Wish 01 - A Secret Wish by Barbara Freethy Read Free Book Online

likes a good challenge,” he said with a smile.
    “Then he must love me.”
    “He does. You just don’t know it.”
    * * *
     
    “Is your name really John?” Liz sat back in her chair at the hotel bar. She felt pleasantly relaxed and a little buzzed after two and a half glasses of very expensive champagne. They’d spent the past hour conversing about nothing important – music, books, movies, and San Francisco. John was smart, funny, amazingly well read, and hot, a ridiculously good combination. There had to be something wrong with him. She was just not this lucky.
    “Why wouldn’t it be?” he countered.
    “You don’t look like a John, with your golden hair and your dark blue eyes. John is too plain, too average, and you are not either of those things.”
    “So what name would you like?”
    “I don’t know. Morgan or Drew or maybe one of those names that could be first or last, like Taylor or Tyler.” She paused. “And besides the fact that John doesn’t seem to fit you, every time I say your name, you seem a little surprised. So what’s the story? Did you give me an alias? Are you running from the law?”
    “Nothing that exciting. My first name is John, but my family mostly called me by my middle name, Eric, to differentiate between myself and my father, who was also named John.”
    “Then why didn’t you introduce yourself as Eric?”
    He ran his finger along the rim of his empty champagne glass, his gaze growing distant. “My dad is gone now, and everyone else who called me Eric is also gone. My mother died when I was a teenager. I don’t have any siblings. It’s just me.” His voice was pragmatic, no hint of any emotion, but the tight line of his lips revealed his tension.
    Now she better understood the hint of darkness that seemed to linger behind his smile. She didn’t offer the usual, “I’m sorry.” It wouldn’t mean anything. His pain went soul deep. “Shall I call you Eric, or should I stick with John?”
    He hesitated for a moment and then said, “Let’s stick with John. I have my reasons,” he added with a smile.
    “You’re good at turning the lights back on,” she commented, taking another sip of champagne.
    “What do you mean by that?”
    “You get serious, then you shrug it off. Are you trying not to think about your dad?”
    Surprise flashed through his eyes. “Maybe,” he conceded. “You’re very astute.”
    “I’ve always been a people watcher.”
    “Part of the job?”
    “Yes. I like to be able to give someone what they need, even when they can’t tell me they need it.”
    He met her gaze. “I like to do that, too. It feels good.”
    She smiled back at him. “That’s why you brought me out for champagne. You didn’t like my party of one, and you took pity on me.”
    “This is better, don’t you think?”
    “Absolutely.”
    “Good. Where is your family, Liz?”
    She stiffened. She should have guessed that the inevitable personal questions would come up eventually. It was her fault. She’d started it by asking him about his name. If she’d just kept them focused on trivial topics, she might have been able to avoid this moment.
    So tell the lie. It’s no big deal. It’s not like you haven’t told it before. It’s not like he’s going to think you’re not telling the truth.
    “No one close by,” she said vaguely.
    “That’s too bad.”
    She shrugged. “Since we’re getting personal, what do you do for a living?”
    “At the moment, I’m in between gigs, as they say.”
    “That’s usually said about actors or musicians,” she said pointedly. “Are you either one?”
    “I always wanted to be a rock star, but unfortunately, I couldn’t sing.” He paused as the waiter stopped by their table to ask if they wanted another drink.
    Liz put a hand over her glass. “I won’t be able to walk if I have any more.”
    “Well, we can’t have that,” he said, waving off the waiter. “It’s early. I was thinking that we should keep the