pink, wet tongue curl out to -
"There he is!"
His eyes popped open and his chair wobbled on two legs a second before crashing down on all four. He grabbed the edge of the small table sliding away from him and yanked it back to cover the half-hard result of his little impromptu fantasy.
"Christ, Dez," he grumbled, narrowing his eyes at the two women who'd entered the bar. "That's twice in one day. Haven't you heard of knocking first?"
Desiree looked unrepentant, Hannah a bit anxious. Tanner was struck by their superficial similarity again, especially with Hannah in obvious Desiree-wear: a pair of white sailor-type pants, tight at the hip and wide at the ankle, worn with flat red shoes and a blue, hooded jacket on top.
Lust flared inside him again, and he nearly groaned out loud. What was it about her? Or maybe it was that outfit. During his formative adolescent years he'd hidden a Playboy pinup beneath the American flag tacked to the wall opposite his bed. No wonder red, white, and blue got a rise out of him.
In a nervous movement, Hannah smoothed her palms down the front of her thighs. Just like that, he remembered the flowery scent of her skin as he ran his tongue down her long legs. Christ. Here he went again, hardening into that one-gun salute.
Clearing his throat, he forced his gaze off her and onto Dez. "Everything all right?" he asked.
"Sure." But she looked a little twitchy now too. "Where's, um, Troy?"
"Troy is right here," his brother boomed out, swinging shut the bar's front door. "The real question is, why are you?"
Her chin jerked up. "I - "
"How many times do I have to throw you out, princess, before you get the message you're not wanted?"
Dez flinched. "I hear you loud and clear, Troy."
"She's doing me a favor, bro," Tanner interjected. "Lay off, all right?"
Troy stalked farther into the room, his eyes only for Desiree. Hannah backed off to give him space, and her movement caught his gaze. He halted, blinking. "Hello." He sent Tanner a puzzled look.
"Why don't you serve yourself and Hannah a soft drink or something, Dez," Tanner suggested. Maybe he'd have better luck uncovering that plan he needed if he talked it over with Troy.
"Groovy," the woman answered. "Come with me, Hannah." She headed toward the bar on the other side of the room.
"Don't mess with anything," Troy called out.
She smiled sweetly at him over her shoulder. "Just your mind, big man. Just your mind."
Tanner kicked out a chair. "Sit down."
His brother obeyed, dropping heavily into place, then adjusting his position so he could keep an eye on the women. "What the hell are you doing, Tanner? Isn't that the honey you waltzed out of here with last night on the way to a New Year's shagathon?"
Honey. Yeah. She'd tasted so damn sweet. He cleared his throat again. "More like she's my carrot."
Troy frowned. "Say what?"
"I made a little mistake in my choice of anonymous, one-night shagees. I didn't discover until this morning she's the niece of Geoff Brooks."
Troy looked blank.
"You know, the Secret Ser vice's Special Agent in Charge of the San Diego office, Geoff Brooks? My former boss?"
"Ouch," Troy said. "But - "
The television over the bar blared to life, shifting his attention from Tanner. At the other side of the room Desiree had filled a couple of glasses with ice and liquid and she now was using the controls to switch the TV station from ESPN. Basketball lost out to some soap opera, complete with soaring violin music and entwined limbs on satin sheets.
"Who gave you permission to touch the remote?" Troy yelled over the noise.
Dez gave him another of her saccharine smiles and raised her voice as the music climaxed. "We'll make a deal, okay? Next time you're over at my place, I'll let you play with my vibrator."
Tanner shot his brother a look. "Next time?"
Troy's face was ruddy, though it wasn't clear whether it was in reaction to the pointed question or Desiree's mention of the personal appliance. "Forget that," he responded in a gruff voice. "I gave her a ride once. And we were talking about you. What does it matter that your honey - "
"Hannah."
" - Hannah is something to Brooks?"
Tanner pretended he could smile about it. "Before he left on his ski vacation last week, he asked me to do him a favor while he's gone. I agreed to be her tour guide."
His gaze wandered to the bar again. Standing with