Hot & Humid (16 page)

“I know you’re not sleeping.”

She rolled over. “How’d you know?”

“You frown when you’re sleeping.”

She laughed. “That sounds attractive.”

“It is.” She was disappointed when he slipped on his shirt and buttoned it. “I have to get to a jobsite. You’re welcome to stay. I’ll be home around six. You can use my car in the garage. I’ll leave the keys on the table in the kitchen.”

She’d forgotten that she left her car downtown. “Okay, thanks.”

“You doing anything special today?” he asked.

“Not much today.”

He kissed her temple. “Okay. I’ll see you later then.”

Thane left her alone in his big bed. She rolled over, inhaling the scent of their lovemaking on the bed. She snoozed, and a little while later, Brine showered and made his bed. She dressed in her overnight clothes with plans on stopping home to change before her appointment. Brine thought about work. She made a promise to Thane and she intended on keeping it. Alex wouldn’t be happy about her quitting but he’d understand. She hoped. After last night, there was no way she could work at Tribal tonight.

She went downstairs and Shadow greeted her with a wag of his tail.

It was so wrong to snoop, but she was curious more than anything. She wanted to know more about the man she was sleeping with. His past was a mystery and somehow it didn’t matter as much as it should have. Brine walked through his house looking at pictures of places he’d been and things he’d accomplished. She was surprised to find a home office.

A large oak desk sat by panoramic windows. It appeared as though he worked from home often.

She sat behind his desk in the black leather office chair. The papers in front of her were from the U.S. Forest Service talking about the spread of water mold in the Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest.
Why is Thane working with the U.S. Forest Service?
Did it matter? Not really. She just felt like she didn’t know the man behind the job. She’d probably have to buy Daphne’s article when it came out just so she could know the man.

Brine pushed the chair around to stare out the window showcasing his backyard. There was a pool, a small beach house, and hot spring. She was starting to wonder if she’d ever know more about Thane other than his body.

Voices carried from down the hall. Brine jumped up out of Thane’s chair. She headed for the door, knowing she was caught not only with her hand in the cookie jar but her ass. Brine slipped out before the voices could turn the corner. The hallway didn’t cut back around to the front. It was a sitting area.
Shit.

She snuck back to the office. She had to find someplace to hide. She didn’t want him to know she was snooping through his things. She whirled around. The desk. She had no other choice. Brine went around to the back and ducked beneath it. She was small enough to hide in the little alcove. It was too risky though. At the last second, Brine slid behind the leather couch on the far side of the room. There was a few feet of space before she nailed the bookshelf.

Brine peaked around the corner in time for Thane and a pair of long, slim legs in a pair of three-inch fuck-me heels come into the office. They left the door open. She was stuck. There was no way out of there. She had to wait it out.

Both were standing by his desk. Brine recognized Daphne’s voice. “Are you sure you can’t come with me tonight?”

“I can’t. We’ll have to make it another time.”

Sexual vibes were raining off of her like incoming meteorites.
What are they doing here together?
She heard the pout in Daphne’s voice. “I know you’re busy, but I really want you to come out for the launch.”

Thane dropped down into his leather chair and Brine had a clear view of his tight jeans and thighs. Her gaze went to his button fly. She heard Daphne’s heels dig into his hardwood floors as she came around the side of the desk. Brine held her breath as she listened.

“I can’t make it. What were your follow-up questions?”

“Thane…I don’t normally put myself out there like this…but I want you to know that I’m interested.”

“Daphne, I’m flattered but I can’t.”

She sighed. “I understand. Are you involved with someone?”

“Yeah. I am.”

Brine closed her eyes and let her head drop back against the couch. She knew their relationship was something more. She’d always hoped. Now she knew. Her heart was telling her that but did he know that she couldn’t fully commit to him? Not in the traditional sense she couldn’t. Brine absolutely did not ever want to get married, have a family, and lose another family to tragedy. Shadow came into the office and started sniffing around the desk and whining. He followed Brine’s trail to behind the couch.

“Thane…”

“Don’t, Daphne. It’s for the best if we don’t.”

There was a long pause. “Okay. Well, I better get going. Take care, Thane.”

Brine heard her heels hit the hallway fast. Thane cursed a couple of times and leaned back in the leather chair. Shadow whined, thumping his tail.

“You, too, boy. Where are you?” Thane asked.

It was impossible to shoo Shadow away. The more Brine tried to push him away, he got closer. Thane came around the couch. She looked up at him. It wasn’t what he thought it was. Thane looked down at the paper gripped in her hand. She tried to reach for him, but he backed away.

“It’s not what you think.”

“Then what is it, Brine?”

“I…I was…okay, I was snooping. I wanted to get to know you better. You’re a hard man to read.”

“I don’t have time for two irrational women today.”

“That’s low.”

“It is what it is,” he accused. “I didn’t think you’d still be here.”

“I am. I got distracted with looking around. What are you doing home?” she asked.

“Working,” he snapped.

She worried her lip. She didn’t like how annoyed he was with her. Thane started looking through things frantically. “What are you looking for?”

“I misplaced the soil sample readings the lab sent over.”

There was a stack of files on the end of his desk. Brine started flipping through them, one by one.

“I don’t think they’re in there.”

She kept looking anyway. When she came to the final file, a blue paper fell out. She picked it up off the floor. “Is this what you’re looking for?”

He stopped his search of desk drawers. “Yep. Thanks.”

There was tension between them that had everything to do with Thane finding her hiding behind his couch in his office. Brine didn’t know how to get over this one. Thane walked around his desk and took the paper she held in her hands. He kissed her temple. “I better get back. Thanks, Brine.”

She didn’t like seeing the wariness in his gaze. Did he trust her? The possibility that he might not or that she gave him reason not to trust her was upsetting. “Can you give me a ride to my car?”

“Yeah, it’s along the way.”

There was a distance between them that wasn’t there before. Thane was a private man, one that was hard for her to get to know. She wanted to know why he was so hard to reach. She had to do something, anything for him to give her another chance.

“Come over tonight after you get off work. I’ll make you dinner.”

He pulled up to her car in the empty Tribal parking lot. “I’ll be by around seven.”

“Great! I’ll see you then.”

Chapter Sixteen

A thrill of danger danced over Brine’s skin. She sprayed perfume on her chest and looked at herself in the mirror. She was dressed for a quiet evening at home. Not for seduction. The perfume was the icing on the cake to tease him if they chose to take things further. Really it was time that they have a frank discussion about what was going on between them.

Dinner was in the oven. All she needed was the man to show up. Brine took the chilled bottle of wine out of the fridge. She twisted in the corkscrew and popped it out. She poured herself a glass. Everything looked perfect. The table next to the window overlooked Poppy’s garden. The sun was lowering in the sky. Deep down she wanted to know how Thane felt about her. Were they just banging? Or did he want something more?

Truthfully, she wasn’t capable of more. He had to know that now before things went any further. She thought about her family. She liked to play the what-if game and think about how things would be if they had lived. Pain shot through her heart when she thought about her twin. She had Josh’s eyes.

The doorbell rang, and she had to keep herself from running to the door and flinging herself into his arms. Brine was proud of herself for walking to the door. She opened it. Thane was on the other side looking incredibly sexy. His dark black hair was wet from a recent shower but he hadn’t shaved. There were two days of growth on his face that made the sharp angles of his jaw look sharper. It also hid the scar on his neck. She wanted to know tonight how he got that scar.

“Hey.”

He came in and gave her a long kiss that had her wrapping her arms around his neck. She slammed the door shut with her foot. He pulled away. “Something smells good.”

“I made dinner. I hope you like lasagna.”

“Love it.”

She wanted this erotic trembling to lead to something more, even if only for a little while. She waited, patiently. Those velvet eyes lowered heavily. She closed the thin gap, pressing her lips softly to his. He groaned as she brushed slowly with her hungry lips. Reluctantly, she pulled away at the sound of the timer chiming.

“Make yourself at home. I’ll get dinner on the table.”

He followed her into the kitchen. “Do you rent?”

“Yeah. Poppy owns the house.”

“Physic Poppy. Have you ever had a reading?” he asked.

“No. I think she has a gift, but she’s not specific.”

“You sound like you know from experience.”

Brine shrugged. “She’s said some things. I’m not sure if I buy it though.”

“Like what?”

Brine put dinner on the table. “She said I’d get pregnant with a girl around December.”

Thane looked really uncomfortable. “Oh?”

She laughed. “You don’t need to worry about me getting pregnant. I’m not able to have children…at least that’s what the doctors said. I’m on birth control just in case.”

His gaze turned serious. “I’m sorry.”

“I’m okay with it. It’s just not in the cards for me. When Poppy said it, well, then it upset me. If she was really psychic, she’d know that I can’t have kids. Right?”

They sat down and she served him a generous slice of lasagna and bread. She was nervous about asking him, but she wanted to know. “How did you get the scar?”

“Bar fight in college. I tend to have a look about me that makes other guys want to fight. It cost me my best friend’s life. The blade wasn’t meant for him.”

“That’s terrible. What happened to the guy?”

“The usual. Arrested for manslaughter. They couldn’t get the murder charge to stick. It was a bar fight.”

His gaze took on a faraway look that told Brine that he was no longer in this room with her. “The past isn’t easy to change, is it?” She shook her head. “I found that out when I lost my family. Bad things happen and not everyone understands.”

He met her gaze. “I’ve never told anyone.”

“It was the right time to tell someone.” She moved her fork through her salad. “And women really run from that look?”

He nodded. “Yeah, women tend not to give me a chance.”

She set her chin on her hand. “I gave you a chance.”

His grin was naturally dangerous. “Yes, you did. I think it had to do with the way we met. I had the upper hand with you chained to my tree.”

“I suppose you did.”

They finished dinner and Brine poured another glass of wine for both of them. “We can go outside and watch the stars come out.”

“I’d like that,” he said.

“Patio is through the living room.”

Brine finished putting everything away when she realized she hadn’t heard the patio door squeak open. A sinking feeling spiraled through her body. She didn’t have to rush into the living room to know what Thane was seeing.

Oh, no.
Brine realized too late that there was nothing she could do to take back what he was reading. The work from her research on Thane and Elam Industries was tacked up on her board above her desk. Thane stood before the board, his gaze missing nothing. There were months of research there. She had even hired a private investigator to check into Elam Industries. Although, he hadn’t found anything important. In a moment of weakness, she’d printed off the pictures she took of Thane next to his truck. They were still hot off the printer, sitting on her desk.

“It’s not what you think,” she said.

He flipped through the papers. “You’re missing an important piece.”

“Am I?”

“I’m not the bad guy you think I am.”

She hurt him and she didn’t know how he would ever forgive her. “I know. It was part of my job. I’m not working for the paper anymore. I should’ve taken it down. I did it before I knew you. I know you’re not the person I wrote in the paper.”