beloved family man. A woman . . .
With a shake of his head he slid the perfectly cooked omelets and muffins onto plates before returning to the table. They ate in silence, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. In fact, there was an ease between them that made it seem as if they were lifelong friends. Or lovers.
Once they were done, he loaded the dishwasher and studied Lynne’s face. She still looked exhausted, but the color had returned to her cheeks. He was discovering that she had a kind, giving heart that was easily hurt, but also possessed a spine of steel. She might never forgive Nash or Chelsea for their betrayal, especially if it turned out the drugs had fallen into the hands of a killer, but she wouldn’t let them defeat her.
“You’re kind of handy to have around,” she murmured.
Kir strolled to stand directly in front of her. He’d done his best during dinner to ignore the awareness vibrating in the air. This wasn’t the time or place. But then, nothing had been the right time or place since his return to Pike.
He intended to enjoy the sensations that she stirred to glorious life. He hadn’t felt such a potent attraction since ...
Actually, he’d never experienced such an intense need.
It wasn’t just lust, although there was plenty of that. It was the way she intruded into his thoughts, and the urge to seek her out no matter how busy he was, and the growing fear that she might be in danger.
He reached out to grasp her hand and pulled her slowly to her feet. “I have several skills.”
She tilted back her head to meet his gaze. “Do you?”
“Mmm.” Tugging her close enough for the warmth of her body to seep through his sweater, Kir lowered his head. Gently he brushed a kiss over her mouth. A groan rumbled in his throat. Her lips were pure temptation. Soft and sweetly willing. He deepened the kiss, allowing his tongue to dip between her lips. She trembled, as if she was as shocked as he was by the passion that instantly blazed between them. Kir lifted his head to gaze down at her flushed face. “Wow. That was . . .”
“Dangerous,” she said.
“Yes.”
Long ago Kir had been an adrenaline junkie. There was no dare he wouldn’t take, and no risk that was too great. But after moving to Boston he’d focused his energies on creating his business. He’d outgrown his addiction to danger.
Until this woman.
He wrapped his arms around her and kissed her again. Longer and slower and deeper. Until the world melted away and nothing else existed.
“Kir.” Lynne pressed her hands to his chest.
Kir lifted his head, struggling to leash his hunger. He wanted to spend the rest of the night tasting Lynne’s honeyed passion. Instead he gave in to the curiosity that had been nagging at him all afternoon.
“Can I ask you a personal question?”
He felt Lynne’s muscles tense, as if she was preparing for a blow. “Okay.”
“Why Nash Cordon?”
“Oh.” She grimaced, but she thankfully didn’t look angered by his prying. “A momentary insanity. And an inbred need to rescue strays.”
“You thought Nash was a stray?”
She shrugged. “He’s lost. In his past. In his ego. In his inability to become an adult.”
He nodded. That made sense. But that wasn’t the entire reason she’d chosen a loser like Nash. “And he wasn’t any threat to your obsession with your career,” he suggested.
She narrowed her eyes. “You haven’t lived in Pike for years. How could you know if I’m obsessed with my career?”
“When we were still in grade school I watched you run into the road to rescue a bird with a broken wing,” he said in dry tones. “I doubt you have changed since then.”
Her lips pursed at the reminder of the day she’d stormed off the playground to carefully scoop an injured bird off the pavement and place it beneath a nearby tree. She couldn’t have been more than seven or eight at the time. Kir had watched her mad dash with astonishment. Not even he was willing to boldly march directly into traffic.
“Jimmy Schultz threw a rock at it,” she said as if her actions had been perfectly reasonable. “I had to do something.”
“I remember your teacher was furious.”
“Ms. Randall nearly jerked off my arm dragging me to the principal’s office,” Lynne said. “I didn’t care. I got the bird off the road and after school my dad drove me back so we could take it to the clinic.”
“See? Obsessed.”
“Passionate