PHOTO - Annie and Van posing for the cover of Annie's book

Dinner in Chinatown with Van and Annie ...

Still hoping Van would go away and leave her alone, Annie checked the oncoming traffic then crossed Sutter Street at the light.

But Van followed right alongside her. "I'm sorry, Annie," he said. "I've really hurt you, haven't I?"

His words made her cringe. She didn't want to look at him. He was way too attractive tonight in his pirate get-up, and she didn't want to deal with the problem that caused. It was much too frustrating. But he'd given her the opportunity to tell him off one more time. So she stared straight ahead and did just that.. "Yes! I feel humiliated by the way you tricked me, and cheated too. You robbed me of a friend. Vanessa. I really wanted to meet her. But instead I learned she doesn't even exist."

His voice was like silk smoothing softly over her. "Oh, I think she does, Annie. Somewhere deep inside me."

She forced herself to look at him. She had to learn to resist his magnetic charm and stop being so afraid. "You're telling me there's a woman inside you?"

"Not exactly a woman. But a sweet and sensitive romantic guy."

"Ha!" she couldn't help laughing. "You are a big macho brute!"

Van regarded her with an amused gaze. "Aw, come on. You'd find I'm not anything like that if you'd just let yourself get to know me. You'd really like me if you gave it a chance."

Her cheeks colored under the heat of his gaze and she tore her eyes away again, hating her vulnerability to him. She knew he was right. Of course she would like him if she gave it a chance. She already liked him, even if it was much easier for her to keep on hating him.

They walked under the Dragon Gate into Chinatown. The sidewalk, filled with tourists and native San Franciscans, was lined with the colorful exteriors of restaurants, clubs, and shops selling every imaginable commodity from far away China. Annie was amused by the looks she and Van were getting from the others around them. It brought a much-needed smile to her lips.

"You'd think they never saw pirates before," she jested.

Van chuckled. "These streets are filled with characters day and night, but I guess we're dressed a little unusual even for Chinatown."

Annie forced herself to make an attempt at pleasant conversation. "Do you come here to San Francisco often?"

"Occasionally. It's like a get-away place for me. I spent quite a bit of time here a few years ago researching the 1849 Gold Rush for Passion's Flaring Flame."

"Oh, I loved that book," Annie declared, warming up to him in spite of herself. "Especially Donetta, the heroine. I really identified with her."

"Of course you did. She was you. The only difference between the two of you is that Donetta had green eyes. Otherwise, you and she are the same woman. And I created her before I even knew you. Donetta is by far the perfect example of the woman I've been waiting for. Can't you understand why I'm so happy to have found you?"

Annie looked at him thoughtfully from under lowered lashes. Yes, that character was uniquely like her. She'd been amazed to read about a woman so much like herself. Could it be that he was really being truthful about his feelings for her?

"Why do you think I kept urging you to come to the convention?" he went on. "I desperately wanted to meet you. From everything you told me about yourself, I just knew you were the one."

Her mouth formed a thin sour line. "I told you way too much. I need my head examined for having confided all that in a stranger."

"Nonsense! I think it's only right for a man to know everything about his woman."

His woman. Annie had to admit it sounded rather wonderful. What woman could resist the thought of being Van Drake's woman? Even she was having trouble resisting it, and she didn't want to be any man's woman. But could she let herself go and take a chance? There was every possibility that he could turn out to be just like Eric and leave her with another broken heart.

"I'm hungry," she said suddenly, thinking that perhaps if they sat down in a quiet restaurant she might be able to get to know him a little bit better while they ate.

Van's lips parted in surprise. "You certainly got your appetite back fast."

"It's a woman's prerogative to change her mind," she tossed back. "Didn't you know that?"

Van raised his thick brows. "I won't even try to dispute it. Especially with you. Do you want to go back to the ball for dinner?"

"No, I'd rather eat Chinese food in one of these restaurants. It's so wonderful being here in Chinatown. The lights, the color, this beautiful night. It looks like the Chinatown in New York City. Only difference is our streets aren't hilly."

She looked up to see the moon, but it wasn't visible from here. Yet she knew it was up there, and it made her shiver to be here with Van in this crazy upside-down and inside-out situation in romantic San Francisco under the full moon.

He shrugged his shoulders amiably. "Okay by me. One of my favorite restaurants is right up ahead."

Van pulled off his eye patch and stuck it into the waistband of his breeches as they approached the Golden Dragon restaurant. It's huge sign portrayed a big dragon in bright neon gold and an assortment of bold intricate Chinese language characters. He opened the door for Annie, and they stepped inside. A Chinese maitre d' greeted them in a gracious manner at the entrance to the dining room, just as if pirates showed up every evening at the restaurant for dinner.

"Ah, Mr. Drake," the man crooned smoothly. "So good to see you again. I did not know you were in town. Table for two?"

"Right. And it's good to see you again, Lee," Van responded, and then introduced Annie to the friendly man. "I'm here for a writers convention at the St. Andrew's, thus the costumes. Tonight is our dinner and ball, but Miss Halston here had a desire for Chinese food instead of what they had on the menu."

"Then you have come to the right place," the man said to Annie. "The Golden Dragon is one of San Francisco's most popular restaurants." He then led them to a table in a quiet corner of the exotically decorated dining room. After they were seated, he expressed a wish that they would enjoy their meal, and he then called a waitress over to their table.

The waitress also knew Van by name and Annie did not miss the woman's admiring glances cast his way. After he and Annie ordered drinks, the Chinese woman left to go to the bar.

Annie looked at Van curiously. "You must be quite a celebrity. Are you known by name all over this city?"

He shook his head, smiling mysteriously. "Not really. Only in a few places. And I know a lot of the Chinese people. They have the strangest knack of remembering who I am."

Annie couldn't help laughing. "Gosh, I can't imagine why," she said facetiously. "How is it that you never found your way to Hollywood?"

Van chuckled at the question. "I tried acting in college. But I was so bad that they barred me from the drama department." He winked at her. "Even all the girls dying to kiss me in romantic scenes said, 'Get out!' I was there on an ROTC scholarship, so I stuck with that. Started writing for their student publication since I was also studying journalism."

Annie grinned, believing the coeds had indeed wanted to kiss him. "And then you became a Navy SEAL?"

Van raised his brows. "I see you've been talking to Jake about me, huh? Yes, I went right into special forces training after college. My experiences as a SEAL totally prepared me for writing adventure novels. Romance, too, because the really good romances are filled with adventure."

Annie sat back in her chair, allowing herself to take a good long look at him. Her pulse immediately began to quicken. "Jake also told me you did not want to write CEO/Billionaire romances which, of course, resulted in Vanessa Drake bringing historical romance back to the top of the charts."

Van snorted and shook his head. "If I was going to write romance, it was going to be romantic. No wacky bad-boy leads for me, sweetie. No way was I going to write about men in suits and ties who sit behind desks, act like spoiled little kids, and get their kicks being abusive to women. My dudes are real men, and they love women. That's how they drive them crazy, by loving them. Not by being difficult and unreachable, and worse."

Annie knew he was definitely driving her crazy by just claiming he loved her. "When I first saw you in the elevator this afternoon, I thought you were a model," she told him. "I was thinking that you should pose as Jean-Luc on the cover of Desire's Destiny."

He liked that idea. "I certainly will if Jake publishes it. But only if you agree to pose as Marylda."

Annie pictured Jean-Luc and Marylda locked together in one of those heated embraces depicted on the covers of the historical romance novels. She felt a little breathless at the thought of posing like that with Van.

"I can't pose as Marylda," she said. "She has auburn hair."

Van leaned his elbows on the table, his deep blue eyes boring into hers. "The artist can change the color. You're the only woman I want to pose with or do anything with from now on."

Annie realized she was holding her breath. She let it out slowly, raising her finely arched eyebrows. "That sounds like a long commitment, Mr. Drake."

He nodded. "Yah. Like in forever. I am totally committed."

She picked up the menu in front of her and opened it, just about breathless. He was enough to make a girl faint! "Oh? Tell me about it," she quipped. "I seem to have heard that line before."

Van pulled the menu out of her hands and closed it. "I am not Eric. He was a fool to leave you for another woman. As much as I'd like to break his neck for what he did to you, I'm glad he did it. Because now you're mine."

Annie grabbed the menu back from him and opened it again. "I am not yours. I belong only to me. And I intend to keep it that way."

As she looked at the lists of offered foods, she heard him growl in annoyance. "All right, let's change the subject before we start arguing again."

She shot him a defiant glance. "We already are arguing again. And you are the one who keeps bringing up that subject."

The waitress appeared just then and placed their drinks down in front of them. Annie hid her face behind the menu and silently laughed. She knew that her anger at Van was beginning to lessen, but she was darned if she was going to let him gain control over her. He might not be the kind of man you could stay mad at for long, but she was not going to become putty in his fingers either.

"Are you ready to order, Mr. Drake?" the waitress asked.

"Yes," Annie responded before Van could speak and order for her. "I'll have the Pineapple Duck and an order of fried rice and tea."

Van gave her a calculated look, but said nothing, then gave the woman his order. Taking the menus from them, she then turned and left for the kitchen.

Annie picked up the glass in front of her and took a sip of her drink. The strong whiskey felt good going down, and she knew she needed it. She certainly needed something to boost her resolve with this man. She knew she had to keep her wits about her, or she'd end up drooling in his arms somewhere before the night was over.

"Do you always parade around with your chest exposed?" she asked Van.

"Of course not. This costume is expressly for you."

She had figured as much when she first saw him come out on the stage. Now she had the most irresistible urge to reach across the table and play with the curly dark hairs growing in the cleft between his well-defined pectoral muscles.

But she put her drink down and clasped her hands together on her lap. "I suppose you had your ears pierced just so you could wear those earrings tonight?" she asked, watching the big hoops dangle. "I'll find it hard to believe if you tell me you've had pierced ears all along."

"You're right. I haven't. I got them pierced at a boutique in Telluride last month." His dark eyebrows arched mischievously. "The gal who did it is just an acquaintance. I don't really know her that well. I had to beg her not to tell anybody or the whole town would be talking about it by now."

Annie's mouth twitched with amusement. "I bet she just couldn't keep it to herself. One pierced ear on a man like you is acceptable nowadays. But two? I don't think so. Do the people there know you are Vanessa Drake?"

Van shook his head. "No. They know me as Van Drake, the adventure writer. I've seen Vanessa's books around town at the stores and in the library and at the ski lodges, but just a few of my friends know about Vanessa, and they are sworn to secrecy."

"Well, everyone will know the truth tomorrow," Annie said. "I'm sure the news of Vanessa's being a man will be in the papers coast to coast. People Magazine will probably contact you for the entire story."

Van squared his broad shoulders and grinned. "Jake already took care of that. He gave them the whole story, they interviewed me at my home in Telluride, shirtless photos and all. And," he started laughing, "it'll all be in the Sexiest Man Alive issue and I'll be the main dude himself - on the cover."

Annie rolled her eyes, but she couldn't help laughing too. "Ohmygod! The Queen of Romance is also the Sexiest Man Alive. You are an incorrigible egotist, aren't you? And everybody is so eager to keep you thinking that way."

Van's eyes mocked her. "Modesty is not a quality I'd expect you to desire in a man."

"Hmm ...?" Annie thought about that for a moment. Jean-Luc certainly was not what you'd call modest. Van was right. It's just that egotistical men seemed so exciting and desirable in romantic fiction. She wasn't so sure right now that the same applied to real life.

Van leaned closer. "You aren't mad at me anymore, are you?" he asked hopefully.

Annie shrugged. "Uh ... well, let's just say I'm beginning to get over it."

Which wasn't a lie, really. But she reminded herself that in no way, no freaking way, would she go too far over to the other side.

Van looked pleased. "Great! Now we can talk about us."

Annie's eyes narrowed threateningly. "Don't tell me you're going to bring up that subject again!"

Van leaned back in his chair, shoulders slumping. "Sorry! Forget I even mentioned it."

Annie smiled sweetly. "I have already forgotten."

"Good. I won't mention it again.

"Wonderful."

"At least not until we leave this restaurant."

Annie's eyes shot daggers at him. "Will you get it through that thick skull of yours that there is not going to be an us?"

A disarming smile played at the corners of Van's mouth. "I'm not so sure of that, Annie Halston. You know what? No matter what you say, I'm just not so sure about that."

**

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NEXT! Back to the ball for dancing and romancing ....