“Of course not.” More, please.
As if she’d heard his silent entreaty, she slid onto his lap and snuggled her head into his chest. With all the scotch she’d downed, sex was a no-go, but he did like holding her. Maybe a little more kissing too. “So it’s been two years,” he said, “and did anyone appeal in any way?”
She laughed and looked up at him. “I sense you’re fishing for compliments.”
“No-o-oo. Unless you have one.”
She shook her head, smiling.
He tapped the end of her nose. “Have you been with anyone since your ex?”
She let out a big sigh. “At first, no. But after a year, well, I have needs.” She peered into his eyes super close. “You know?”
He nodded and tightened his hold on her. “I know.”
She sighed. “He was…everything I hoped for. The exact opposite of my ex.”
“What happened?”
“Same old story. Girl loves guy—” her voice came out small, and he leaned closer so he wouldn’t miss a word “—guy loves someone else.” She lifted her head, bumping his chin. “I sure can pick ’em, huh?”
He rubbed his chin. Wow. She had terrible luck. “How long were you with this guy? The one you, uh, loved?”
“Four months,” she mumbled.
“Was it one of the doctors? Is that why you don’t date doctors?” Why did you turn me down?
She regarded him quizzically. “I don’t have anything against doctors. He was a school social worker.”
The hairs on the back of his neck stood up. That wasn’t a common job for a man. His stepbrother, Angel, was a school social worker. But as far as he knew, Angel hadn’t dated anyone in years. They all thought he was in love with his best friend Julia. Oh shit. Guy loves someone else.
He cleared his throat. “What was his name?”
“Angel,” she said on a sigh.
He quickly slid her off his lap and back to her own chair. He stood, speechless for a moment as he tried to slam the brakes on where he thought this thing between them was heading. Finally, just to be sure, he asked, “Angel Marino?”
“Yes.” She went back to licking a Frito.
He started pacing the kitchen, let out a stream of curses, and shoved a hand in his hair. Why did the first woman he actually felt something for in a year have to be involved with his brother? She loved Angel. Dammit. He’d never admitted anything vulnerable like that commitment crap to anyone before. He slumped back into his chair.
“What’s wrong?” she asked before popping the Frito in her mouth.
“That’s my damned brother!”
“Stepbrother.”
His head reared back. “You knew we were related?”
She waved a hand in the air. “Well, you know, Marino. He said Vince was his brother when I asked him about having the same name, and since you’re Vince’s stepbrother, I put it together.”
“And that doesn’t bother you?”
Her nose wrinkled adorably. “Why should it?”
“We grew up together since we were eight years old! Same age, shared a room, went to school together. How did you meet him? Did Vince introduce you?”
“No. One of his students became a patient. He stopped by to visit him, we got to talking, one thing led to another…”
He held up a hand. “Don’t tell me anything else. Fuck me. I can’t sleep with you now!”
She chomped a Frito. “Who asked you to?”
Angel was like a damned priest minus the celibacy apparently! His stepbrother was sensitive, patient, and comfortable talking about emotions and deep stuff most guys would never bring up. Women loved him for it. Angel was a woman’s ideal kind of guy. Jared was a guy guy. He was rough around the edges, never knew when to stop with the joking, crossing the line into inappropriate territory with no clue that he had. He was hopeless in talking about feelings and shit.
He slapped a hand on the table. “If Angel was perfect for you, I’m sure as hell not.”
“No kidding,” she muttered.
“Then what’d you kiss me for?” he demanded.
“I don’t know. For helping me?”
He huffed and stood. “This is over.”
She looked up at him, a puzzled expression on her beautiful face. “What’s over?”
“This.” He gestured between them. “Whatever we had between us is over.”
She yawned. “Okay.” She stood, and he thought she was going to leave. Instead she walked into the living room, stretched out on the sofa and fell sound asleep.
Damn, damn, damn. He got a blanket and covered her with it. She sighed and curled into it.
He tore his gaze away from her sweet flushed cheeks, her glossy brown hair. He couldn’t have her, and that was final. He could never do that to his brother.
He went outside and sat on his half-finished deck, thinking his bad luck might’ve just topped hers in the love department. Not that he loved her. Well, he didn’t have the chance to. He dropped his head in his hands and groaned.
Chapter Five
Emily had a really good week. The press had moved on after she issued a statement saying no reconciliation was ever going to happen. Her ex pronounced it a misunderstanding and used the spotlight to talk more about himself. She doubted voters would get behind him again. So that was all good and, in standing up for herself, she felt some of her old confidence returning. Enough to make her think she could handle getting back on the horse with the only man to give her a little giddyup in a very long time—Jared.
There was a sizzling attraction between them, no question. He’d admitted his rep was true—he was a good-time guy with serious commitment issues. And she was looking for a good time. She wouldn’t hurt him with a onetime deal, and there was no way she’d get her heart broken. Besides, after seeing him at his cozy house surrounded by the furniture he made with his own hands, she trusted him. He was steady and stable and honest about what he did and why. It made everything so simple—fun and flirty and light—exactly what she needed.
And he’d been so good to her too. After she slept for three hours on his living room sofa last Saturday, he’d let her relax at his house while he walked back to the hospital and got her work shirt and her car. She drove the short distance home, feeling refreshed, and returned the call of the biggest-name news station to issue her statement over the phone.
She eagerly looked forward to the Saturday morning Captain Cuddle visit with Jared. Maybe she’d sneak out the service exit and walk home with him again. Wasn’t that what all his nurse flings did? It would all be normal procedure for him.
As soon as she saw Jared enter the ward in his Captain Cuddle costume, she crossed over to him with a big smile and handed him the goody bag. “Hey, Captain Cuddle, thanks again for your help last Saturday.”
“Captain Huddle. No problem.” He turned to go.
“Wait.” She grabbed his arm and met hard muscle. Ooh, this was going to be so fun! “I get off at one.” She lowered her voice to a sexy purr. “Maybe we could have lunch and hang out at your place again.”
He slid out of reach and then spoke in a gravely serious tone made less serious by his porcupine hat with gray knitted quills sticking up all over. “Emily, we can only be friends.”
“Sure,” she said brightly. Friends with benefits just once. “So I’ll meet you by the service elevator. Okay?”
He pushed his eye mask up and regarded her with his gorgeous green eyes. “Angel is my brother. I won’t hurt him.”
“It won’t hurt him at all,” she assured him. “It was a year ago. He dumped me. Besides I know your rep—” she winked “—and I’m okay with it.” In fact, Angel hadn’t even crossed her mind in so long she had to wonder if she really loved him or just appreciated him for being so different from her ex. She’d still been a bit of a mess back then.
He stepped close, leaning down to her ear, and her libido sped to a heated gallop. Boy, now that she’d opened the gates, it was lust city. “I’m s
orry,” he said quietly. “You don’t know how sorry. But no.” With that, he whirled away, cape flying out behind him as he strode into Chris’s room. He always remembered that Chris was the sickest and needed the first visit before he fell asleep.
She stared after him for a moment, wondering if there was more to Dr. One-and-Done than she’d realized. Then she heard him bark, “Are you crazy? The Yankees suck. Boo-oo-oo.” And quickly concluded he really was just the happy-go-lucky guy he seemed to be.
She’d have to ramp up her efforts where Jared was concerned. Angel was a nonissue from her point of view. He’d been the one to let her go a year ago, and it wasn’t like Angel would ever find out she slept with Jared one time. Hell, she deserved to have some fun in her life. Didn’t she?
Only when she got off her shift, Jared was nowhere to be found.
~ ~ ~
As soon as Jared got off Captain Huddle duty at noon, he called Angel. Luckily his stepbrother was on his way home from tutoring, and they agreed to meet at Angel’s place. He tossed the costume bag and books on the floor of his truck and drove to Angel’s apartment. He lived in what used to be an art studio on the back property of a large contemporary-style home in Fieldridge. Angel had taken the apartment because his best friend, Julia, and her husband, Brad, had bought a house in Fieldridge when they’d first married. Angel had always needed to be close to Julia, and Julia had always delighted in having him close. She still lived in that house across town.
He parked in the street out front and went around back to ring the bell. No answer. He looked around and didn’t see his brother’s ancient black Honda Civic. Jared had driven pedal to the metal to get here fast. He sat down on the concrete step of the studio apartment to wait. He had to find out what Angel thought of the Emily situation. She’d made him an offer today, actually seeming eager to hook up. As if she’d thought over his one-and-done rep and thought it might be fun. He wasn’t at all sure one time would be enough. After she’d left his place last weekend, his house felt kind of…empty. But if one time wasn’t enough, when would it end? He just kept thinking of her being in love with Angel. And poor Angel being in love with Julia but never having her. The more he thought about it, the more he thought Emily needed someone like Angel after her awful cheating bastard of a husband. There weren’t too many great guys like Angel in the world. And maybe Angel needed her too. They deserved each other.
So why did he feel sick to his stomach at the thought?
He stood when he saw Angel pull into the driveway. His stepbrother got out of the car in a black leather jacket open over a white cotton T-shirt and jeans, holding a briefcase full of papers. Wholesome, that was what he was. His dark brown hair was always rumpled and his dark brown eyes were always kind. Yes, this was definitely the sort of man Emily deserved.
Angel caught sight of Jared and smiled his angelic, dimpled smile. “Hey, Jare, did you eat?”
“Nope.”
Angel crossed the stretch of yard to the studio apartment. His stepbrother was only an inch shorter than his own five foot eleven, but lean and lithe, which always made him seem smaller. Jared had looked out for him at school, making sure no one messed with him, and still felt a little protective of Angel’s tender heart.
“Why so serious?” Angel asked when he reached him. He put the key in the door and opened it, gesturing for Jared to go in ahead of him.
“No reason.”
“How’s grilled cheese sound?”
“Good.”
“All right. Just give me a minute.” He set his briefcase on one of the wicker dining room chairs surrounding the rectangular wood table. The studio space was large and open with lots of windows and two skylights. The hardwood floors still had some splatters of paint on them. Angel used half the space as a dining room and the other half as a living room with a large futon sofa that pulled out into a bed. A TV sat on a small stand in the corner. The coffee table was an old trunk. It had a Bohemian college feel to it. Jared knew it was because Angel saved all of his meager social worker salary toward buying a house one day.
“I’ll help,” Jared said.
Angel smiled and winked. “I got it. Sit down and relax. You look stressed. Everything okay at work?” He headed for his small kitchen. A half wall separated the kitchen from the rest of the space.
That was Angel for you. Always thinking of others. Always asking how they were. Emily definitely deserved Angel. He just had to give Angel a little shove in that direction.
He helped himself to a beer in Angel’s fridge, which was stocked full of healthy food. He grabbed a handful of already washed grapes too. “Work’s fine,” he said, popping a grape in his mouth before tossing a grape into Angel’s open mouth.
“Yeah?” Angel pulled out a frying pan. “So what’s up?”
“Nothing.”
Angel brushed by him, giving him a disbelieving look before pulling out sliced cheese and butter from the fridge. “I hardly ever see you on a Saturday afternoon. You’re usually too busy in the service of Venus.”
Jared snorted. That was their little joke. It was a historic euphemism for sex. He and his fraternity brothers used to toss around a bunch of hysterical old-timey euphemisms for sex back in college. Venus was the goddess of love, and though Jared didn’t love the women he hooked up with, he treated them like goddesses in the bedroom. Thus, the lack of complaints thrown in his direction when he bailed. Usually he met up with a nurse at the service exit after their shift and walked them to his house. Exactly as Emily wanted to do today.
Not gonna happen.
He took a long pull on his beer and watched Angel as he prepared the sandwiches.
“So it looks like we’ll have a full house for Thanksgiving,” Angel said over his shoulder. “Everyone’s going to be there and Kennedy’s whole family too.” Kennedy was his older brother Luke’s fiancée, a petite blond female version of Luke—ambitious, sharp, a real go-getter in wealth management, yet devoted to family and helping others. His brother was ridiculously happy.
Jared grunted. “We’ll have to be at Gabe’s place to fit everyone.” That was the house he and his brothers had grown up in, a large Victorian in Clover Park.
The frying pan sizzled and Angel dropped a couple of sandwiches onto it. He spoke over his shoulder. “Pretty soon we’ll need a kids table too.” So far there was only his oldest brother Gabe’s (and Zoe’s) ten-month-old son, Miles, but now Sophia was pregnant. Nico and Lily would be popping one out soon.
“Julia coming too?” Jared asked casually. Even though everyone knew Angel was in love with her, he wouldn’t touch her on account of their twisted relationship. She’d been married to his friend Brad, who’d died overseas during his tour of duty. Angel had promised to look after Julia if Brad didn’t make it back. He’d been doing just that for the last five years.
Angel stiffened almost imperceptibly before grabbing a spatula. “No. She’ll be at her parents’ house. They live over in New Medford, about a forty-minute drive.”
Jared drank some more beer, needing the liquid courage, before blurting, “What about Emily?”
“Who?” Angel kept cooking, his back to Jared, which irritated him. He needed to read his expression. Angel was incapable of lying and had the worst poker face in history.
Jared crossed to Angel’s side. “Emily Maguire.”
Angel raised a brow. “How do you know Emily?”
“You mean how do I know you slept with her?”
“No,” Angel responded calmly. “I mean how do you know her?”
“I met her at work. She’s a nurse, as you know.” He raised his brows, waiting for Angel to explain himself.
“Oh. Tell her I said hi.”
He slammed his beer bottle on the counter. “Hi? She’s in love with you and that’s all you have to say for yourself.”
“I haven’t seen Emily in a year!” Angel threw the spatula down, left the frying sandwiches, and got himself a beer. He grabbed the bottle opener, popped the top, and dran
k.
They stared each other down for a long tension-filled moment.
Angel broke the silence. “It’s none of your damned business anyway.”
Smoke started fuming off the frying pan. Angel rushed over and flipped the sandwiches, which were blackened, the cheese melting over the sides. He finished cooking them, slid the sandwiches onto plates, and inclined his head at Jared. “Take my beer to the table.”
Jared brought over the beer, and Angel joined him a minute later with the sandwiches. They started eating in silence.
“I can’t believe you’ve been secretly dating all this time,” Jared finally said half accusingly.
Angel slapped a hand on the table. “I’m not a fucking priest or a monk or any of those idiotic labels everyone sticks on me.” He took a pull on his beer. “And I’m not angelic despite my nickname, which, by the way, my mom gave me as a baby and it stuck. My name is Angelo, and I’m no saint.”
You could’ve knocked Jared over with a rosary. He thought he’d known Angel so well. Yet all these years he had this whole other side of him that none of them had ever seen. Maybe because no one had ever thought to look.
“But you have such a sweet face,” Jared said, pinching Angel’s clean-shaven cheek. “Look at these dimples.”
Angel slapped his hand away. “Look in the mirror. You’ve got the dimpled smile too.”
True. And they didn’t even have the same parents.
“So you just what…” Jared studied Angel like he’d never really seen him before. Was he just as much a horndog as the rest of them? “You just go around secretly dating?”
Angel leaned back in his seat. “I try to date. You know? Julia—” he laid a hand over his heart “—she’s got me good. But she’s still grieving. Once in a while I try to move on, go on a date or two—”
“Or four months.”
He inclined his head. “Or four months, though that’s rare. But then no matter how nice the woman is, I just realize I can’t ever love them because—”
“Julia.”
Angel nodded once and took a long swallow of beer.
“But why do you keep it secret?” Jared asked.
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