“Jo’s my sister.”
“Yes, and on a personal level I’m happy to see you take that relationship to heart. I wasn’t sure that you did. Here.” She pressed the cup into his hand. “She came home because she needed to be home. She needed her family. So be there. That’s all I can tell you. Anything else has to come from her.”
He paced away, sipping coffee without realizing it. All right, he thought, she wasn’t suffering from any of the mysterious and deadly diseases he’d conjured up while he’d been waiting. She’d just run herself out of energy. It wasn’t cancer or a brain tumor.
“All right.” This time he said it aloud. “I can probably browbeat her into eating regularly and threaten Lexy away from picking fights with her.”
“You’re very sweet,” Kirby murmured.
“No, I’m not.” He set the cup down abruptly and stepped back. His worry had faded enough to allow him to see Kirby clearly. The way those mermaid eyes were smiling at him. The way she stood there, all cool and composed, all pink and gold. “I’m just looking out for myself. I want my routine back, and I won’t get it until she’s steadied out.”
Eyes warm, Kirby walked toward him. “Liar. Fraud. Softie.”
“Back off.”
“Not yet.” She reached up to catch his face in her hands. He’d stirred more than her lust this time, and she couldn’t resist it. “You booked the physical for her, and you haven’t paid the bill.” She rose to her toes. “My services don’t come cheap.” And brushed her lips to his.
His hands were at her waist as the taste of her flooded into him. “I keep telling you to back off.” He tilted his head, deepened the kiss. “Why don’t you listen?”
Her breath was already starting to back up, clog her lungs. A glorious sensation. “I’m stubborn. Persistent. Right.”
“You’re aggressive.” His teeth nipped into her bottom lip, tugged. “I don’t like aggressive women.”
“Mmm. Yes, you do.”
“No, I don’t.” He pushed her back against the counter until his body was pressed hard and hot to hers, until his mouth could fix firmly and devour. “But I want you. Happy now?”
She tipped her head back, moaning when his mouth raced down her throat. “Give me five minutes to cancel my afternoon appointments and we’ll both be ecstatic. Brian, put your hands on me, for God’s sake.”
“It’s not going to be easy.” He nipped at her ear where a little emerald stud winked at the lobe, worked his way restlessly back to her mouth to plunder until her nails dug into his shoulders. He saw himself taking her there, where they stood, just dragging down his fly, dragging down her neat trousers and plunging in until this desperate need, this vicious frustration, was behind him.
But he didn’t touch her, didn’t take her. Instead, he used the ache churning inside him to control them both. He wrapped his hand around her throat, drew her head back until their eyes met. Hers were the green of restless seas, urging him to dive in.
“It’s going to be my way. You’re going to have to accept that.”
Nerves shuddered through desire. “Listen—”
“No, we’re done with that. Done with the games too. You could’ve backed off, but you didn’t. Now it’s going to be my way. When I come back, we’re going to finish this.”
Her breath was coming fast, her blood pumping hot. For a moment she hated him for being able to study her with eyes so cool and controlled. “Do you think that scares me?”
“I don’t think you’ve got sense enough to let it scare you.” And he smiled, slowly, dangerously. “But it should. When I come back,” he repeated and stepped away from her. “And I won’t give a damn if you’re ready.”
She steadied herself and grabbed for some pride. “Why, you arrogant bastard!”
“That’s right.” He walked toward the door, praying he could make it out before the aching for her made him groan aloud. He shot her a last look, skimming his gaze over the tousled, sunlit hair, the eyes that sparkled with a range of dangerous emotions, the mouth that was still swollen from his. “I’d go tidy myself up a bit, doc. Your next patient just pulled up.”
He let the screen slam behind him.
THIRTEEN
LITTLE Desire cottage wasn’t much of a detour on the way back to Sanctuary. In any case, Jo thought, scrambling to justify it, the walk would do her good.
Maybe she wanted to take some afternoon shots of the river, see how many more wildflowers had bloomed. And since she’d be walking by, it would be rude not to at least stop in.
Besides, it was family property.
She even worked out a little just-passing-by excuse, did some mental rehearsing to perfect just the right casual tone. So it was quite a letdown to get to the cottage and see that Nathan’s Jeep was gone.
