Page 28 of Say Yes

Sara stood in the doorway, now dressed in loose shorts and a pullover top, a slight smile on her face. “You’ve been brushing the cat.”

Gavin stood and looked down at the cat hairs now clinging to his own body. He had to fan the air so that he could see her clearly. “However did you guess?”

He knew he sounded sarcastic, but he was now a grubby mess, breakfast was over and there she stood, looking so damn desirable he wanted to carry her right back to bed.

The lengths he was forced to go to just to win her over. And she hadn’t even had the decency to get out of bed.

“Satan looks very handsome.”

“Handsome is not a word that will ever be applied to that monster, but I suppose he looks much better.” Gavin studied her closely. She still appeared a little wiped out, as if she’d only just opened her eyes. “You okay?”

She flushed, then quickly nodded. “Yeah, fine. I’m sorry I slept so late. I don’t suppose there’s anything to eat?”

A sleepless night took its toll on his patience. “I had omelets and muffins and fresh coffee, but you refused to get up.”

Sara bit her lip, then looked up at the sunny sky. “What time is it?”

“Almost noon.”

That startled her. “Good grief. I’m sorry.”

“It’s my day off. I had hoped we could spend some time together.”

“Oh.”

She sounded less than enthusiastic. Then he saw her put her hand to her stomach. “Are you sick?”

“No, of course not.” And she flushed again.

“What finally encouraged you to get out of bed?”

“The phone rang. It was…Jess. He wanted to know if I could come out to the shelter.”

“Why? Isn’t Sunday your day off, too?”

“Usually. But I…well, I already told him I’d stop by.”

Gavin tightened his jaw. The day rapidly dwindled into a dismal failure. “For how long?”

“I don’t know. But I told him I’d be there in about an hour.”

“Dammit, Sara. Why today? Why can’t it wait?”

She flinched, then lifted her chin. “You have no right to curse at me. This is one of the ground rules we should have covered. You don’t tell me what to do, and I won’t tell you what to do.”

Gavin knew he’d lost his edge, knew he was pushing too hard, but he couldn’t seem to stop himself. He’d been sexually deprived too long, dammit, especially considering all the provocation he’d suffered. He was a man on the verge of exploding, and he figured when it happened, his hormones would cover more ground than Satan’s hair.

Trying for a moderate tone while his body screamed in frustration wasn’t easy. He cleared his throat. Twice. “I really wish I’d known beforehand.” There. That had sounded calm enough.

She frowned. “Are you getting a cold? Your voice is all raw and scratchy.”

He stared at her, seeing the concern now in her eyes. If he wasn’t so horny, the entire situation might have been humorous. Gavin drew a deep breath, and choked on a cat hair. “I’m fine,” he wheezed, when she started forward. Then he waved her off. “Go on. I’ve got plenty to occupy me for the day, I guess. Satan shed all over the house. I’ll stay here and clean it up. What time will you be home?”

“It’s not your job to clean up my cat’s mess.”

He stared at her hard. “I’m the one that suggested you get a pet.”

“Still…”

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