Page 16 of Edge of Desire

Justin bit his lip for a minute and then said, “Caroline, take her on a tour so she can see we have plenty of room.”

Then he turned to me and said, “Ava, this house is bigger than Mom and Dad’s.”

Caroline took me from room to room and Justin was right. I could live here for months, and they’d never know it. Their master bedroom suite was in a whole separate wing of the house, so I wouldn’t intrude on their privacy. I felt a ton better about staying here.

“This house is fabulous, Caroline.”

“Thanks. It was all Justin’s idea. He fell in love with it and had to convince me, but I’ve fallen in love with it too. At first, it was intimidating, but now I’m good. The thing is, the guest wing goes unused for the most part. We only use the other rooms. So, it gives it a cozier feel. Maybe someday if we have kids or something. Who knows?”

“Well, I love it.”

We returned to where the guys were, and Caroline showed me where everything was. “If you can’t find something, just ask or search around,” she said.

Before she could get any further, I pulled her to me and hugged her. “Thank you. Thank you for making me feel so welcome in your home. And thank you for loving my brother.”

“Oh, Avery, I’m so glad you’re here,” she said as she hugged me back.

Justin and I were getting ready to leave when he got a phone call. He checked the caller ID and said, “I have to take this. Hang on.” After several minutes, he hung up and said, “I’m sorry, Ava, but I have to go to the hospital. The surgeon on call has a major case of food poisoning. They had to admit him. I’m next on rotation. Sorry, guys.”

“Me too, honey. Hope they don’t kill you tonight.” Caroline kissed him.

Just Miles looked at me and asked, “Would you like me to take you to your hotel so you can get your things?”

No. What I really wanted was to drag my tongue all over his body but ...

“Oh, I don’t want to be a bother. I can do this another time.”

Caroline piped in, “Don’t be silly. Miles, that would be awesome. While you two are gone, I can get dinner started. Here are my keys. Take my car.”

We went out through the side door and into the gigantic garage which held six stalls. There were the customary Range Rovers. Justin had this thing about safety, and he thought those were the best. We got in and off we went. I think I must have been drooling because there was a wet spot in front of my blouse by the time we got to the street. Even Just Miles’ hands were sexy.

“So, is it Ava or Avery? I was getting conflicting messages back there.”

“Um, both actually. Avery is my given name. I was named after my grandmother, Avery. I was called Ava to avoid confusion. I prefer Avery, and now that I’m not living in Charleston, it’ll be an easy switch.”

“What’s so bad about Ava?”

“Oh, I don’t know. I always felt like it was an older woman’s name, not a little girl’s. All my friends would have an ‘ie’ on the end of their name. Like Lizzie, or Katie, or like my sister-in-law, Lexi. And there I’d be ... Ava.” I used a deep, dramatic voice when I said my name and he laughed. “It was always sort of grumpy sounding to me.”

“I see. And Avery represents what?”

“Well, if you ever met my grandmother, you’d get it. She’s a total sparkler, that one. And that’s exactly how I want to be.”

“Hmm. So how do you see yourself now?”

“Miles and miles from being a sparkler, I can tell you that.”

He gave me a quick glance, but his eyes went straight back to the road. I felt like he wanted to learn more about me but didn’t ask. He switched to my job, and he kept my brain occupied all the way to the hotel. I blabbered on and on the entire time. After I shut up, I thought to myself what a bore I had become. What kind of a person does that? Blathers on and on about themselves without regard for anyone else? I never asked him a single question about himself.

He came up to my room, and when we got there, I was immediately aware of him. His presence filled the space. Then I became acutely mortified because all my things were strewn everywhere. My underwear was scattered all over the floor, along with my pink-and-lavender polka-dotted nightie. All my intimate garments were on display for anyone to inspect. It was like I was having a show-and-tell. And so help me, there were my Spanx. Mother of God!

“Oh my God!” My hand flew to my mouth as I surveyed the room.

His eyes were absorbing everything, and I mean everything. And then, there it was in all its glory—my newest and greatest best friend in the world. My Magic Wand, out on display, with all its attachments right next to the flat screen, propped up no less, like they were on display, acting like a priceless Ming vase.

I gulped, not once, not twice, but three times.

And then, I thought I said it in my head, but apparently, I didn’t. “Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, what the hell am I gonna do now?”

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