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By late afternoon, the drizzle had disappeared. Sun began to dry the wet pavement, leaving puddles only in the deepest cracks and holes of the sidewalks and streets.
Nikki walked through the revolving door and took in great lungfuls of fresh air from the bay. The sky was still overcast, but a few rays of sunshine pierced through the clouds to sparkle on the concrete.
Tucking her umbrella under her arm, Nikki spied Trent, hips resting on the fender of his Jeep, arms folded over his chest. He was double-parked in an alley, but didn’t seem the least concerned about a ticket. He lifted a hand when he saw her and she couldn’t help the stupid little skip of her heartbeat at the sight of him. As if they truly were newlyweds. What a joke! When was this hoax going to end? Wrapping her arms close around her, as if she could guard her wayward heart, she sidestepped the deepest puddles.
He grinned at the sight of her, that sexy slash of white she found so unnerving. “Found your car.”
“You did? At the airport?”
“Right where you left it.”
She climbed into his rig, as if she truly belonged there, and the scents of leather and oil seemed suddenly familiar. This was getting dangerous. Though she was always a little unsettled by him, there was something intimate and secure in being with him.
He adjusted the seat, started the engine, flipped on his blinker and merged with southbound traffic, skirting the Sound.
True to his word, he drove her directly to one of the parking lots near the airport where her little Dodge ragtop was wedged between a Toyota wagon and a Cadillac.
“How’d you find this?” she asked.
He grinned. “Professional secret.”
“Give me a break.” She opened the passenger door of the Jeep but before she could step out, his hand surrounded her wrist. “I’ll meet you at your apartment later,” he said, and she felt her pulse jump a bit.
“I don’t think that would be such a good idea.”
“Got to keep up appearances, don’t we?”
“For whom?” A part of her was anxious to be alone with him, to continue their little lie—make that big lie—to be with him in the apartment, to sit in front of the fire with a glass of wine, to kiss and hold him and touch every inch of him, and yet she knew that the longer she put off the inevitable, the more time she wasted pretending they were in love, the harder their eventual breakup would be. She needed to protect her heart.
He rounded the Jeep’s hood and stood next to her as she forced her key into the compact’s lock.
“Don’t,” she warned before he laid one finger on her.
“Nikki—” He tried to touch her, but she drew away.
“I really can’t go on living this lie,” she said, her voice hitching a little. Oh, Lord, she wasn’t going to break down now, was she? She jammed the key harder into the lock and twisted.
“You have to.”
She stiffened.
“For your safety.”
That was too much. Whirling to face him, she left her keys dangling from the lock. “Oh, for crying out loud! Let’s not get into this again. You know where I live, where I work, all about my parents, family, even my exboyfriend, for God’s sake. And what do I know about you? Nothing! Not one blessed thing. But I’m supposed to feel ‘safe’ with you. Give it up, McKenzie.”
“You can’t get rid of me.”
“Sure I can. As of now, we’re divorced.”
He barked out a laugh that bordered on cruel, then grabbed her quickly and swung her against him. She gasped as his mouth descended on hers, kissing her so hard she couldn’t breathe. Her knees buckled and her head was spinning. Don’t let him do this to you! a part of her brain screamed, but another part sighed in contentment.
Propped against the still-wet side of her car, the door handle and her keys digging into her buttocks, she tried to call up every reason in the world to push him away, attempted to recover her hard-nosed stance and insist that they had to end their affair, but her heart was pumping wildly, her body ached for the touch of him, and her determination seemed to slip away, inch by inch, just as the sun slid slowly beneath the horizon.
Her senses swam, and it seemed natural to wind her arms around his neck and tilt her head eagerly to feel his mouth against hers. His tongue parted her lips and she shivered with anticipation of that glorious invasion as it touched and danced with hers.
When he lifted his head, his breath came out in a rush and she swallowed with difficulty. This felt so right and she knew it was so wrong. Loving him would only cause more heartache, more pain.
