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The cold shock of his soul-searching brought him up short. He’d never doubted that being single and free of encumbrance was what he wanted. It stunned him to know that Nicole, of all women, was tempting him to consider alternatives. Could he actually contemplate taking the proverbial plunge?
The chilling irony of it struck Jordan. Since Nicole appeared genuine when saying she wasn’t interested in marriage, he’d better not fall for her.
It was probably stupid to tell her about their parents. Personally he’d put the matter aside, having had fourteen years to deal with it, but it might upset her. Then it struck him that he still wasn’t giving Nicole enough credit to assume she’d react like a teenage girl.
He drove to her house after picking up food from his favorite Thai restaurant. As he got out, Chelsea came down the stairs from her apartment.
“Hi, Jordan.” She smiled at him cautiously.
“Hey, Chelsea.” Jordan wished his sister didn’t seem so uncertain, but she appeared to be getting more confident. When he’d gone through the Moonlight Ventures reception area earlier in the day she’d been dealing with a man who was insisting on an immediate meeting with Nicole. Chelsea had handled it so competently he had realized that she’d finally gotten what she most needed, a fresh start.
Blast it all. That was another thing in Nicole’s favor. She had hired Chelsea and was obviously giving her the support needed to make the transition to Seattle. And while Chelsea wouldn’t say anything about the agency, it was obvious that she was filled with admiration for her new boss.
“I’m, uh, going for a walk,” she said. “Have a nice evening.”
“You, too.” Jordan continued up the walkway.
“Is something wrong?” Nicole queried when she opened the door. “You look grim.”
“Not wrong, exactly.” It was hard to break the habit of keeping everything to himself, but she seemed to understand people in a way that he obviously didn’t. “I just wish I knew how to connect with my sister better.”
He wasn’t sure what more he should say. Chelsea was the one who had taken their childhood the hardest. Sweet and gentle, she had been frightened by their parents’ relentless fighting—arguments that had often gotten physical.
“Oh?” Nicole said, and he was sure she was trying to sound noncommittal.
“What is it?” he asked. “I can tell you have an opinion.”
“I have an opinion about practically everything.”
She closed the door behind him and started toward the back of the house. On the deck, he put the food on the table and looked at her with a fixed expression he’d once found useful as a reporter in getting someone to give him an answer.
“Well?”
“I think that your intense personality could be daunting for someone like Chelsea.”
“That’s ridiculous. I’m a very laid-back guy.”
Nicole laughed and the sweet sound and movement of her body almost made him forget his affront at the suggestion he somehow intimidated his own sister.
* * *
NICOLE SAW JORDAN’S eyes darken with desire and held herself together with a firm grip—not easy since her first impulse was to suggest they forget dinner and head upstairs.
So much for resolutions.
She put her hands on her hips. “Jordan, you’re the last guy I’d call laid-back. As a kid you were ambitious and charged ahead to get anything you wanted and you don’t seem to have changed. Even when you relax, you do it with a fierce determination. All of that could leave a sibling feeling overwhelmed, especially a sensitive younger sister. I’m not saying you did anything wrong or that you intended to make her feel that way. It’s just family dynamics.”
The lines on his face smoothed from annoyed to thoughtful, and she dropped her gaze. She didn’t need to see how expressive his face was or remember the way his lips had kissed practically every inch of her body.
“Okay,” he said slowly, “how do I stop overwhelming her?”
“I’m not a relationship guru.”
“I’d still like your opinion.”
That was new.
“I don’t think you should try to change who you are, but you could listen to her more without making judgments.”
