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“Just think, you could escape that stuffy lifestyle you’ve adopted for yourself and have some real fun. I’d even let you take over the bar. ”
She leaned a hip against the counter as she stared out over the dance floor before swinging her gaze back to her brother.
“You’re joking. ” He grimaced as he glared at her.
“Not in the least,” she assured him, raising her voice to be heard over the din. “I like working with Janey, John. I want to spend more time at the restaurant rather than here.
You’d do well here. ”
Come to think of it, her brother would fit in here, she thought. He’d been discontent for years at her father’s law firm. Where her sister seemed to fit in fine, John and her father clashed constantly.
“You’ve lost your mind. ” He turned his back on her as though she weren’t worth listening to any longer.
Rogue grinned; she knew her brother, and he wasn’t as disinterested as he wanted to pretend. His body was tense, a frown was brewing at his forehead—proof that he was at least considering her suggestion.
Shaking her head at him she finished her beer before disposing of the bottle and making her rounds of the bar.
She greeted regulars, chatted with visitors, and picked out tourists from among those just passing through on their way to other locations. She laughed and made certain the waitresses kept the drinks flowing. And through it all she kept her eye on the door, watching for one figure, one man.
“Hey, Rogue. ”
She turned at the pat on her shoulder.
“Gene, how are you doing?” She shot the deputy a quick smile as he looked around the bar.
“Seen Zeke this evening yet?” he asked as he looked around the bar, his ruddy face creasing into a frown.
“Not yet. ” She kept her smile relaxed, kept the worry out of her expression. “He usually shows up before the night’s over. ”
“I thought you’d be at the restaurant tonight?”
She looked around the bar as she shook her head. “I’ve had some things to take care of, so I took tonight off. ”
“Things like your brother?” His grin was slow and easy. “Talk is already making rounds that another Boston Walker is in town. I hear he’s a hell of a lawyer. ”
Gene’s voice lifted to carry over the music, making it loud enough for those standing and sitting around them to hear their conversation clearly. Rogue was aware of the interest they were generating; it would have been impossible to miss.
“John is definitely one hell of a lawyer. If you’d like to chat with him, he’s over at the bar. ” She nodded toward John’s location. “If you’ll excuse me, I have a few things I need to check on. ”
“Of course,” he answered. “I might just do that, Rogue. Tell Zeke I was looking for him before he left the office. He’s not answering his cell phone, but I left a few messages. ”
“I’ll let him know you’re looking for him,” she promised as she moved away. “Night, Gene. ”
If she saw him. She checked her watch. It was going on nine and she hadn’t seen him yet. That was unusual, and she admitted, it bothered her.
After making a full round of the bar she slipped back through the door next to the counter, managing to evade detection by her brother or Gene. She moved up the stairs, pulled the key to the apartment from her jeans, and unlocked the door before slipping inside.
The apartment was dark. She never left it dark. She always left lights on, simply because she hated fumbling for the switch.
Moving to back out, a surprised yelp left her lips as a hard hand gripped her wrist, pulled her in as the door was pushed closed, before she found herself flat against the wall behind her.
She would have screamed if a part of her hadn’t instantly recognized the man that pressed against her. Her lips, parted on instinct, rather than blasting out in furious sound, let a moan slip by as hard male lips pressed into them, and a ravenous tongue licked over them.
Rogue let her arms wind around a muscular male neck. She arched into the hands that slid beneath her T-shirt
and caressed her up her back. Her lips returned the fiery kiss that blazed over her lips.
She tasted him, felt him, smelled him. Her senses became filled with him as he lifted her against his harder body, his thigh sliding between hers as his hands moved her to ride the hard muscle.
