Page 17 of An Indecent Longing

When he turned back to her and held the bag up, the very real smile on her face was enough to make him bite back a groan.

“Are you going to share?”

Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, give him strength. Because if she continued to smile like that and kept making statements that his brain totally took the wrong way, he was going to need a time-out.

“Honey, they’re all yours.”

Her smile widened. “Such a nice guy. Don’t meet many of those in my world.”

“And what world is that?”

She looked away and began to gather the snacks he’d placed on the island.

“The medical world. Most men are only concerned with their careers or getting laid. There aren’t many men looking for any kind of relationship.” She smiled but he could tell it was fake. The little shoulder shrug was so much more expressive. “Then again, neither am I.”

“Why’s that?”

She shook her head. “Too busy. And there aren’t many men who can put up with a woman whose schedule doesn’t accommodate theirs.”

“Maybe you just haven’t met the right men.”

Now her mouth edged up in a true smile. “Are you trying to tell me you’re the right man?”

Dangerous territory. Again. So he smiled and nodded back toward the living room. “Let’s go sit down and you can decide that for yourself.”

She followed him silently, only the rustle of the candy bag let him know she was following.

By the time they’d returned to the couch, she’d nibbled her way around the outside of a peanut butter cup. As he watched her lick chocolate off her lip, he practically had to bite his own damn tongue to make sure he didn’t lean forward and kiss her.

Then she leaned forward and filled her glass again and took a healthy swallow.

And Ben resigned himself to a slow kind of torture and prayed for Dorrie to pass out before his cousin got home.

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