“Yes, and you don’t want to deal with me,” Ivy said, throwing the covers off her body and climbing out of bed.
Jack almost growled at the sight of those stupid panties again. She was trying to torture him. There could be no other explanation.
Instead of reclaiming her canvas trousers from the floor, Ivy yanked a pair of yoga pants out of the dresser and shimmied into them. By the time she reached the door she was completely put together – well, except for the adorable bedhead – and the look she sent Jack was chilling. “Are you just going to stand there, or do you need my help to open the door?”
“What?” Jack was still fixated on the memory of her pale skin before she covered herself.
“Can you only open the door when you’re going to sneak out and abandon me, or can you do it with an audience, too?”
Jack snapped back to reality. Now was not the time to … he couldn’t help but wonder if her bra matched her panties. Wait, now definitely wasn’t the time for that. “After you, Your Highness,” Jack said, throwing open the door and bowing low so Ivy could stride into the hallway ahead of him.
Jack watched her hips swing as she walked, cursing himself for this entire mess, and frowning when he saw Ivy head straight for the refrigerator. “What are you doing?”
“What does it look like I’m doing?” Ivy shoved her hair away from her face and focused on the contents of her refrigerator.
“Ivy, I … can’t stay for dinner,” Jack said, swallowing the lump in his throat. He was going to crush her all over again. He didn’t have a choice, though. He missed an entire day of work – texting Brian that he would be in later in the afternoon – and now he had to make up the time. There was an enemy out there, and if he had any shot of making things right with Ivy – no matter how remote – he was going to have to solve this case first. “I’m really sorry. Any other time I would … .”
Ivy knit her eyebrows together. “Did I miss the part of the conversation where I invited you to dinner?”
“I … .” Jack’s cheeks burned as he realized how far he’d overreached. “I guess you didn’t.”
“No,” Ivy agreed, turning back to the refrigerator. “I most certainly did not invite you to dinner. Do you know what’s funny, though?” Ivy glanced back at him. “I was supposed to make you dinner last night. I thought we would finally get a chance to … .”
Jack knew what she thought they would finally get a chance to do. He’d indulged in the same daydream before she was shot. “Ivy, I am so … .”
“Don’t say you’re sorry again,” Ivy ordered, shaking her finger. “Don’t you dare say it!”
Under any other circumstances Jack would’ve found her righteous indignation comical. He would’ve gladly spent the next twenty minutes teasing her until she gave in and kissed him senseless. He could only hope that would be in their future again … somehow.
“We need to have a quick talk,” Jack said, his voice low. “Whoever is after me might go after you again. You’re important to me, which means if someone is trying to hurt me they’ll go after you.”
“Oh, that’s such a crock of crap,” Ivy shot back. “If I was in real danger you would be camped out on my couch to protect me … like last time. You’re not worried about me. You’re worried about me causing a scene and embarrassing you. Don’t worry your pretty little head about it. I have no intention of even acknowledging you’re alive from here on out. You are essentially dead to me.”
Jack scowled. If she was trying to get under his skin she was doing a bang-up job of it. “You listen to me … .”
“No, I’m done listening to you,” Ivy said, cutting him off. “You are not my boss and you’re not my father. I’m my own boss and … well … technically I’m my father’s boss, too. Although, he never listens to me no matter what I say. I guess you two have that in common.”
“Ivy, I don’t care how angry you are with me, you’re damned well going to listen to me,” Jack growled. “I have been to hell and back again and the only thing I know with absolute certainty is that I cannot let anything happen to you.
“I barely made it off the operating table and I had months of physical therapy before I was on my feet,” he continued. “Putting you at arm’s length hurts ten times more than that ever did.”
Ivy narrowed her eyes. “Liar.”
“Oh, stuff it,” Jack snapped, taking both of them by surprise.
“Don’t tell me what to do!”
“Shut your mouth.”
“You shut your mouth!”
“Why don’t you both shut your mouths.” Max walked through the front door, not bothering to knock, and glanced between Ivy and Jack. “What’s going on?”
“Why is your front door unlocked, Ivy? I just told you that you had to be careful,” Jack said. “You need to lock your door.”
“You walked in behind me,” Ivy reminded him. “I was trying to lock you out when you forced your way in. It’s your fault the door isn’t locked.”
Max narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean he forced his way in?”
“I tried to shut the door and he wouldn’t let me.” Ivy was suddenly prim and proper, although there was a gleam in her eye. If Jack didn’t know better, he would think she was having a good time fighting with him.
“You forced your way into my sister’s house?” Max challenged, tossing his keys on the coffee table and stalking around the edge of the couch. Jack held his ground, even though he was worried Max would start throwing
