Page 22 of Irish Rose
“No, I…” But her fingers had automatically lifted to the slight smudges under her eyes. “The time change, I guess.”
“Are you comfortable at the Grants’?”
“Aye, they’re wonderful to me. All of them.”
“They’re extraordinary people. You won’t find many like them.”
“You’re not.” She hadn’t meant to say it, but told herself it was too late to be sorry she had. “You’ve an edge to you.”
“Then be careful you don’t get too close. Edges can be sharp.”
“I’ve already seen that for myself.” She said it lightly as she reached for the first stack of papers. He closed his hand slowly and firmly around her wrist.
“Are you trying to provoke me, Irish?”
“No, but I don’t imagine it takes much.”
“You’re right there. It might be fair to tell you that I have a short fuse, and a dangerous one.”
“I’m so warned.” She looked amused, but when she tried to free her hand, his fingers only tightened.
“One more warning, then. Since you’ve moved into our little community, you’ll hear it from others soon enough. When I find a woman who attracts me, I find a way to have her. Fair means or foul, it doesn’t mean a damn to me.”
It wasn’t a warning, Erin realized. It was a threat. Beneath his fingers, her pulse was beating hard and fast, but she kept her eyes even with his. “I didn’t have to be told to know that, nor have I any intention of attracting you.”
“Too late.” He grinned but released her hand. “I find you intriguing enough to dance in the moonlight with, desirable enough to kiss in a garden shed, and passionate enough to imagine making love to.”
Her stomach knotted with fear, with longing. “Well, a woman’s head could be turned clear around with such flattery, Mr. Logan. Tell me, did you bring me to America to sleep with you or to fix your books?”
“Both,” he said simply, “but we’ll deal with business first.”
“Business is all we’ll deal with. Now I’d like to begin.”
“Fine.” But instead of leaving, he ran his hands up her arms. Erin stiffened, but didn’t back away. She wouldn’t play the fool and struggle. Though she braced herself for the hot passion she’d experienced before, he only brushed a kiss over her cheek.
He’d thought of her and little else since he’d come home again. He’d thought of how she’d felt in his arms, of how his system reacted when she smiled, of how her voice flowed, warm and sweet, so that a man didn’t care what the words were as long as she spoke again.
He knew he could have her. Her response had been too quick and too encompassing before for either of them to pretend otherwise. He knew she wanted him, though it didn’t sit well with her. Even now, as he kissed her lightly, avoiding her lips, her breath was beginning to tremble. He’d never known a woman whose passion was so close to the surface. Now that she was here, in his home, he knew he wouldn’t rest until he had all of it.
But she would come to him. His pride demanded it. So he teased her with his lips, knowing he stirred her. He teased her with his lips, knowing he was slowly killing himself.
“Fair means or foul,” he murmured, nipping gently at her earlobe. “I want you.”
Her eyes were closed. How was it possible to be swept away so quickly, to want so desperately what you knew you shouldn’t have? She put a hand to his chest, willing it to be steady. “And you’re used to taking what you want. I understand that. I won’t deny you move something in me, but I’m not here for the taking, Burke.”
“Maybe not,” he murmured. Some women were only there for the earning. “I can be patient, Irish. When a man’s got the cards, he’s got to know when to hold and when to lay them on the table.” Thoughtfully he ran a finger down her braid. “We’ll play out this hand sooner or later. I’ll let you get started.”
Erin waited until he’d left before she let out a long breath. How was it he could be that arrogant and still make her want to smile? With a shake of her head, she sat behind the desk in a plush leather chair that made her sigh.
Burke was right about one thing, she mused. They would play out the hand sooner or later. The problem was Erin feared that even if she won, she’d lose.
Chapter Five
Within a week, Erin had developed a routine that pleased her. In the mornings she rose early enough to help Dee ready the children for school, then drove a borrowed car to the Three Aces to report to work by nine.
The mess of Burke’s bookkeeping had been an enormous understatement. So had her estimate of his wealth. As she tallied figures and pored over ledgers, she tried to think of it in simple, practical terms. Numbers, after all, were just numbers.
She was rarely interrupted, and took her lunch from the silent Rosa at her desk. By the end of the first week, she’d made enough headway to feel pleased with herself. Only once or twice had she been made to feel foolish. She’d had to ask Burke for the instruction book on the adding machine. Then she’d asked him to supply her with a pencil sharpener. He’d simply picked up a cylinder with a hole in it and handed it to her.
