potbellied pig, in case you were wondering.”
“I wasn’t.”
“Liar.”
To her surprise, he burst out laughing. “Are you people for real?”
“Last time I checked.” She nodded toward her family gathered in the other room. “We may be different, but we love each other so if you’re thinking you can use our uniqueness against us—”
“Whoa.” He held up a hand. “I didn’t mean anything except you’re all nothing like what I’m used to.”
Zoe stopped, smiled slightly, then placed her hand on the back of his larger one and gently pushed it down, keeping her fingers lightly closed around his. “And what would that be? Proper decorum at all times,” she teased softly.
A dimpled grin worked its way across his face, but his stare remained fixed on their hands. She suspected he also felt the heat passing between them.
No doubt he needed an explanation for her behavior when they were supposed to be on opposing sides. She wished she could understand it herself. How could she be so attracted to a man she knew was lying? A man who was, in essence, forcing her to lie to her family?
Yet she was attracted. Very attracted. Enough that she couldn’t control the smiles he evoked or the warmth surging through her body right now.
He also deserved an explanation. “What can I say? You may be a lying creep, but you interest me.” In fact, her insides tingled, making her aware of sensations that had been dormant for a while. She couldn’t remember the last time simply touching a man had caused her breasts to grow heavy and her nipples to tighten against her shirt.
Oh yes, she liked how this man made her feel.
When she’d worked for the Secret Service, the agency had frowned on mixing work and pleasure. She’d resented the rule at the time and had bent it on occasion, but with Ryan’s relationship to Sam between them, she’d be smart to follow a no-fraternization rule now.
On the other hand, he was hard to resist; his pull was magnetic. And he’d be around for a few weeks, underfoot, watching them and getting to know Sam. She couldn’t deny the desire to get to know him equally well. Without a doubt, she knew he’d give her all the heat she desperately needed without being any threat to her resolution to advance her career and her life. It was an ideal situation.
“You see? Not only are you one big, loving group, but you say what you think.” He shook his head in disbelief.
She swung their clasped hands back and forth. “Better than keeping your feelings bottled up until you explode.”
“Or run away,” he muttered.
She paused. “Your sister?”
He nodded. “She chafed under rules and restrictions.”
“And your parents had a lot of them?” she guessed without too much difficulty.
“You could say that. Ever hear the term upper crust?”
“Of course.”
“Well imagine all that term implies. My brother and I conformed. She didn’t.”
Zoe raised an eyebrow, interested in his background for reasons that went beyond Sam. “How many brothers and sisters do you have?”
“There were three of us in total. There’s the oldest, J.T., then came Faith, then me.” His eyes glazed over at the mention of his sister’s name.
“So Faith was the only girl.”
He nodded. “My parents had high hopes for her. They expected her to have a traditional coming-out when she turned sixteen, but Faith was anything but traditional.”
Being so close to her family, and knowing what Ari had gone through when Zoe’d had to fake her disappearance, she could empathize with his pain over his sister.
She squeezed his hand tight. “I really am sorry.” And she was, despite that he might want to take Sam away. “So your folks must be thrilled that you’ve found Sam.” Her voice caught in her throat, this time at her pain over the fear of losing someone.
“My family is adjusting to the news,” he said vaguely. “So how do you care for a pig?”
A not-so-subtle change of subject and Zoe made a mental note to mention it to Quinn and Connor during their meeting tomorrow morning. Planning the discussion at the office seemed like an even better idea now, since she didn’t want to run the risk of Sam or anyone else in the family overhearing. And now that she’d found out some more information on Ryan Baldwin, she decided to play along with his topic change.
“You can feed and train the pig like any other domestic animal. Don’t you read the papers? George Clooney has one, and he loves that animal