The Guy Next Door - By Lori Foster, S Donovan, V Dahl Page 0,28
parents was laughable. She and Molly were close, but it wasn’t like in most families.
Most families didn’t include one parent gone and the other…uncaring.
Natalie squeezed the dog tighter. “You told Connie not to alert them!”
Concerned, Jett rubbed his thumbs over her cheeks and said with a strange sort of apology, “She will anyway.”
“But…” Natalie shook her head. “That doesn’t make any sense.”
Jett’s gaze stayed steady on her face. “Natalie…”
Time to quit while she was ahead.
Bending down, Natalie put Buddy back on the floor. He’d been totally limp against her, utterly relaxed, and now he looked startled, filling her with guilt.
He bounced his gaze back and forth between them with trepidation.
Jett said to him, “It’s okay, Buddy.”
And just like that, he dropped his butt down to sit.
Bemused, Natalie let out a breath. “You’ve cast a spell on him or something.” Many times she had wondered why Jett, and Jett alone, could draw such strong reactions from her, getting her to do things normally considered uncharacteristic to her nature, making her feel things she hadn’t known were possible. Now she had evidence that he possessed some strange power.
He tipped her face up to his. “About tomorrow—”
Oh no. She could not discuss this with him right now. She mustered up a cheerful expression. “How long will it take us to get to your sister’s clinic?”
The heat of his frustration beat against her. “Fifteen minutes or so.”
“I’ll be ready in plenty of time.” She forced a yawn. “But for now, I’m exhausted. It’ll be a long day tomorrow, and I need to finish getting a few things together. I still have to shower, too. And I absolutely have to reach my sister before I go.”
“Shh.” Jett kissed her, and somehow, after all they’d done, this kiss felt different.
Sweeter.
More…loving.
No. No, no, no. Natalie pushed back from him, alarmed, afraid. She could not let herself be convinced of a depth of emotion that probably didn’t exist. Jett wanted to spend more time with her. Fine. She could do that.
But simple dating rituals did not equal love.
Before he could say anything more, she started for the door. Buddy jumped up and stared after her. Jett tracked her with a frown.
She blocked both expressions of appeal, determined to escape. When she didn’t slow, Buddy plopped down on his butt and whined. Jett put his fists on his hips.
Forcing a smile, Natalie said, “Good night. I’ll see you both bright and early tomorrow morning.”
And as she went out the door, both males gave her identical expressions—of deep disappointment.
A LONG HOT SHOWER did little to help focus Natalie’s jumbled thoughts and conflicting emotions. On the one hand, she was thrilled at the idea of expanding her relationship with Jett; on the other, the thought of setting herself up for heartbreak absolutely terrified her.
No, Jett wouldn’t deliberately mislead her. Any hurt feelings or damaged pride would be her fault, not his. He hadn’t asked her to commit to him. He only wanted to traditionalize their time together. He wanted them to date.
Nothing misleading in that.
But to have to meet his family, too? She shuddered at the thought. Meeting them would imply a sort of emotional intimacy that, to her knowledge, didn’t exist for…him.
For her part, knowing him better only sharpened the ache in her heart.
With Jett so wonderful, his family had to be pretty great too. What did she know of interacting with family? Nada. Well, except for Molly—whom she couldn’t reach, damn it.
Where was her sister?
She glanced at the clock, but it wasn’t so late that she couldn’t indulge in a quick phone call. She called her stepmother first, but that was a dead end. Kathi claimed to have no idea where Molly had “gotten off to” and she didn’t share Natalie’s concern.
“She’s probably doing a book signing or touring or something.”
Natalie shook her head. “She always tells me first.”
Impatient, Kathi laughed. “Don’t be absurd, Natalie. Your sister is a grown woman, not a child, and she doesn’t have to account for her every moment, not even to you.”
Natalie rolled her eyes. “I wasn’t saying—”
“You know how Molly is. When she gets involved in research, she often forgets everything and everyone else.”
With you and Father, Natalie wanted to say, but she held back the snarky reply. Molly worked hard to maintain a relationship with their father because she still cared about those familial ties.
Natalie didn’t really give a flip one way or the other.
Striving for a polite tone, she said, “Could you ask Father if maybe he’s heard anything—”
“Not tonight