Mind Over Matter

me.”
    “No.” Calmly David blocked her way. “Some people might say you interfere with your mother’s life because you don’t have enough to fill your own.”
    Her eyes became very dark, her skin very pale. “My life is none of your business, Brady.”
    “Not at the moment, but while this project’s going on, Clarissa’s is. Give her some room, A.J.”
    Because it sounded so reasonable, her hackles rose. “You don’t understand.”
    “No, maybe you should explain it to me.”
    “What if Alex Marshall presses her for an interview over dinner? What if he wants to get her alone so he can hammer at her?”
    “What if he simply wanted to have dinner with an interesting, attractive woman? You might give Clarissa more credit.”
    She folded her arms. “I won’t have her hurt.”
    He could argue with her. He could even try reason. Somehow he didn’t think either would work quite yet. “Let’s go for a drive.”
    “What?”
    “A drive. You and me.” He smiled at her. “It happens to be my car you’re leaning on.”
    “Oh, sorry.” She straightened again. “I have to get back to the office. There’s some paperwork I let hang today.”
    “Then it can hang until tomorrow.” Drawing out his keys, he unlocked the door. “I could use a ride along the beach.”
    So could she. She’d overreacted—there was no question of it. She needed some air, some speed, something to clear her head. Maybe it wasn’t wise to take it with him, but… “Are you going to put the top down?”
    “Absolutely.”
    It helped—the drive, the air, the smell of the sea, the blare of the radio. He didn’t chat at her or try to ease her into conversation. A.J. did something she allowed herself to do rarely in the company of others. She relaxed.
    How long had it been, she wondered, since she’d driven along the coast, no time frame, no destination? If she couldn’t remember, then it had been too long. A.J. closed her eyes, emptied her mind and enjoyed.
    Just who was she? David asked himself as he watched her relax, degree by degree, beside him. Was she the tough, no-nonsense agent with an eye out for ten percent of a smooth deal? Was she the fiercely protective, obviously devoted daughter—who was raking in that same ten percent of her mother’s talent on one hand and raising the roof about exploitation the next. He couldn’t figure her.
    He was a good judge of people. In his business he’d be producing home movies if he weren’t. Yet when he’d kissed her he hadn’t found the hard-edged, self-confident woman he’d expected, but a nervous, vulnerable one. For some reason, she didn’t entirely fit who she was, or what she’d chosen to be. It might be interesting to find out why.
    “Hungry?”
    Half dreaming, A.J. opened her eyes and looked at him. How was it he hadn’t seen it before? David asked himself. The eyes, the eyes were so like Clarissa’s, the shape, the color, the…depth, he decided for lack of a better word. It ran through his head that maybe she was like Clarissa in other ways. Then he dismissed it.
    “I’m sorry,” she murmured, “I wasn’t paying attention.” But she could have described his face in minute detail, from the hard cheekbones to the slight indentation in his chin. Letting out a long breath, she drew herself in. A wise woman controlled her thoughts as meticulously as her emotions.
    “I asked if you were hungry.”
    “Yes.” She stretched her shoulders. “How far have we gone?”
    Not far enough. The thought ran unbidden through his mind. Not nearly far enough. “About twenty miles. Your choice.” He eased over to the shoulder of the road and indicated a restaurant on one side and a hamburger stand on the other.
    “I’ll take the burger. If we can sit on the beach.”
    “Nothing I like better than a cheap date.” A.J. let herself out. “This isn’t a date.”
    “I forgot. You can pay for your own.” He’d never heard her laugh like that before. Easy, feminine, fresh. “Just for that I’ll spring.” But he didn’t touch her as they walked up to the stand. “What’ll it be?”
    “The jumbo burger, large fries and the super shake. Chocolate.”
    “Big talk.”
    As they waited, they watched a few early-evening swimmers splash in the shallows. Gulls swooped around, chattering and loitering near the stand, waiting for handouts. David left them disappointed as he gathered up the paper bags. “Where to?”
    “Down there. I like to watch.” A.J. walked out on