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MeglovedJoe’s family. His father, in particular, captured her heart because he and Joe shared the same smile. The older man had come out of the kitchen every ten minutes throughout the evening to make sure Meg’s plate and glass were never empty.
His two brothers were incredibly handsome, and were outrageous flirts. Tony, the married one, stopped the flirting when his wife showed up. Judging by the way Tony and Gloria looked at one another, Meg had no question they were crazy in love. They could barely keep their hands off one another.
Meg kept her eye on Joe, and reminded herself about what Dixie had tried to hammer into her brain that afternoon. You are a seductress.
She didn’t feel much like a seductress, unfortunately, because the man she wanted to seduce hadn’t touched her all night. It wasn’t Joe’s fault, really. At least one member of his boisterous family had been between them at all times.
Right now it was his godson, little Tony.
“What did I tell you?” Mrs. Santori said when she spied Meg holding the baby. She clasped her hands in front of her and smiled widely. “That is what God intended for you.”
Feeling sure her face was rapidly turning the same color as her blouse, Meg looked away. Her stare collided with Joe’s.
“Don’t be embarrassed, Meg,” Joe’s sister-in-law said. “This family has absolutely no understanding of the word ‘tact’. Did I tell you what one of them gave me for Christmas during our Secret Santa exchange?”
She shook her head, finally pulling her gaze away from Joe.
“A gift certificate to a lingerie shop called Sheer Delights. I opened it up right in front of everyone.”
Startled, Meg blurted, “Joe and I met there.”
Gloria shifted her stare to Joe, who literally squirmed in his seat. “Joseph? So, it was you?” Standing, she leaned over the table, grabbed both ofJoe’s cheeks, and pulled him closer. She pressed a loud, smacking kiss on his lips. “Bless you!”
Tony raised his glass to his brother. “Thanks for a great Christmas.” Then he gave his wife a secretive smile. “And a very happy new year.” The couple positively beamed at each other as everyone else at the table laughed.
Though she was thoroughly enjoying the company, Meg finally glanced at her watch and gave Joe a pointed look.
“I’m getting a schoolteacher look,” he said with a grin. “I guess it’s time to break up this party.”
Lots of loud exclamations and hugs accompanied their goodbyes, and it took at least another twenty minutes before Meg and Joe made it out to the parking lot. Holding her coat tightly around her body, Meg took a deep, fortifying breath as they reached her car. A light snow had begun to fall, the first in several days, and Meg watched as flakes landed on Joe’s dark hair and long lashes.
She’d thought her attraction to the man was the most powerful sensation she’d ever felt. Now she wondered if her emotional feelings toward him were even more powerful. Despite how crazy it sounded, given their brief relationship, she was falling in love with Joe Santori. More in love with him every time they spoke, every time they touched, every time he looked at her and smiled that smile.
“Thank you for dinner,” she murmured. Trying to remember to look hot and desirable instead of goofy and needy, she said, “Would you like to come back to my place? For a.cup of coffee?”
She saw his throat move as he swallowed hard. “Uh, I don’t think so, Meg. I have an early walkthrough tomorrow, and I probably should get home to go over some figures.”
The only figure she wanted him going over was her own. But Dixie had told her the keys were subtlety and patience. A man needed to be reeled in slowly, aroused by steps, she’d said.
Meg lowered her lashes. “All right, Joe.” Then, rising up on tiptoes, she slipped her hands behind his neck. “Good night,” she whispered before touching her mouth to his.
Gently parting her lips, she cajoled him to kiss her back. He did, sweeping his tongue against hers in a slow, languorous mating. It wasn’t as frantic or frenzied as some of the kisses they’d shared. He took his time, tasting her with deliberation. For some reason, that made her want him all the more.
“Good night, Meg,” he said when their kiss ended.
Though it nearly killed her, she got into her car and drove away, watching him standing there in the parking lot in the snow. He watched her, too, not moving a muscle as she drove down the street and turned the corner.
Knowing she was in for another long, restless, night filled with erotic dreams, Meg sighed. If Dixie had been in the car with her, she might have had to deck the woman. Because patience and subtlety might just be the death of her.
***
Meg had run outof patience and given up on being subtle. She and Joe had gone out again last night, for the fourth night in a row. She’d worn some of her new clothes, including a sexy black bra and thong she’d purchased at Sheer Delights. Not that he’d seen them, of course. Because after spending the Thursday evening watching a bunch of grown men on skates brawl like kindergarteners during a Black Hawks game, Joe had taken her home, kissed her lightly at her door, and left. Meg had hurried inside her apartment the moment he’d walked away, not wanting to see Mrs. Mahoney’s disappointed expression.
“A hockey game,” she muttered as she got out of the shower the next morning. “Gimme a break.”
It wasn’t that Meg didn’t like hockey—in fact, because she’d loved ice skating as a kid, she actually found the sport more interesting than others. But it wasn’t exactly a thrilling date for the night before the most romantic day of the year.
Why had their kisses grown cooler, rather than hotter, since that crazy-wild night in the under-construction penthouse? It was as if he was growing less physically interested in her, rather than more. If they hadn’t been having such a good time together, talking, laughing, and spending every spare hour together—usually at his instigation—she’d have begun to think he simply wasn’t interested in her.
