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She stood and walked out.
Hating himself for upsetting her after such a nice time together, he followed her to his car, but avoided holding her hand or touching her back. Her gaze fixed straight ahead, she remained quiet. Soon, an intolerable silence filled the car.
When they entered her house, she walked straight to the kitchen, cut two slices of apple pie and transferred the rest to a box. As she opened the freezer to take out a carton of vanilla ice cream, he stopped her.
“Later. Can we sit and talk for a moment?”
“I’d rather not. I’m tired.”
“Please, Lillian. Just two minutes.” He held her hand and tugged her toward her family room. “Your sofa is comfortable.” He pulled her down beside him and turned to face her. “What’s bothering you?”
“Nothing in particular.”
“Is it the fact I asked you not to relate anything to our colleagues?”
“I wasn’t planning to.” She shrugged. “For your information, Heidi has already nagged me about convincing you to stay.”
He appreciated her honesty. “Are you?”
“Not at all. Didn’t you notice? I’m enjoying seeing the picture of your boat, listening to you describing the trips you plan. It’s quite exciting to a girl who’s never left Ohio.”
“Glad to hear that. I plan to share all the details with you and ask your opinion about the new clinic and lab. That’s why I count on your discretion.” So far, she hadn’t mentioned the reason for her sudden distress. “Why do I have the feeling something upset you?”
A shadow of apprehension darkened her eyes. She seemed to cringe and study the design in her Oriental rug.
“Lillian, please look at me and tell me what’s bothering you?” He edged closer and cupped her cheeks between his hands, forcing her to meet his eyes. “I confided my feelings about my kids, my past dates, my need to discover new horizons. Can you trust me with your thoughts?”
Her eyes glistened with moisture, and she inhaled. “I’ll try to explain. At first all I wanted was to experience a date with a good-looking, interesting man. Then after last night, I was eager to go out with you and enjoy our dinners and the time we had before you leave. But…” She frowned and hesitated.Her breath eased from between her lips in a soft sigh.
“But… Please tell me,” he prompted, his hands holding her firmly.
“You talked about making a final announcement, and that…that hit me with the finality of your departure.” Tears spilled. “I’ll miss you.”
“Sweet Lillian. I’ll miss you, too.” He lowered his head and captured her lips, molding them to his, caressing them with infinite tenderness. He let go and held her closer, pressing his cheek to her temple. “We’ll follow your plan. Enjoy every minute together, without thinking of the past or the future, just the present, our present together. And then…” He paused, not sure how to phrase his thought.
“And then?” She peered into his eyes.
“I’m sure that by then we’ll have a solution. By then, either we’ll be fed up with each other.” He chuckled and tickled her ear with a kiss. “Or we won’t be able to live without each other. Time will tell.”
She smiled through her tears and repeated, “Time will tell. We have eight more dinners.”
“Stop counting. We’ll have dinner together every day until…whatever.”
The thought of losing her in three weeks stabbed him. Her body pressed against his sparked a deep heat within him. Wrapping his arms around her waist, he unleashed his passion, capturing her lips in a searing kiss, lowering her to the sofa and half lying on top of her. She laced her fingers behind his nape, raking them through his hair, meeting his tongue in a happy dance until they both ran out of breath.
Enjoy every minute, his body screamed, his muscles hard and painful with an aching need for her. His hand crept between them, lingering over her waist, under her breast.
He raised his head, longing to feel her naked body against his, to worship every inch of her flesh with caresses and kisses, and yet he hesitated, afraid his eagerness would be met with rejection or protest.
Too soon, his brain reasoned.
He bounced off the sofa. “Let’s have that apple pie,” he muttered in a husky voice he hardly recognized as his own.
“Steve, if you want…” she started in a quivering voice.
“You’re too sweet, too attractive, Lillian. A piece of apple pie will be good for now.” He held out a hand and pulled her up, amazed at his will-power to resist her.
“I’ll cover it with vanilla ice cream. Can you pour us a drink? I can use one.”
