Lexie licked her lips.If anything, this man saw her too clearly.“She’s coming over tomorrow morning instead.”She smoothed the soft dress over her stomach.“We’re going to tell the family.”
“Are you ready for that?”
She hesitated.Honestly, she wasn’t sure.Half of her wanted to get it over with.The other half wanted to learn more, to figure out the best steps to take and the right questions to ask.“We both want some answers.I’m just afraid…”
“Of what?”
“That somebody’s going to be hurt.”She rubbed her temple.It wasn’t going to be as easy as the reunion stories in the newspaper or on TV.Feelings were going to be raw.Roxie was already upset that they’d been split up.They both were.
With a sigh, Cam walked over and held out his hand.“Let’s sit down.”
Lexie stared at that hand.Last time he’d touched her, it had been on her breast.Strong, hot and sexy.She inhaled shakily, but he caught her hand before she had time to protest or pull away—or reach out first.
She followed along as he led the way to the living room.She wished she’d turned on more lights, but he walked right by the switches into the living area.He guided her towards the sofa and she sat, feeling the weight of everything pushing down on her.Instead of sitting in the overstuffed chair to her left, though, he sat down in front of her on the coffee table.His nearness made her muscles catch.
“What time is she coming by?”he asked.
They were sitting so closely, their knees nearly brushed.He was wearing a black T-shirt that showed the hardness of his chest and stretched around the curved muscles of his arms.In khakis, it was the most casual she’d ever seen him, yet the inner wolf was even more visible.Outside she’d only been able to feel him.Here in the dim light, she could see him, feel his heat and watch his dark eyes as they watched her.
“It’s a family matter,” she hedged.
He sat forward to brace his elbows against his knees, and every rough, chiseled inch of him was firmly in her space.
“And I’ve somehow become the family troubleshooter.”
Her stomach dipped.“This has nothing to do with Underhill Associates.”
“But everything to do with you.”His hands cupped her knees.“What time?”
Her mouth went dry all over again.It was such a simple touch, yet from him, utterly intimate.His fingers caressed the delicate skin at the back of her knee, and his thumbs rested against her kneecaps.She suddenly found it hard to think, much less talk.“Nine,” she managed to get out.
“I’ll be there.”
Well, that shouldn’t complicate things at all, she thought.Yet in the back of her mind, she remembered how he’d stood at her side when the billboard had been discovered.And how surprised, but glad, she’d been to have him there.
She laced her fingers as she settled them in her lap.“What did Julian want this morning?”
“There were problems with some deals.”
“Because of the billboard?”
“It’s a minor hiccup.”
With the state the company was in, no problem with a deal was minor.“You didn’t tell them about Roxie, did you?”
Impatience flashed in those dark eyes, and his thumbs slid to the sensitive spots on her inner knees.“I promised you I wouldn’t.It’s your story to tell.”
Lexie cleared her throat again, only this time it was to cover a moan.What was supposed to be a comforting touch was anything but.Heat was creeping up her thighs and nestling deep in her belly.Her muscles clenched as if to cross her legs, but there just wasn’t room.
“Is he still upset?”she asked, trying to concentrate.“Did he ask about me?”
A muscle in Cam’s jaw tightened.“He noticed that you didn’t come home last night, but you were right.He forgot what an ass he was pretty damn quickly.”
She didn’t believe her father forgot anything, but embarrassment wasn’t something he admitted to freely.He certainly never forgot what an argument had been about.“I don’t know if introducing Roxie will make things better or worse.”
“If it helps at all, she’s telling the truth about growing up in foster care.”
Lexie looked at him.Those words sounded heavy to her ears.“What did you do?”
