Still, when he tried to let go of her hand, she refused to let him. She wouldn’t give that up, too. Not when it felt so right. Not when holding his hand was almost better than having sex with him.

Her body all but laughed at that thought, and she silently acknowledged that there was very little in life that was better than having sex with Jake McCann.

Just then, the conductor announced they were heading into Chinatown and her stomach immediately answered the news with a loud grumble that carried even over the sound of the cable car rattling down its tracks.

She grinned at Jake. “I think our kids like Chinese food.”

* * *

Our kids.

The two little words reverberated through Jake’s chest, holding steady in the center where his heart was beating too fast.

He should have made sure she ate more for breakfast. But instead of putting her needs first, he’d been too busy roughly taking her on the kitchen stool, then pushing her away as soon as they were done.

When the cable car stopped at the next light, he jumped down and reached for her. It didn’t count as touching her if he had to make sure she got to the ground safely...even if he held on to her waist a few seconds longer than he needed to.

He was surprised when Sophie took his hand and started leading the way. “I know a place that has the best cha sui bao.”

“Chasu-what?”

He loved the sound of her laughter. “You’ll see.” She shot him a happy glance over her shoulder. “I promise you won’t be disappointed.”

Thank God she was back to her normal self, smiling and happy. Every time he did or said something to extinguish that joy in her eyes, he hated himself more and more. It was one of the reasons he’d stayed away from her as long as he had...because he’d known he would hurt her.

He hadn’t spent much time in this part of Chinatown, where the tourists were. The parts he knew were the back alleys where the gangs came together. He hadn’t rolled with that crowd since high school, but he still recognized the route through the narrow alleys. So when Sophie headed off the main street and started to turn down one of them, he had to stop her.

“There are plenty of places to eat on this street.”

“None as good as the one I’m taking you to,” she replied, clearly not understanding his concern.

Jake knew he’d spent too much of their time together dictating what she could and couldn’t do. And she clearly wanted to take him to one particular place. So he let her lead them down alleys and back roads, keeping especially close to her, even though he couldn’t understand how perfect little Sophie Sullivan knew her way around this part of the neighborhood.

Finally, she stopped in front of a bright red door and smiled at him. “We’re here.”

She pushed through the door and he saw that it was a bakery, more industrial than meant to serve customers.

A very thin, clearly exhausted middle-aged man looked up with a huge smile. “Miss Sophie!”

She let go of Jake’s hand to give the man a hug. “Mr. Chu, I hope you don’t mind us dropping by like this. Jake and I were in the neighborhood and I couldn’t focus on anything but eating one of your steamed pork buns.”

Jake knew exactly why the man looked so pleased. Sophie had always had that effect on people.

She looked over his shoulder at the kitchen behind him. “I hope we’re not too late. I know how early you sell out.”

But the man was already clearing off the small white plastic table in the corner, holding out the seat for Sophie as if she really were a princess. Jake shook the man’s hand and as he introduced himself, he knew what the guy was thinking as he studied him with narrowed eyes.

“You own those Irish pubs.”

He nodded, saying, “I do,” while making sure Mr. Chu heard what he was really saying: I know I’m not good enough for her, but since I can’t let her go, I’m going to do my damnedest to take care of her.

Mr. Chu studied him before nodding once and disappearing into the back.

“What was that all about?” Sophie asked.

Jake shrugged as he put a stack of magazines on the floor and sat on the other chair. “How do you know this place?”

Before she could answer, Mr. Chu was back with tea. “How is Stanley’s freshman year going?” she asked him.

“Good. Although he says none of the girls there are as pretty as his tutor.”

She laughed out loud at that. “Let him know I miss him, too.” She was still smiling as he moved back into the kitchen. “Stanley always was the world’s biggest flirt.”

Jake knew it was crazy to be jealous of an eighteen-year-old, but just because it was crazy didn’t mean he didn’t feel it. Especially when he thought about the fact that she must have spent plenty of time alone with the kid if she’d been tutoring him.

“You have a full-time job. When do you have time to tutor kids?”

She blew the steam off her cup of tea. “Free time is overrated. I’d much rather be doing something I enjoy with people.”

Now he knew why he’d liked his tutor, Mrs. Springs, so much. It wasn’t just because she’d been the only one he hadn’t been able to scare away. It was because she’d reminded him of Sophie. Gentle, but with a spine of steel beneath that soft exterior.

“Besides,” she said, “ it's really all about my secret mission.” She propped her elbows on the table and put her face in her hands. “I want everyone to love books as much as I do.”

She was so beautiful, so pure, his chest clenched tight as he looked at her across the small table, knowing how badly he was going to disappoint her.

He might not be illiterate anymore, but books would never be fun.

And he would never love them.

Mr. Chu brought over a plate of steaming pork buns, then left them alone again. Sophie broke off a piece and held it out to Jake. “Here, you should have the first taste.”

Thanking God that he’d never needed books to know how to give a woman pleasure, he wrapped his hand around her wrist to hold her hand steady as he put his lips around the food. He let his teeth graze her skin as he did so and was rewarded by the desire that lit her eyes.

“Good, isn’t it?” she asked in a slightly husky voice.

“Give me another taste, princess.”

She had to know what he was doing, that he was playing outside the rulebook by touching her when he’d promised not to. But a moment later, she was back with another piece of the pork bun. Again, he made her part of their snack.