m afraid we’re back to that, and I hope you don’t disappoint me. We can dine here at the hotel or go someplace else that’s close by. It will be your choice.”

She knew if would be crazy to suggest to a perfect stranger to take her someplace other than here, but the last thing she wanted was to become the topic of conversation of her employees. Some of them hadn’t yet gotten over the shock that John Garrison was her biological father and that he had left the hotel to her. Making a decision she hoped that she didn’t later regret she said, “I prefer going someplace else that’s close by.”

She could tell her response pleased him. “Is there any place you want to recommend or do you prefer leaving the choice to me?” he asked.

Again putting more trust in him than she really should, she said, “I’ll leave things to you.”