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“Okay, I’ve moved.” She drew in a breath. “I don’t know what I want. Actually, the truth is I know what I want and I know what is sensible. The sensible side of me says that we can’t be this intimate and still maintain a working relationship. I thought we could, but I underestimated the chemistry.”

“Agreed.”

Her green eyes darkened. “I don’t want to quit my job.”

“I don’t want you to go.”

“I want to stay friends.”

“Me, too.”

Her mouth twisted into a grimace. “I’m lying through my teeth about all of this.”

He knew exactly what she meant. The “right” thing wasn’t what either of them wanted to do. But that alone convinced him that it had to be done. He wanted to tell her how much he wanted her. He wanted to say that even though it would never work out between them, he’d like to think that it would, at least for a little while. Instead, he tried to smile.

“One of us has to pretend to be logical so the other one can pretend to agree,” he told her. “We’ll fake it until we’re ready to act like it’s real.” He reached out and took her hand in his. “I don’t want you to quit, and I don’t want to lose your friendship. But we can’t stay lovers and stay uninvolved.”

“I don’t want love in my life,” she said.

“I don’t want it, either.”

“So we won’t make a habit out of this.”

“Of course not.”

But he didn’t want to let go of her fingers and he very much wanted to pull her close and make love with her again. He wanted to hear her say that she loved him and have her beg him to stay. Because if she did that, he just might be willing to give this all a chance. Even though he knew it was certain to end in disaster.

He knew that once he left her apartment, he wouldn’t be able to stop thinking about her. He couldn’t imagine a life without Heather, but he also knew the kindest act would be to let her go.

She looked at him, then smiled. “You know, it’s not very late. Maybe we could agree to start being sensible tomorrow.” She slipped her robe off her shoulders. “Unless you’re too tired.”

Just for the night, he promised himself. He would return to reality in the morning. Just for now, he would let himself believe that maybe this time everything was going to be all right.

He reached out and tugged at the belt of her robe. “I’m not tired at all.”

She glanced down and saw the physical result of her words, then she leaned toward him. “Maybe this time I could be on top,” she whispered.

Chapter Thirteen

Heather woke to Diane’s crying. She recognized the fussy sound that had become so familiar over the past couple of weeks. Her daughter was still suffering the ill effects of teething. But as Heather sat up and stretched, she couldn’t help smiling. Every part of her body ached pleasantly, and although she’d only gotten a few hours of sleep, she felt completely refreshed and ready to face the world. Last night had been the most incredible experience.

She walked into Diane’s room and picked her up. “I know you’re not feeling well, sweet cheeks, but according to Grandma, you just have a few more days, then you’ll be your cheerful self again.”

With that, she held her baby close to her chest and twirled around the room. She had an irresistible urge to hum or laugh aloud. She felt like a character in a romantic movie. She wanted to sweep open the windows and call “Good morning” to the birds and squirrels, which would only frighten the poor creatures.

Even Diane seemed to sense her good mood. Her daughter’s fussiness quieted and she laughed with her mother as they made a second circuit of the room. Heather took the baby’s hand in her own, held out the tiny arm and switched from an oddly gaited waltz to a modified tango. Diane squealed with delight.

It wasn’t just that the lovemaking had been so incredible, Heather thought as she set her daughter on the changing table and saw to her diaper. It was that Jim had been such a responsive lover. He’d been tender and serious and playful and caring and how on earth was she supposed to resist that? It wasn’t enough that the guy was perfect in every other way. Now she had firsthand proof that he was dynamite in bed.

Thank goodness she’d been smart enough to keep her heart carefully out of reach. If she hadn’t, it would have been so easy to fall in love with him. But they’d come together as consenting adults and nothing about their relationship had changed.

Heather bit her lower lip as she wondered if she’d been careful enough. Had she started to think of Jim as more than just her boss and a good friend?

Something stirred in the back of her mind, but she ignored the soft whispers. If it was different, she didn’t want to know. Better for both of them if she believed everything was as it had been except for the incredible memories of their night together.

An hour later, she pulled up in front of the office. Despite her assertions that nothing was different, her heart started beating a little faster as she headed for the front door of the building. Would Jim be inside? What would they say when they saw each other? She was determined to act normally, but she had a sudden apprehension that she wouldn’t be able to remember what normal was like.

But when she stepped inside the room, she found that she didn’t have anything to worry about. Jim wasn’t anywhere to be seen. Heather flashed Flo a smile, called out a friendly greeting and went to settle Diane for the day.