“Something happened, a long time ago, and it caused her to cool on the opposite sex.”
His searched his memories. Was it around the same time she’d cooled on him?
Pamina put the book down, reached into her pocket, pulled out a crisp red apple and took a generous bite. An odd tingling trickled through his bloodstream as she sailed past him. She gave him a peculiar look, tapped him on the shoulder, and around a mouthful of apple said, “I’ll leave you to it, Daniel. I believe you have a lot of work to do.”
Why did he get the sneaking suspicion that she wasn’t talking about the work she’d hired him to do? Nevertheless, after she left he made his way across the room and grabbed the book. He turned it over in his hand and read the back cover. Then he flipped the pages open that had been dog-eared, and read the passages.
Okay, now that he hadn’t anticipated. Maybe Anna was onto something here. No wonder she was hooked.
Twenty minutes later, after speed-reading his way through half the book, he sank down on the bed and wiped his brow. As he considered the hero in the story, he could only assume it was the kind of guy Anna wanted. Strong, confident, a take-charge kind of guy. Not at all like the bumbling idiot she’d always reduced him to. He really hadn’t expected to be so nervous around her. He chewed on that a moment longer. After reading all these novels, perhaps Anna felt romance wasn’t in the cards because no man could live up to her expectation. He certainly wasn’t behaving like a romance novel hero with the edgy, juvenile way he was acting, all nervous and shaky when she was close. He tapped the book against his palm and made a decision. If this was the kind of guy she wanted, this was the kind of guy he was going to give her. But first, more research was in order.
3
As the scent of freshly baked apple and cinnamon muffins filled the air, Anna snapped her cell phone shut and pursed her lips in thought as she leaned against the bottom post of the long winding staircase. She’d spent the last couple of days wondering when her mother was going to call to let her know that Daniel was back in town. Now she knew. Honestly, her mother, a romantic like Anna, was still holding out hope that the two of them would eventually get together. She certainly wasn’t going to burst her mother’s bubble and tell her Daniel wasn’t the sweet “boy next door” she thought he was.
Her mom had called to invite her to a dinner party that night, insisting she must attend because she hadn’t been by in weeks, but once Anna found out that she’d also invited Daniel and his family she flat-out refused. Working in confined quarters with him for the last couple of days had been hard enough. Seeing him all hot, sweaty, sexy, and sporting a tool belt, no less, while he worked with those deft hands of his, had played havoc with her libido. So much so that she’d actually worn down the batteries on her favorite vibrator. Sadly, her little rabbit would hop no more. She couldn’t imagine what it’d do to her to see Daniel all cleaned up. And boy, oh boy, she could only imagine how well Daniel, the man, would clean up.
“Everything okay?”
The deep, raspy sound of his voice sent shivers skittering through her. Of course everything wasn’t okay. How could they be okay, not when every time she turned around, the man she was crazy about—still crazy about dammit, despite the heartache he’d put her though—was looming over her, looking like sex incarnate, and blatantly turning on the charm. Was he determined to finally do her in, or better yet, melt her resolve and get her into his bed?
Heck, maybe she should just do it. Maybe that would get him out of her system once and for all. Oh hell! Who was she kidding? One night in his bed would be emotional suicide at best. There’d be no coming back from that.
Working to keep her emotions under wraps, she turned to him at the same time he stepped closer. Their bodies collided and he wrapped his hand around her waist to anchor her to him. Anna swallowed, fabricated a smile and extricated herself from his tenuous hold. Gathering her composure, she shook the phone.
“My mom. She invited me to dinner.”
He angled his head and his warm cinnamon-scented breath washed over her cheeks. “Are you going?”
“No. I’m working late tonight.” The truth was, she’d been waiting for Daniel to leave so she could have the room to herself. Then she could finally install the curtains and arrange the pillows, accessories and furniture, without the distraction of his hard body hindering her attention.
“I’m working late too.”
“Oh.” Well then, that changed everything. If Daniel was going to be here, she certainly wasn’t. But he didn’t need to know that, otherwise he might change his plans.
His glance dropped to her chest, making her feel very self-conscious. She pressed harder against the banister, the post indenting her back. At first she thought he was ogling her cleavage, slightly exposed in her V-neck T-shirt. But then something in his eyes softened, and beneath the surface she could see sadness.
“What?” she asked.
“Your necklace.”
Anna slipped her fingers under the chain and gently ran the soft pad of her thumb along the gold. “What about it?”
He rolled one shoulder. “Nothing really. I just remember how happy you were when your mother gave it to you.”
“During my sweet-sixteen party,” she said absently, as she recalled that evening so long ago. It was the only nice thing about that night. She’d tried to put on a good show for her guests, playing the happy party girl, but deep inside she was miserable and dejected because
