by Lori Wilde
He'd bet it had. “You did great,” he told her again.
For a second, she just looked at him, her gaze sweet and soft. Max told himself to walk away, to head for the door right now, but his stupid feet seemed glued to the floor.
“You're a nice man,” she said. “I'm glad you're my friend.”
Her friend? He blew out a breath of self-disgust. A friend wouldn't be lying to her. A friend wouldn't be lusting after her.
So no, he didn't think he was her friend.
Man, he needed to get out of here. “I'll be back in the morning to help with the car.”
She must have sensed his mood, because she nodded and led the way to the front door. “Okay. But you really don't have to help with my car. I'm a grown woman who is perfectly capable of taking care of herself.”
“I know. But I want to do this.” He couldn't really explain why it was important to him to help. Part of it was because it made it easier to keep an eye on her, but that was a small part of it. Mostly he wanted to be with her. He liked being around Paige.
He liked it too much.
“Well, I guess I'll see you in the morning,” he said, trying to ignore the desire humming between them.
“I guess you will.” She walked over to stand next to him and smiled.
“Have a good night,” he said, wondering why he hadn't left yet.
“You, too.” Her smile grew even larger.
It took some effort, but Max finally got one foot to move forward. Steeling his resolve, he moved the other foot, too. “Thanks.”
Then he made a fatal mistake and looked at her again. That same emotion he'd felt earlier rushed through him. Paige made him feel so much more than simple lust. Lust he could handle. Lust he could walk away from.
But this closeness, this emotional tug he felt whenever he looked into her clear green eyes, made it impossible to leave.
So he didn't. He stood there, looking at her beautiful face. Man, he wanted to kiss her. Just one kiss. One short kiss would be enough.
With effort, he reached for the doorknob. “Night.”
As soon as he opened the door, he went to walk by her, and then she did it. He hadn't even seen it coming, hadn't had even a second's warning before Paige reached out and gave him a hug.
“I really am glad you're my friend,” she said.
It was a quick hug, nothing romantic or sexual, but she might as well have set him on fire because that was all it took to make his self-control dry up faster than a grape in the sun.
Before she could pull away or say anything else, those feelings that had been gathering inside him broke free. Without hesitation, he buried his hands in her hair and gathered her close.
Then he kissed her.
6
Paige hadn’t expected him to kiss her. Sure, she'd hoped he might, even though it wasn't sensible. She'd accepted that they weren't going to act on the attraction they felt for each other.
But the second Max kissed her, she was glad he'd given in to what they both were feeling. When he deepened the kiss, she willingly let him pull her closer. His chest rumbled with a satisfied groan as she met his ardor with her own.
She slipped her arms around his neck, her fingers threading through the hair on the back of his head, sculpting him to her. Rising on her toes, she pressed her body against his. One kiss followed another until they both were both breathless with desire.
“We shouldn't be doing this,” Max murmured as he trailed kisses down her neck. “Like I said before, we shouldn't get involved.”
His words might have had more impact on her if he hadn't said them in a voice rough with passion.
“Maybe you were wrong about that getting involved thing,” she said, leaning up and dropping another kiss on his lips. She took her time kissing him, letting herself savor the sensation. “Hmmm. Yes. You definitely were wrong about that not getting involved thing.”
He leaned away from her, his gaze serious. “No, I was right. Neither of us can get involved in anything long term right now.”
Paige couldn't dispute that. She had no idea if she'd even be in Honey a month from now. Heck, she didn't know if she'd be here a week from now, although she certainly hoped so.
Her gaze landed on his lips and desire tingled through her. She'd never wanted a man the way she wanted Max at this moment. Never felt this alive before.
When Max started to remove his hands from her waist, the sense of loss hit Paige hard. She didn't want this to end.
“Um, I don't suppose you'd consider something short term,” she blurted.
Max froze. “What?”
The more she thought about this, the more she liked the idea. “Who says this has to be long term? We can have something short term. What's wrong with that?”
She was hoping Max would like the idea as much as she did, but instead, he frowned. “Paige, I don't think that's a good idea.”
She sensed he was trying to be noble. He probably thought she'd get hurt because she'd end up falling for him. But that wouldn't happen because she wouldn't fall in love with anyone at the moment. Not until everything with Adam was settled.
But Max didn't know that, so she tried to explain the best she could. “I'm sorry I can't get involved right now, but I do think we could have some fun. If we both agree that's all it is, I don't see what harm there is.”
Max took a step back from her. She was glad to see that rather than frowning, he now looked uncertain. Uncertain was good. It meant he was starting to change his mind.
“I don't know,” he said, but his gaze was on her lips, and she could see the fire of desire burning hot in his eyes. “There are a lot of things you don't know about me.”
True. But the last few months had taught her to trust her instincts, and her instincts told her Max was a good guy. Still, to humor him, she asked, “Ever killed anyone?”
He frowned. “No. But—”
“Hit a woman?”
“Of course not.”
“Are you married?”
“No. Paige, listen, I still—”
“Committed a felony?”
“No.”
“Do you like dogs?”
He blinked. “What?”
“Dogs. Do you like dogs? Sugar is very important to me, and I could never hang around with someone who didn't like my dog.”
He chuckled. “Yeah, I like dogs.”
She smiled. “Good. Then that's all I need to know right now. And for the record, there are many, many things you don't know about me.” She held up one hand and ticked off her items. “Just so you know, though, I've never killed someone or hit a man or a woman; I'm not married; I've never committed a felony, and I love dogs.”
He sighed. “Paige, I still don't think you're the short-term kind. This could be a disaster. There are some things you need to know before we go any further. We need to have a serious talk.”
Paige didn’t feel like talking. She didn’t want anything to destroy the way she was feeling at the moment. “No,” she said.
Her response seemed to catch him off guard. It took a moment before he recovered. “Seriously, I need to talk to you about why I’m in Honey.”
“I don’t want to know. In fact, let's set some ground rules to guarantee that nothing goes wrong with our little fling,” she said, reaching out and lightly rubbing his chest. She liked touching Max. Liked it a lot. But then again, she liked everything about Max. The way he smiled. The way he made her laugh. The sweet way he worried about her.
Oh, and the way he kissed her so her knees buckled.
She drew little circles on his T-shirt, flexing her fingers once or twice against his muscles. When he made no immediate move to stop her, she felt like doing a happy dance. But then he stopped her hand.
“I can’t let this go any further without having a serious discussion. It wouldn’t be right,” he said.
“Always the good guy,” she teased softly. “Even when I’m trying to convince you to be bad.”
He shoo
k his head. “No, I’m not a good guy. I should have told you a long time ago why I’m here. Still, I’m not low enough to make love to you without you knowing the truth.”
An odd feeling settled over Paige. Whatever the truth was, she didn’t want to go into the truth at the moment, but it was obvious he was serious.
Reluctantly, she admitted that maybe he was right. Maybe she also should tell him the truth before things went too far.
She opened her mouth to tell him her secret when he said, “I know you’re Alyssa Delacorte. Your father hired me to find you and make sure you were okay. I haven’t told him anything, so he’s probably fired me by now. I’m sorry. I should have told you sooner.”
The air whooshed out of Paige’s lungs. For a moment, she wasn’t sure she’d heard him right, but then his words sunk in.
“What?” She stared at him, unable to believe what he’d just said. Frankly, she didn’t know whether to scream or cry. Before she could do either, Sugar whimpered loudly so Paige let her out of the bedroom. Apparently, a bathroom break was desperately needed.
Glad to have something to do while she wrapped her mind around what he’d just said, Paige turned and headed toward the back of the house. She realized she was stomping, but what did he expect?
He worked for her father? Maybe that’s why lying came so easily to him.
She threw opened the door to the backyard and let her dog scamper out. Then she turned on the patio light and followed her outside. The night air was still hot, so it did nothing to cool her temper.
When she heard Max follow her outside, she sat in one of the patio chairs.
“I can’t believe you did this to me,” she said, her soft tone belying the raging emotions inside her. “You’re no better than all the media people chasing me, looking to make a buck off my pain.”
He nodded slowly. “Yeah, you’re right. I shouldn’t have done it. And now you hate me. I don’t blame you.”
She opened her mouth to tell him she agreed with him. She did hate him. But then she realized, she didn’t. She was angry. Upset. Hurt.
But she didn’t hate Max.
Drawing a deep, steadying breath into her lungs, she said, “Explain this to me. I don’t understand.”
As soon as Max sat in one of the chairs, Sugar scampered over and hopped happily into his lap. Idly, he patted her while he said, “I really am sorry.”
“I got that part. Explain the part about …” She waved one hand. “All the rest.”
“I did some security work for your father. I’m also a PI, although mostly I just do IT security work these days. Anyway, your father knew I still had a PI license, so he hired me to find you. He convinced me he was worried about you, and he told me not to let you know who I was for fear you would take off and disappear again.”
Paige started to protest, but she realized he was right. She would have. “So why didn’t you tell me later?”
He sighed. “I should have. I know that, and I wanted to. I took the job because your father seemed sincere. I thought he really was worried about you, but then your father and Adam Taylor kept stirring things up, and I realized I was wrong. I’m sorry, but I don’t think either of them have your best interests at heart.”
A hollow laugh escaped Paige. “Caught on to that, did you?”
He sighed. “Yeah, but too late. I was already here, and I thought I could try to keep you safe. If the press found you, the harassment you would go through would be horrible.” He met her gaze. “I didn’t want that to happen to you. You mean too much to me.”
For a heartbeat, Paige held his gaze. Her throat was tight, and she knew if she didn’t do something quick, she was going to cry.
“Max, I don’t know what to believe. A lot of men have told me they care about me over the years. Rarely has it been true.”
“I know,” he said. “You have no reason to believe me, but it’s all true.” He stood, set Sugar on the ground, and walked over to her. Kneeling next to her chair, he said, “You need to believe that I would never do anything to hurt you. I’m very sorry if I handled this wrong. I debated with myself every day about telling you, but I didn’t want you to run.”
“Because it would upset my father,” she said flatly.
“No, because it would upset me,” he said. “I’m falling for you. Which is why I won’t tell your father where you are. Which is why I told you the truth tonight before things went any further between us.”
She was silent for a few moments while she considered what he’d said, then honesty forced her to admit, “I wasn’t exactly truthful with you either.”
His grin was rueful. “Well, you have good reason not to trust anyone. You’ve done an excellent job making sure no one in Honey knows who you are.”
“Except Hal and Alma. They know.”
He seemed surprised. “Really? They don’t act like it.”
“They’re good people. I used my real name and social security number on the employment paperwork. Didn’t matter anyway. Hal recognized me,” she said. “I hadn’t changed my hair at that point.”
Whatever he was going to say next was cut off by a loud whimper of pain from the backyard. Max was on his feet and running across the yard before Paige could stand. When she reached the back fence, she found Max rescuing Sugar from a small hole in the wooden fence. The little dog had gotten herself wedged in tightly, so it took some effort. But once she was free, he handed her to Paige, and then used a rock to cover the hole.
“You keep coming to the rescue of everyone around you,” she observed, happy her dog was okay.
“I’ll fix that tomorrow,” he said, then stopped. “Well, I will if you’ll let me.”
How was she supposed to stay mad at this man?
The hot summer night air was getting to her, so she said, “Let’s go inside.”
Max followed her across the yard and back inside the house. “Paige, please tell me what you’re thinking, what you’re feeling.“
She knew what she should feel. She should be furious. She should hate him. She should be yelling at him and telling him to leave.
But that wasn’t what she was feeling, which surprised her. What she was feeling was a deep desire to kiss the living daylights out of him.
Max was going crazy. He’d had to tell Paige the truth. No way could he sleep with her without her knowing who he was and why he was here. But now that they were back in the house, he didn’t know what to think. Was she furious? Did she hate him?
Once they were in the living room, she set Sugar on the ground. The little dog ran over and started hopping on his legs, so finally, he picked her up again.
“Sugar loves you,” Paige said. “Thank you for rescuing her. You’re her hero.”
Max looked at the ball of fluff in his arms. “She’s a real cutie. It wasn’t a big deal.”
“It was a big deal to her,” Paige pointed out. “She could have really hurt herself, and I’m not sure I would’ve been strong enough to free her. Thank you.”
He wasn’t sure what to say, so he looked at Paige. “I was happy to help.” After a few seconds, he added, “I really am sorry.”
She sat on the couch and nodded slowly. “I know. I realize what my father’s like. I’ve spent a lifetime living with him, and I still get caught in his traps even now. I’m sure to you he seemed like the perfect dad, deeply concerned about his little girl.”
Max nodded. That was exactly what he’d seemed like. A concerned, loving father. “I don’t know anything about Adam Taylor. I only met with your dad, and he seemed sincere. He’s also been fit to be tied the last few weeks because he knows I’ve found you, but I won’t tell him where you are.”
She laughed, the sound unexpected but welcome. “I love that. I bet he’s really mad.”
Max was trying to judge her mood, but he still wasn’t sure. “Yeah, he’s mad. He’s been yelling at my brother almost daily. He keeps threatening not to pay me, but I don’t care. He can fire me. The more I’ve worked for him,
the more I’m convinced he wants the press to find you. He wants you to be splashed all over the papers and the internet. I’m just not sure why.”
Paige patted the cushion next to her on the couch. “Sit. Let’s talk.”
Once he did, Sugar immediately climbed into his lap and made herself comfy.
“My father likes to say he’s a round-the-clock businessman. He’s always on the lookout for profit. He asks himself constantly how he can spin something and make money off it.”
“But you’re his daughter,” Max pointed out. “You’re not a business opportunity.”
She laughed softly, and then said, “Sorry. I’m not trying to be mean, but I’ve come to learn that my father does view me as another commodity. He introduced me to Adam, the star pitcher on the baseball team he owns. The relationship made a great headline, which was his only concern. He was counting on me marrying Adam because he felt the PR would help his many companies.”
Max wanted to ask her questions about her engagement, but he respected her privacy. If she wanted to tell him more, she would.
“How much is my father paying you?” she asked.
Her question surprised him, but he told her, and then added, “But I’m not going to take the money.”
She shook her head. “No, you should take the money. He should pay you for your time.”
Max hated this. He hated that she might think he was only interested in her father’s money. “Paige, I wouldn’t feel right about it.”
With a sign, she explained, “I won’t feel right if you don’t.”
Max realized that Paige was interested in more than his paycheck. She wanted to prove something to her father. “We can talk about it later. Right now, I want to make sure that you forgive me.”
She leaned over and gave him a slow, lingering kiss. “I know you aren’t doing this to hurt me.”
Relief seeped through him. “I’m glad. Can I ask why you don’t just give an interview and put all this behind you? I know it failed the last couple of times you did it, but maybe if you tried again.”
He wasn’t sure if his suggestion was going to upset her, but he had to ask. Rather than being offended, though, she seemed fine with his question.