“What is this gathering you can’t make?” he probed.
She hadn’t meant to get into her personal life, she really hadn’t, but the warm timbre of his speech and the tenderness in his lilt melted her resolve and had her spewing like a leaky faucet.
“My mother is having a Christmas get-together tonight and she’s setting me up on a date, which I don’t want any part of. The woman is hell-bent on marrying me off. It doesn’t matter how many times I tell her I’m not interested in a relationship, dating, or marriage; she continues to go behind my back and scheme.”
Kale’s warm, intimate smile liquefied her knees and tugged on her emotions. The logical part of her warned not to get too close, but when he looked at her as if there was more than casual between them, it awakened feelings she’d suppressed for years. Needing to put some distance between them, Erin took a measured step back and moved toward the lab door.
As Kale followed her into the hall, his fingers closed over hers, warm and strong. He squeezed, offering his comfort. As she absorbed his heat, Erin felt a churning in her gut and worked to ignore it.
He shook his head slowly as he moved in close. Walking by her side, he accompanied her to the research room. “I understand your dilemma completely, Erin. My mother has been looking for grandkids for years. I had dinner at her place last night, and she asked when I was going to find a woman to cook for me.” He gave a quick shake of his head and chuckled.
Erin crinkled her nose and thought about her own exceptional culinary abilities. It occurred to her if his mother’s only criterion for a daughter-in-law was cooking skills, Erin would be the perfect woman. She loved being in the kitchen. Cooking relaxed her. She’d even taken an evening course a few years back.
Not that a playboy like Kale would be interested in bringing home a closet domestic like her, mind you. Nor was she interested in going home with him.
That would be much too personal.
So why the hell had she even thought about it?
Erin tilted her head. “Are you and your parents close?”
He nodded. “It’s just my mom and two sisters. My dad died when I was a teen.”
She squeezed his hand in a silent message. “I’m sorry, Kale.”
He smiled his appreciation. “We’re all close. I took over dad’s parental role and kept my sisters on a pretty tight leash. Lisa is just finishing up her last year at college, and Jenna will be starting next fall.” He got quiet for a moment. “I miss them a lot,” he added, almost to himself.
“Then why did you go out west? You could have worked here, at the research center.”
“The pay was better at Castech. I needed the money to pay for their tuition.”
Erin felt an odd tug on her heartstrings. Who knew Kale was so loyal, nurturing, and responsible where his family was concerned? “They must miss you terribly.”
He nodded. “I think they do.” He paused and grinned. “Every time I come home, Mom brings up grandkids. She’s getting desperate.”
Erin eased her hand out of his, reached into her lab coat, and pulled out her keycard. She slid it into the electronic lock. Kale pushed the door open and gestured for her to enter the research room.
Erin breezed past him and tossed her words over her shoulder. “At least your mother isn’t trying to set you up with a thirty-year-old Donkey Kong champion who talks into your breasts and not your eyes.”
“Um…well…I would hope not, Erin,” he replied, securing the heavy door behind him. “Unlike yours, my breasts are pretty uninspiring.” Humor edged his voice and played down her spine.
Realizing how ridiculous she sounded, she chuckled and turned back to face him, making light of the situation. “Unless of course you’re into that kind of thing,” she teased.
His glance flicked over her curves. “I think you know I’m not.”
Oh yeah, she knew all too well.
“So why is she trying to set you up and marry you off?” he asked, his genuine concern evident in his expression.
She threw her hands up in the air. “Apparently it’s a crime to be twenty-eight and single.” Erin blew out a heavy breath and gave a tight shake of her head. “I have my job and that’s all I need. I just wish she could accept that.”
Moving across the wide expanse of tile, Erin sauntered over to the bed and pulled back the sheets. The sudden image of Dwayne the Dog screwing his slut secretary passed through her mind. Flustered, she mumbled under her breath, “No one seems to support my career.”
His voice softened. “I’m sure she just has your best interests at heart.”
Erin nodded in agreement. “I know you’re right. Deep down she does, but regardless, it still irritates me.”
“What time is this gathering?” Kale asked.
His question took her by surprise. Why would he care about that? “What?”
“What time is the gathering?” he repeated as he crossed to the other side of the mattress to help her remove the bedding.
She looked at him, really looked at him as he sauntered by her. God, he was so beautiful. His sexy, athletic gait turned her insides to mush. A rush of sexual hunger moved through her, swamping her with desire.
Realizing he was waiting for an answer while she took great pleasure in the sight of his gorgeous backside, Erin reached for the blankets and blurted out much too hastily, “Eight.” She scooped up the linen, and with a quick twist, walked over to the hamper to dispose of the soiled bedding.
“I’ll take you.”
His whispery soft voice was excruciatingly gentle as it carried across the room and fell over her.
She spun around. “What?” she
