Considering Kate: the classic story from the queen of romance that you won’t be able to put down. Нора Робертс
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the good fortune of birth, but since I look a great deal like my mother, thank you. I particularly like your mouth.” She shifted her gaze to it, lingered. “I just keep coming back to it.”
His throat was dry as the Sahara. What had happened with women since he’d been out of the game? he wondered. When had they started seducing men on the front porch in the middle of the afternoon?
He could feel the chill December wind whipping against his face. And the heat swarming into his blood. “Look.” In self-defense, he took her by the arms. Her coat slid off her shoulders, and he felt the taut sculpted muscle beneath her suit jacket.
“I’ve been looking.” Her gaze flicked up to his again. So male, she thought. So frustrated. “I just happen to like what I see.”
Her eyes were pure gray, he thought. Mysterious as smoke. He had only to lower his head, or better, yes better, to yank her to her toes. Then his mouth would be on those sultry, self-satisfied lips of hers.
He had a feeling, a bad one, it would be like bare-handing a live wire. Thrilling, and potentially deadly.
“I told you I wasn’t interested.”
“Yes, you did. But you lied.” To prove it, she rose up to her toes and took a quick, hard nip into his bottom lip. His hands tightened like vises on her arms. “See?” she whispered when he held her there, only a breath away. “You’re very interested.”
Amused at both of them, she lowered to the flats of her feet, eased back. “You just don’t want to be.”
“It comes down to the same thing.” He let her go, bent to pick up his toolbox. Damn it, his hands weren’t even close to steady.
“I don’t agree, but I won’t push it. I’d like to see you socially, if and when that suits you. Meanwhile, since we have similar views on this building, and I liked most of your ideas, I hope we’ll be able to work together.”
He hissed out a breath. Cool as January, he noted. While he was flustered, heated up and churning. “You’re a real piece of work, Kate.”
“I am, that’s true. I won’t apologize for being what I am. I’ll look forward to getting the brochures and information we discussed, and your bid on the job. If you need to get back in for more measurements or whatever, you know how to reach me.”
“Yeah, I know how to reach you.”
She stayed where she was, watched him stride down to the curb, climb into his truck. He’d have been surprised if he’d heard the long shaky breath she expelled as he drove away.
Surprised as well if he’d seen her slowly lower herself to the top step.
She was nowhere near as cool as January. She sat in the brisk breeze waiting to cool off. And for the frogs in her belly to settle down again.
Brody O’Connell, she thought. Wasn’t it strange and fascinating that a man she’d only met twice should have such a strong effect on her? It wasn’t that she was shy around men—far from it. But she was selective. The lover she’d tossed in Brody’s face had been one of the three men—all of whom she’d cared for deeply—that she’d allowed into her life, and into her bed.
Yet, after two meetings—no, she thought, ordering herself to be brutally honest—after one meeting, she’d wanted Brody in her bed. The second meeting had only sharpened that want into a keen-edged desire she wasn’t prepared for.
So she would do the logical and practical thing. She’d settle herself down, clear her mind. Then she’d begin to plan the best way to get him there.
Chapter Three
Jack sat at the partner’s desk in what he and his dad called their office and carefully printed out the alphabet. It was his job. Just like Dad was doing his job, on his side of the desk.
The drafting paper and rulers and stuff looked like a lot more fun than the alphabet. But Dad had said, if he got it all done, he could have some paper to draw with, too.
He thought he would draw a big, giant house, just like their house, with the old barn that was Dad’s workshop. And there would be lots of snow, too. Eight whole feet of snow and millions and billions of snowmen.
And a dog.
Grandpa and Grandma had a dog, and even though Buddy was sort of old, he was fun. But he had to stay at Grandma’s. One day he’d have a dog all of his own and its name would be Mike and he’d chase balls and sleep in the bed at night.
He could have one as soon as he was old enough to be responsible. Which could even be tomorrow.
Jack peeked up to study his father’s face and see if it was maybe time to ask if he was responsible yet.
But his dad had that look where he was kind of frowning but not mad. His working look. If you interrupted the working look, the answer was almost always: Not now.
But the alphabet was boring. He wanted to draw the house or play with his trucks or with the computer. Or maybe just look outside and see if it was snowing yet.
He butted his foot against the desk. Squirmed. Butted his foot.
“Jack, don’t kick the desk.”
“Do I have to write the whole alphabet?”
“Yep.”
“How come?”
“Because.”
“But I got all the way up to the P.”
“If you don’t do the rest, you can’t say any words that have the letters in them you left out.”
“But—”
“Can’t say ‘but.’ B-U-T.”
Jack heaved the heavy sigh of a six-year-old. He wrote the next three letters, then peeked up again. “Dad.”
“Hmm.”
“Dad, Dad, Dad, Dad. D-A-D.”
Brody glanced up, saw his son grinning at him. “Smart aleck.”
“I know how to spell Dad and Jack.”
Brody narrowed his eyes, lifted a fist. “Do you know how to spell knuckle sandwich?”
“Nuh-uh. Does it have mustard?”
The kid, Brody thought, was sharp as a bucket of tacks. “How’d you get to be such a wise guy?”
“Grandma says I got it from you. Can I see what you’re drawing? You said it’s for the dancing lady. Are you drawing her, too?”
“Yes, it’s for the dancing lady, and no, you can’t see it until you’re finished your job.” However much he wanted to set his own work aside and just be with his son, the only way to teach responsibility was to be responsible.
That was one of those sneaky circles of parenthood.
“What happens when you don’t finish what you start?”
Jack rolled his eyes. “Nothing.”
“Exactly.”
Jack heaved another sigh and applied his pencil. He didn’t see his father’s lips twitch.
God, what a kid. Brody wanted to toss his own pencil down, snatch Jack up and do whatever this major miracle of his life wanted to do for the rest of the evening. The hell with work, with responsibility, with what needed to be done.
There was only one thing he wanted more than that. To finish what he started. There was no job more vital than Jack O’Connell.
Had his own father ever looked at him and wondered, and worried? Probably, Brody thought. It had never showed, but probably. Still, Bob O’Connell hadn’t been one for wrestling on the rug or foolish conversations. He’d gone to work. He’d come home from work. He’d expected