SecretAgentMan

byDianaPalmer

SecretAgentMan
By
DianaPalmer
Contents
·ChapterOne
·ChapterTwo
·ChapterThree
·ChapterFour
·ChapterFive
·ChapterSix
·ChapterSeven
·ChapterEight
·ChapterNine
·ChapterTen

ChapterOne

Lang Patton felt absolutely undressed without his credentials and the small automatic weapon

he'dgrownusedtocarryingonassignment.IthadbeenhisownchoicetoleavetheCIAandtakeajob
withaprivatesecuritycompanyinSanAntonio.Hewashopingthathewasn'tgoingtoregretit.

HewalkedintotheSanAntonioairport—wearyfromthedelayedWashington,D.C.,flight—with

acarryonbagandlookedaroundforhisbrotherBob.

Hewastallandbig,dark-eyedanddark-haired,withabroad,sexyface.Hisbrotherwasanolder

versionofhim,butmuchslighterinbuild.Bobapproachedhimwithagrin,ayoungboyofsixheld
firmlybythehand.

“Hi,”Bobgreetedhim.“Ihopeyoujustgothere.IhadtobringMikeywithme.”
The towheaded boy grinned up at him. He had a front tooth missing. “Hi, Uncle Lang, been

shootinganybadguys?”heaskedloudly,causingasecuritymanwhowastalkingtoawomanatthe
informationcountertoturnhisheadwithasuspiciousscowl.

“Notlately,Mikey,”Langreplied.Heshookhisbrother'shandandbenttoliftMikeyupontohis

shoulder.“How'sitgoing,pardner?”heaskedtheboy.

“Just fine! The dentist says I'm going to get a new tooth, but the Tooth Fairy left me a whole

dollarformyoldone!”

“Justbetweenus,theToothFairy'sgoingbust,”Bobsaidinaloweredvoice.
“CanIseeyourgun,UncleLang,huh?”Mikeypersisted.
The security guard lifted both eyebrows. Lang could have groaned out loud as the man

approached.He'dbeenthroughtheroutinesooftenthathejustputMikeydownandopenedhisjacket
withoutbeingaskedto.

Thesecuritymancockedhishead.“Niceshirt,orareyoushowingoffyourmuscles?”
“I'mshowingyouthatIdon'thaveagun,”Langmuttered.
“Oh,that.No,Iwasn'tlookingforagun.You'reLangPatton?”
Langblinked.“Yes.”
“Nobodyelseherefitsthedescription,”themanaddedsheepishly.“Well,there'saMrs.Pattonon

thephonewhoasksthatyoustopbytheautopartsplaceandpickherupanewcarburetorfora'65
FordMustang,please.”

“No,hewillnot,”Bobmuttered.“Itoldhershecan'tdothatoverhaul,butshewon'tlisten.She's

goingtoprovemewrongor…cowardlywoman,tosuckeryouintoit,”headdedindignantlytoLang,
whowasgrinningfromeartoear.

“Hiswife—mysister-in-law—isawhizwithengines,”Langtoldthesecurityman.“Shecanfix

anythingonwheels.Buthe—”hejerkedhisthumbatanoutragedBob“—doesn'tthinkit'sladylike.”

“What century is he living in?” the security man asked. “Gee, my wife keeps our washing

machinefixed.Savesusafortuneinrepairbills.Nothinglikeawifewho'shandywithequipment.You
shouldcountyourblessings,”headdedtoBob.“Doyouknowwhatamechaniccharges?”

“Yes,Iknowwhatamechaniccharges,I'mmarriedtoone,”Bobsaiddarkly.“Sheownsherown

repairshop,andshedoesn'tcarethatIdon'tlikehercoveredingreaseandsmellingofburnedrubber.
AllIamthesedaysisaglorifiedbaby-sitter.”

Lang knew why Bob was upset. He and his brother had spent their childhood playing second

fiddletotheirmother'sjob.“YouknowConnielovesyou,”hesaid,tryingtopacifyBob.“Besides,
you'reacareermanyourself,andaterrificsurveyor,”Langarguedwhenthesecuritymanwascalled

awaytoapassengerindistress.“Mikeywilltakeafteryouoneday.Won'tyou,Mikey?”heaskedthe
child.

“Notme.Iwanttobeagreasemonkey,justlikemymommy!”
Bobthrewuphishandsandwalkedaway,leavingLangandMikeytocatchup.
ThePattonslivedinFloresville,apleasantlittleridedownfromSanAntonio,pastrollingland

occupied by grazing cattle and oil pumping stations. This part of Texas was still rural, and Lang
rememberedhappytimesasaboywhenheandBobvisitedtheiruncle'sranchandgottoridehorses
withthecowboys.Thingsathomewerelesspleasant.

“Timepassessoquickly,”Langremarked.
“Youhavenoidea,”Bobreplied.HeglancedatLang.“IsawKirrydowntowntheotherday.”
Lang'sheartjumped.Hehadn'texpectedtohearhernamementioned.Infiveyears,he'ddonehis

best to forget her. The memories were sudden and acute, Kirry with her long wavy blond hair
blowing in the breeze, her green eyes wide and bright with laughter and love. There were other
memories,notsopleasant,ofKirrycryinghereyesoutandbeggingarecalcitrantLangtolisten.But
he wouldn't. He'd caught her in a state of undress with his best friend and, in a jealous rage, he'd
believedtheworst.IthadtakensixmonthsforhimtofindoutthathisgoodfriendhadsetKirryup
becausehewantedherforhimself.

“Itriedtoapologizeonce,”Langsaidwithoutelaborating,becauseBobknewthewholestory.
“Shewon'ttalkaboutyoutothisday,”wasthequietreply.Bobturnedintothesidestreetthatled

tothePattonhouse.“She'sverypolitewhenyou'rementioned,butshealwayschangesthesubject.”

“ShewentawaytocollegebeforeIleft,”Langremindedhim.
“Yes,andgraduatedearly,withhonors.She'svicepresidentofatoppublicrelationsfirminSan

Antonio.Shemakesverygoodmoney,andshetravelsalot.”

“Doesshestillcomehome?”Langasked.
Bobshookhishead.“SheavoidsFloresvilleliketheplague.Shecanaffordtosincehermother

soldtheoldhomestead.”HiseyesshiftedtoLang“Youmusthavehurtheralot.”

Langsmiledwithself-contempt.“Youhavenoideahowmuch.”
“ItwasrightafterthatwhenyouwereacceptedfortheCIA.”
“I'dappliedsixmonthsbefore,”heremindedBob.“Itwasn'tasuddendecision.”
“Itwasoneyouhadn'tsharedwithanyofus.”
“I knew you wouldn't like it. But here I am, back home and safe, with some pretty exciting

memories,”Langreminisced.

“Asaloneaswhenyouleft.”BobindicatedMikey,whowaslyingdownonthebackseatofBob's

Thunderbird, reading a Marvel comic book. “If you'd gotten married, you could have had one of
thosebynow.”

LanglookedatMikeyandhiseyesdarkened.“Idon'thaveyourcourage,”hesaidcurtly.
Bobglancedathim.“AndyousaidIshouldn'tletthepastruinmylife.”
Langshrugged.“Ittendstointrude.LesssinceI'vebeenaway.”
“Butyoustillhaven'tcopedwithit,Lang,you'regettingolder.You'llwantawifeandafamily

oneday.”

Langcouldn'targuewithwantingawife.Itwasthethoughtofachildthatmadehimhesitate.“My

last case reminded me of how short life can be, and how unpredictable,” he said absently. “The
womanIwashelpingguardhadakidbrotherwho'dbeeninacomaforyears.He'solderthanMikey,
butarealnicekid.Igotattachedtohim.”Hestretchedandleanedhisheadbackagainsttheseat.“Idid
alotofthinkingaboutwheremylifewasgoing,andIdidn'tlikewhatIsaw.Sowhenanoldfriendof

minementionedthissecuritychiefjob,Idecidedtogiveitatry.”

“Whatoldfriend?”Bobaskeddryly.“Someonefemale?”
Langgloweredathim.“Yes.”
“Andstillinterestedinyou?”
“Lorna gave me up years ago, before I started going with Kirry. She was only thinking that I

mightlikeachange,”hesaid.“It'snothingromantic.”

Bob didn't say anything, but his expression did. “Okay, I'll quit prying. Where is it that you're

goingtowork?”

“A corporation called Lancaster, Inc., in San Antonio. It has several holdings, and I'll be

responsibleforoverseeingsecurityinallofthem.”

Bobmadeasoundinhisthroat.
“Whatwasthat?”Langaskedcuriously.
Bobcoughed,choking.“Why,notathinginthisworld!”hesaid.Hewasgrinning.“Ihopeyou

likepancakesfordinner,it'sallIcancook,andConniewon'tbeinforhoursyet.Iusuallymakeher
anomeletwhenshegetshere.”Hishandstightenedonthesteeringwheel.“Ihatemechanics!”

“YouknewConniehadthistalentwhenyoumarriedhertenyearsago,”Langremindedhim.
“Well,Ididn'tknowsheplannedtoopenherownshop,didI?Forthepastsixmonths,eversince

she went into business, I've been living like a single parent! I do everything for Mikey, everything,
andshe'sneverhome!”

Lang'seyebrowslifted.“Doesshehaveanyhelp?”
“Can't afford any, she says,” he muttered darkly, pulling into the driveway of the stately old

Victorianhousetheylivedin.Outbackwasanewmetalbuilding,fromwhichloudmechanicalnoises
wereemanating.

Theelderlyladynextdoor,workinginherflowers,gaveBobanoverlysweetsmile.“Hownice

toseeyouagain,Lang,”shesaid.“Ihopeyoudidn'tcomehomeforsomepeaceandquiet,becauseif
youdid,you'llfindmorepeaceandquietindowntownSanAntoniothanyou'llgethere!”

“You'rescreaming,Martha,”Bobsaidcalmly.
“I have to scream to be heard with that racket going on night and day!” the white-haired little

ladysaid.Herfacewasturningred.“Can'tyoumakeherquitatarespectablehour?”

“Bemyguest,”Bobinvited.
“Notme,”shemumbled,shiftingfromonefoottotheother.“Trieditonce.Sheflungawrench

atme.”Shemadeasnifflingnoiseandwentbacktoworkinherflowers.

Langwastryinghardnottolaugh.Hetookhisflightbag,andMikey,outofthebackseat.
“Isthatallyouhave?”Bobaskedforthethirdtimesincehe'dgottenhisbrotherofftheplane.
“Idon'taccumulatethings,”Langtoldhim.“It'snotsensiblewhenyourassignmentstakeyouall

overthecountryandaroundtheworld.”

“Iguessso.Youdon'taccumulatepeople,either,doyou?”headdedsadly.
Heclappedabighandonhisbrother'sshoulder.“Family'sdifferent.”
Bobsmiledlopsidedly.“Yeah.”
“I'lljustgooutandsayhellotoConnie.”
“Uh,Lang…”
“It'sallright,I'matrainedsecretagent,”Langremindedhimdryly.
“Watchyourhead.Placeisloadedwithwrenches.”
Langbangedonthedoorandwaitedforthenoisetoceaseandbereplacedwithloudmutters.
Thedoorwasthrownopenandaslightwomanwithbrownhairwearingstainedbluecoveralls

andanAtlantaBravescappeeredupathim.“Lang?Lang!”

Shehurledherselfintohisbigarmsandhuggedhimwarmly.“Howareyou?WhenBobtoldme

you'dgivenuptheAgencytoworkinSanAntonio,Istoodupandcheered!Listen,whenyougeta
car,I'lldoallyourmechanicalworkfree.Youcanstaywithus—”

“No,Ican't,”hetoldher.“IhavetobeinSanAntonio,butIcancomeandvisitoften,andIwill.

I'llgetanicebigapartmentandsometoysforMikeytoplaywithwhenyoubringhimuptoseeme.”

Shegrimaced.“Idon'thavealotoftime,youknow.Somanyjobsandonlymetodothem.Ican't

complain,though,workisbooming.WehaveanewVCRandtelevisionset,andMikeyhasloadsof
toys.IevenboughtBobadecentfour-wheeldrivetouseinhiswork.”Shebeamed.“Notbad,huh?”

“Notbadatall,”heagreed,wonderingifitwouldbepolitictomentionthatgiftsweren'tgoingto

replace the time she spent with her family. He and Bob had scars that Connie might not even know
about.Godknew,LanghadneverbeenabletosharehiswithKirry,ascloseasthey'dbeen.

“Well,backtowork.Bob'scookingtonight,he'llfeedyou.I'llseeyoulater,Lang.Didyouget

methecarburetor?”

Heflushed.
She glowered. “Bob, right? He wouldn't let you.” She stamped her foot. “I don't know why in

heaven'snameIhadtomarryamalechauvinistpig!HelookedperfectlysanewhenIsaidyes.”She
turnedandwentbackintothegarage,closingthedoorbehindher,stillmuttering.Langwascertain
thenthatBobhadneversharedthepastwithher.

“Well, did she scream about the carburetor?” Bob asked hopefully as he dished up black-

bottomedpancakesinthekitchen.

“Yes.”
“Didshetellyouhowmuchstuffshe'sboughtusall?”headded.“Nice,isn'tit?Ifweonlyhad

her to share it with, it might mean something. Poor old Mikey doesn't even get a bedtime story
anymorebecauseshe'stootiredtoreadhimone.Ievendothat.”

“Haveyoutriedtalkingtoher?”Langasked.
“Sure. She doesn't listen. She's too busy redesigning engine systems and important stuff like

that.”HeputsomepancakesdowninfrontofMikey,whomadeaface.“Scrapeofftheburnedpart,”
heinstructedhisson.

“There'sahamburgerfromyesterdayintherefrigerator.Can'tIhavethatinstead?”Mikeyasked

plaintively.

“Okay.Heatitupinthemicrowave,”Bobgrumbled.
“Thanks,Dad!CanIgowatchtelevisionwhileIeat?”
“Youmightaswell.Familyunity'sgonetohellaroundhere.”
Mikey whooped and went to retrieve his hamburger from the refrigerator. He heated it up and

vanishedintohisroom.

“Poorkid.Hischolesterolwillbeashighasakiteandhe'lldieofmalnutrition.”
Langwasstaringattheblackpancakes.“Ithedoesn'tstarvefirst.”
“Ican'tcook.Shedidn'tmarrymeformycookingskills.Sheshouldhavefoundsomebodywho

wasagourmetchefinhissparetime.”

“Whydon'tyouhireacook?”Langsuggested.
Bobbrightened.“Say,that'sanidea.We'vegotplentyofmoney,sowhydon'tI?I'llstartlooking

tomorrow.”Hestaredattheblackpancakesonhisownplateandpushedthemaway.“Tellyouwhat,
I'llrundowntothecornerandgetusacoupleofMamaLou'sbarbecuesandwichesandsomefries,
howaboutthat?”

Langgrinned.“That'smorelikeit.”Hepaused.“Whileyou'reatit,youmighttellConnieexactly

whyyoudon'tlikeworkingmothers.Ifsheunderstood,shemightcompromise.”

“Her? Dream on. And I don't like talking about the past. Go ahead,” he suggested when Lang

paused.“TellmeyoueversaidanythingtoKirry.”

Langdidn'thaveacomeback.Heshruggedandwalkedaway.
HespentalazytwodayswithBobandConnieandMikey,tryingnottonoticethedisharmony.If

thecouplehadn'teachbeensoindividuallystubborn,thingsmighthaveworkedoutbetter.Butneither
onewasgoingtogiveaninchorcompromiseatall.

Before Lang left for San Antonio to see his new boss the following Monday, Bob had

interviewedfourwomentohousekeepandcookforthefamily.TheonehefavoredwasaMexican-
American girl who had beautiful black hair down to her waist and soft brown eyes like velvet. Her
voice was seductive and she had a figure that made Lang's pulse run wild. This was going to mean
trouble,hethought,buthecouldn'tinterfere.Hisbrotherhadtoleadhisownlife.

Lancaster, Inc., was owned by a middle-aged man and his wife, a fashion-conscious socialite.

Although public shares were issued, it was basically a family-held company, and Lang liked the
ownersatfirstsight.Theywerestraightforwardabouthisdutiesandsalary,andtheymadehimfeel
welcome.

Hewasintroducedtohisimmediatestaff,aveteranex-copandawomanwhowasex-military,

twoverycapableindividualswhohadbeenrunningtheoperationsincetheprevioussecuritychiefleft
becausehecouldn'ttakethepressure.

“Couldn't stand the sight of blood,” Edna Riley said with faint contempt. She looked at Lang

curiously.“IhearyouwereCIA.”

Henodded.“That'sright.”
“Andbeforethat?”
“IwasastreetcopontheSanAntoniopoliceforce.”
Ednagrinned.“Well,well.”
ToryMadisongrinned,too.“Sure,Irememberyou,”hesaid.“Iretiredaboutthesametimeyou

joined.ButIcouldn'tstayquit.Inactivitywaskillingme.Ican'tkeepupwiththeyoungerones,butI
knowafewthingsthathelpkeepthegreenhornsoutoftrouble.I'madministrative,butthat'sokay.I
likemyjob.”

Langsmiledathim.“WhenI'vehadtimetolookovertheoperation,Imayhavesomechangesin

mind.Nothingdrastic,”hesaidwhentheylookedworried,“likesweepingtherankscleanandstarting
over,sodon'tworryaboutthat,okay?”

Theyallrelaxed.“Okay.”
“Butwedoneedtokeepupwithnewmethodsinthebusiness,”headded.“I'mprettyup-to-date

onthatsinceI’vejustcomebackfromthefront.”

“We'dlovetohavecoffeewithyouandhearallaboutit,”Ednamurmured,tongueincheek.
“EverythingIknowisclassified,”Langsaid.“ButIcansuretellyouaboutweaponstechnology.”
“Oh,welearnedallaboutthatbywatchingthelatestLethalWeaponmovie,”Ednainformedhim.
“Not quite.” He glanced at the dilapidated coffee machine. “First thing we're going to do is

replacethat.”

Edna spread-eagled her thin frame in front of it. “Over my dead body!” she exclaimed. “If it

goes,Igo.”

Langpeereddownather.“Makesgoodcoffee,doesit?”
“Thebest,”sheassuredhim.

“Proveit,”hechallenged.
Herdarkeyessparkled.“Mypleasure,”shesaid,andproceededtocrankuptheveteranmachine.
Tenminuteslater,Langhadtoagreethattheycouldn'ttakeachanceonanewcoffeemakerbeing

uptothosestandards.Hisco-workerschuckled,anddecidedthatthenewadditionmightnotbesucha
pain,afterall.

Thenextday,dressedinhisbestgraysuit,red-stripedtieandneatlypressedcottonshirt,Lang

madeatourofthefivecompaniesundertheLancaster,Incorporatedumbrella.

ThefirstwasLancaster,Inc.,itself,whichownedandwaslocatedinahugeofficecomplexthat

servedasheadquartersforseveralotherSanAntoniocompanies.Thereweretensecuritypeople,five
dayandfivenight,wholookedafterthesafetyofthevariousbuildings.Onedidnothingbutassure
the safety of the parking garage adjacent to it, and inspected the parking permits of the complex's
occupants.Theotherspatrolledincarsandonfoot,maintainingahighlevelofsecurity.

He interviewed the personnel and found one particular man not at all to his liking. There was

somethingaboutthesecurityofficerthatdisturbedhim,moresowhenLangcaughthimcallingouta
verypersonalremarktooneofthewomenwhoworkedinthebuilding.Perhapstheywerefriends,
becausethewomansmiledwanlyandkeptwalking.ButLangrememberedtheincidentlater,whenhe
wastalkingtothebuilding'smainsecurityofficer.

Twooftheheadquarters'officeslocatedinthiscomplex—oneacanningconcernandtheothera

meat packer—had been targeted by protestors from various radical groups, Lang was told by the
mainsecurityofficer,amanyoungerthanLang.Securitywasresponsibleforseeingtoitthatnoneof
thetenantsgothurt.Langaskedcasuallyifthemanhadanyproblemswithhispersonnel.Therewasa
pregnantpause,andhetoldLangthathe'dhadacomplaintortwoaboutoneofthemen,buthewas
keepingacloseeyeonhim.Langdidn'tlikethesoundofthat.

Lang'ssecondchargewasadepartmentstoreofvintageage,wheretwostoriesoffineclothing

wereunderthecareoftwoday-securitypeopleandonenightguard.Theyoungerofthethreewasa
littlecockyuntilhelearnedLang'sbackground,andthenitwasamusingtowatchhimbackpedaland
trytomakeamends.

The third of the businesses was a small garment company that manufactured blue jeans. It had

onlyonesecurityguardfordayandonefornight.Langlikedthenightman,whowasaveteranofthe
DrugEnforcementAdministration.He'dhavetomakeapointofstoppingbyonenighttotalkover
oldtimeswithhim.

Thefourthcompanywasalicensedwarehousewhereimportedgoodswerebroughtandstored

untiltheyclearedcustoms.

And the fifth company under the umbrella of Lancaster, Inc.'s security network was a new and

thriving company called Contacts Unlimited. It boasted six executives and ten employees in the
Lancaster, Inc. office complex where Lang had started out investigating his security force that
morning.

Lang spoke to the company president, Mack Dunlap, about any complaints he might have with

the company's security. It was a follow-up to the talk he'd already had with the complex's main
securityofficial,whowasunderLang'sauthoritynow.

“Notme,”Mack,atallbaldingman,saidbrightly.“Butoneofourvicepresidentssaysthatone

oftheday-securitymenmadeaverysuggestiveremarktoher.”

Lang'seyesnarrowed.“Didhe,now?”heasked.“I'dlikeawordwithher.NaturallyI'mgoingto

takesuchcomplaintsveryseriously.”

Mack'seyebrowswentup.“That'snew.OldBaxter,whohadthejobbeforeyou,justlaughed.He

saidwomenshouldgetusedtothatsortoftalk.Shehadwordswithhim,letmetellyou.”

“I can't do anything about Baxter, but I can promise you that a new yardstick will be used to

measureoursecuritypeoplefromnowon.”

Macksmiled.“Thanks.Uh,rightdownthere,seconddoortotheleft.She'sinthisafternoon.”
“I'llonlytakeaminuteofhertime,”Langsaidwithformalpoliteness.
Hewenttothedoor,notreallynoticingthenameplate,andknocked.
“Comein,”cameapoised,quietlyfemininevoice.
Heopenedthedoorandfrozeinthedoorway.
Shewasdressedinanoff-whitelinensuitwithapeagreenblousethatjustmatchedhereves.Her

blondhairwascutshortaroundherface,curlingtowardhighcheekbonesandabow-shapedmouth.

Shewaslookingdownataspreadsheet,herthineyebrowsdrawnintoaslightfrownasshetried

tounravelsomefiguresthathadherpuzzled.

“WhatcanIdoforyou,Mack?”sheaskedabsently,withoutlookingup.
Lang'shandtightenedonthedoorknob.Allthememorieswererushingbackathimfromoutof

thepast,stinginghisheart,hismind,makinghimhoarse.Bob'sgrinningfaceflashedinhismind,and
now he knew why his brother had reacted so strongly to news that Lang was going to work for
Lancaster,Inc.

“Isaid…”Kirrylookedup,andthosegreeneyeswentfromshocktofascinationtosheerhatred

inasplitsecond.Shestoodup,asslenderandprettyasever,butwithanewmaturityabouther.

“Hello, Kirry,” Lang said quietly, forcing himself to smile with careless indifference. “Long

timenosee.”

“WhatistheCIAdoinghere?”shewantedtoknow.
Langlookedaround.“WhatCIA?”
“You!”
“Oh. I'm not CIA. Well, not anymore,” he replied. “I just went to work for Lancaster, Inc. I'm

theirnewchiefofsecurity.”Hegrinnedfromeartoearatherdiscomfort.“Isn'titasmallworld!”

ChapterTwo

Kirry sat back down, as gracefully as she could with her heart breaking inside her body. She

forcedasmile,almostascarelessasLang's.

“Yes,”shesaid,“itisasmallworld.WhatcanIdoforyou,Lang?”
“Yourbosssaysyou'vehadsomeproblemswithoneofoursecuritypeople.”
“Oh.”
Hestuckhishandsintohispockets.“Well?”
Sohehadn'tfoundoutwheresheworkedandcomejusttoseeher.Itwasbusiness.Thatshouldn't

have disappointed her. After all, it was five years ago when he stormed out of her life. But it did
disappointher.

Hewasn'tsmoking.Intheolddays,therehadalwaysbeenacigarettedanglingfromhisfingers.

Shewonderedwhyhe'dgivenitup.Perhapstheydidn'tletsecretagentssmokeorpracticeanyother
addictionsthatmightputthejobatrisk.

“Mr. Erikson seems to find it amusing to make vulgar remarks to me,” she said, easing down

intoherchairwithassumednonchalance.

“TellMr.Eriksontocutitout.”
“Ihave.Hecan'tunderstandwhyIshouldfinditoffensive.Iamawoman,afterall.Womenwere

created,orsohesays,forman'spleasure,”sheaddedmeaningfully.

Hepursedhislips.“Isee.Howoldamanarewediscussing?”
“He'ssomewherenearfifty,Iguess.”
“Heshouldknowbetter.”
“Ihopeyou'llmakethatclear.Icameveryclosetofilingchargesagainsthimyesterday.”
“Forwhat?”
Shedidn'tlikediscussingitwithLang.Shehesitated.
“Wewerefriendsonce,”heremindedher.
“HewasmakingremarksaboutthesizeofmyfoundationgarmentsandwhetherornotIwore

blackones.Thenheproceededtosay,”shesaid,takingabreath,“thathe'dbuymeoneifI'dputiton
forhim.”

Langdidn'tlikethat,anditshowed.“I'llhavetohavealittletalkwithhim.Ifithappensagain,I

wanttoknow.”

She met his eves levelly. “If it does, I'll have him prosecuted. Nobody should have to take that

kindofabusejusttoholddownajob.Thisisagoodjob,too.Idon'twanttoloseit.”

“You won't.” He turned back toward the door, his hand on the knob, and looked back at her

quietly.“How'syourmother?”heasked.

“Ihavenoidea,”sherepliedcoolly.“ThelastIheard,sheandherfourthhusbandwerelivingin

Denmark.”

Heavertedhiseyesandleftwithoutaconventionalgoodbye.
Kirry unclasped her hands and discovered that they were cold and shaking. It had been a long

timesinceshe'dlethernervesaffectherlikethis.Evenfinalseverysemesteratcollegehadn'trattled
herthisbadly.Ofcourse,Langwasmuchworsethantests.

She tried to concentrate on her work, but her mind kept returning to the turbulent days before

Langhadlefttown.Shemadeacursoryexaminationofanewfile,butshecouldn'tkeephermindon
it.

Sheturnedherswivelchairaroundandlookedoutthewindow.Langhadjustleftthebuilding.

Hewasgettingintoalate-modelcarwithLancaster,Inc.,Securitywrittenonthesideofit.Hisdark
hairhadthesheenofaraven'swinginthesun.Sherememberedhowithadfelttotouchit,toletit
ripplethroughherfingersinthedarknessofaparkedcar.Somanyyearsago…

Thebuzzerdistractedher.Shepickedupthereceiver.“Yes?”
“It's me, Kirry. Betty,” her friend said, identifying herself. “You really get results, don't you?”

Shelaughed.

“Whatdoyoumean?”
“OurfriendEriksonjustgottheboot.HemouthedoffatDaddyLancaster'snewsecuritychief

aboutwomenbeingfairgameforanyman.Hisjawisstilldangling.”

Kirrycaughtherbreath.“Langfiredhim!”
“Lang?”
“LangPatton.Thenewsecuritychief.I..usedtoknowhim,whenIwasyounger.”
“Ah,sothat'showthewindblows.”
“Youdidn'tthinkIwasgoingtotakeitmuchlonger?”sheasked.
“No.AndIwasn't,either.AllofusweresickofErikson'sinnuendos.We'regoingtotakeyouout

tolunch.Justthink,maybeMr.Pattonwillsendussomebodyyoungandhandsomeandsingle.”

“He'llprobablysendyouanex-marinewithasweettooth.”Kirrychuckled.
“Spoilsport.Listen,Erikson'sprettymad.Youshouldsteerclearofthisareauntilheleaves.”
“I'mnotafraidofhim.”
“Well,youmightbewisetoavoidhim,justthesame.Seeyoulater.”
Betty hung up and Kirry bit her lower lip. She hadn't wanted to cause trouble. Most men were

polite and courteous. But Erickson had been menacing with his remarks and the way he looked at
women.Kirryfeltuncleanwhenshehadtopasshiminthehall.

At first she'd thought that perhaps she was overreacting. After all, she'd just come from

university, where men and women enjoyed an intellectual kinship that usually precluded sexist
remarks on either side. But in the real world there were men still mentally living in an age when
womenweretreatedassexualproperty.IthadcomeasashocktoKirrytofindherselfworkinginthe
samecloseareawithamanwhofeltfreetomakesuggestiveremarkstoanywomanhechose.

EriksonhadactuallypinchedBettyonthebuttocks,andwhenshe'dslappedhim,he'dlaughedand

saidwasn'tthatcute.Womenalwaysmeantyes,evenwhentheysaidno,headded.

KirrycouldhavetoldLangalotmorethanshehad,butapparentlyhe'dfoundoutEriksonfor

himself.Shefeltbothrelievedandsickatthefiring.Eriksonhadnofamily,buthewasanolderman
andhemighthaveahardtimefindinganotherjob.Forthat,shefeltguilty.Evenknowingthattheman
hadbroughtitonhimselfdidn'tmakeherfeelalotbetter.

ThephonerangandKirrypickeditup.
“Don't think you're going to get away with it, telling all those lies about me,” Erikson's harsh

voiceinformedher.“I'llgetyou.Countonit.”

ThereceiverwentdownandKirryfeltacurlofrealfear.
Surelyitwasjustbadtemper.He'dgetoverit.Butinthemeantime,shewasgoingtomakesure

thatsheneverpresentedhimwithanyopportunitiestomakehisthreatknown.Andperhapssheshould
mentionittoLangJustincase.

Thateveningwhenshewenthome,shemadesurethatsheleftinbroaddaylight.Therewouldbe

no more working late, she told her boss, until the threat was over, and Mack had agreed
wholeheartedly.

Itwasalongwalkfromtheparkinglotintoherapartmentbuilding.Shelookedaround,butshe

didn'tsee anything outof the ordinary.She went inside, gratefulthat there wasa security man even
here,andquicklywentuptoherapartmentonthesecondfloor.

She'ddecorateditwithalotofgreeneryandsimplefurniture.Itwasalonelyapartment,butvery

pretty,andshehadherownlittlekitchenette.Notonlythat,therewasabalcony.Thebalconyhadbeen
the drawing card when she settled here. It overlooked the Alamo in the distance, and she had a
mesquitetreejustoutsideit,withlongfeatheryfrondsofgreenerytrailingtotheground.Sheloved
thetreeandtheview.Shehadaloungechairoutthere,soshecouldlazeinthespringsunlight.

Aftershechangedintojeansandaloose-knitblouse,shefixedherselfacupofcoffeeandslid

ontothelounger.Thesun,lateafternoonthoughitwas,feltgoodonherface.

She remembered another spring afternoon, the day she'd realized that she was falling in love

withLangPatton.She'dbeenlazingawayinthetreeinherfrontyardinFloresville.She'dbeenjust
sixteenyearsold.TheCampbellhouseinthosedayswasjustdownthestreetfromthePattonhome
place.LangwasoutofschoolbythenandworkingwiththeSanAntoniopoliceforce,buthecame
home on weekends sometimes to visit his parents and his brother. He'd been going with a model
namedLornaMcLane,butthey'djustbrokenup.Hewasalonenowwhenhecamehome.Kirrywas
glad.Shedidn'tlikethesuperiorwayLornalookeddownhernoseatpeople.

KirryhadalwaysknownLang.He'dbeenlikeabigbrothertohermostofherlife.
“Get down out of there before you kill yourself,” he'd called up to her, grinning as he stood

belowinablackT-shirtandbluejeans.Hewaspowerfullybuiltandshelovedtolookathim.Itmade
hertingleallover.

“Itisn'tagainstthelawtoclimbtrees,”sheinformedhimpertly,laughing.“Goarrestsomebody

else.”

“I'mveryhappywhereIam,thanks.”Helookedforfootholdsandhandholds,andaminutelater

hewasupinthenextlimb,leaningbackagainstthebigoak'strunk.“Here.Haveapear.”Heproduced
onefromhispocketandretrievedhisownfromtheother.

Langhadnoticedher,too,thatday.Hiseyeshadbeenslowandboldonherlong,tannedlegsand

thethrustofherbreastsinthefront-tiedblouseshewaswearingwithhercutoffs.Hehadn'tmadea
move in her direction. But after that day, he'd teased her and their relationship had turned to
friendship.

HowlongagoitseemedthatLanghadmadetimetolistentoherproblemsatschool.Hermother

was too busy getting married and divorced to pay Kirry much attention, and she had no other
relatives.ShegravitatedtowardthePattonplace.Lang'smotherhadbeendeadforyears.Nobodyever
talkedabouther,leastofallLang.WhenLang'sfatherdiedsuddenlyofaheartattack,Kirrywasthere
withquietsympathyandcompassion.ShesatandheldLang'shandallduringthefuneral.WhenBob
andConnie'ssonMikeyhadbeenborn,KirryhadgonewithLangtothechristening.Andallatonce,
Langwaseverywhereshewent…

The ringing of the telephone made her jump. She went to answer it and hesitated

uncharacteristically.Surelyitwouldn'tbeErikson.Wouldit?

Herheartwaspoundingassheliftedthereceiver.“Kirry?”
ItwasLang.Sherelaxed,butonlyalittle.“Hi,Lang.”
“IthoughtyoushouldknowthatIfiredEriksonthisafternoon,”hesaidquietly.“Hewaspretty

mad.Ifhegivesyouanytrouble,Iwanttoknowaboutit.”

“Hecalledmebeforeheleft,”shereturned.“Hesaidhewasgoingto'getme.'”
Therewasapause.“Didthatfrightenyou?”

Shesmiled,andtwirledthephonecordaroundherfingers.“Alittle.”
“Really?”Therewasasmileinhisvoice.“ThegirlIusedtoknowwouldhavelaidhisheadopen

withabaseballbat.”

“Mymothernevercaredaboutmeenoughtofightmybattles.Ihadtogrowuptough.”
“Ifoughtsomeofthemforyou,”heremindedher.
“Oh,yes.Youweremyfriend.”Theeyeshecouldn'tseeweresad,fullofbadmemories.”Ihave

togo,Lang."

“Wait.”
“Wehavenothingtosay,”sherepliedsadly.
“I'msorryyouwouldn'treadtheletterIsentyou,Kirry,”hesaidafteraminute.
“Youdidn'ttrustme,”sheremindedhim.“YouthoughtthatIwasatwo-timingplaygirl.”
“I was crazy with jealousy,” he replied. “Didn't you know that I'd cool down and come to my

senseseventually?”

Shelaughedbitterly.“Bythetimeyoudid,Idstoppedcaring.Iwasdatinganewguyatcollege

andenjoyingmyself”sheliedwithfinesse.Notforworldswouldshetellhimhowithadreallybeen
whenherefusedtolistentoherexplanations.

Langfrozeinside.He'dthoughtKirrylovedhim.Ifshe'dtakenupwithsomeoneelsesoquickly,

shecouldn'thave.Itwasanunexpectedblowtohisego.“Thenitwasjustaswellthatyourefusedto
acceptit.”

“Wasthereanythingelse?”sheaskedpolitely.
“Yes.LetmeknowifyouhaveanymorecontactwithErikson,”hereplied.“He'smixedupwitha

coupleofthelocalouter-fringeelements.Ithinkhe'sloopy.”

“Niceword.”
“Doyouthinkso?”hesaid,grinning.“I’mthinkingofbuyingtherightstoit."
“I'llcallyouifIhaveanytrouble.Thanksforchecking,Lang.”
“Sure.”
Sheputdownthereceiver,idlycaressingitasshethoughtabouthowithadfelttokissLang.Pipe

dreams,sheremindedherself.Shecouldn'taffordtogothatrouteagain.Ithadreallybrokenherupto
losehim,especiallysincehermotherhadbeeninthethroesofanotherdivorceatthetime.Herhome
life had been virtually nonexistent, and that was one reason she'd gone off to university without a
protest.Itseemedlikealifetimeagonow.Shehadtomakesurethatitstayedthatway.

Langsettledinathishotelandwenttowork.Withinaweekhehadagrasponthesecuritysetup

withintheLancasterorganization,andhewasconfidentthathecouldupgradeittoamoreefficient
level.

Kirry worried him, though. She'd been very cautious in her movements for a few days after

Eriksonwasfired,butshe'dsuddenlygrowncareless.Todayshewasworkinglate,anditwasalready
dark.Langknewforafactthatherparkinglotwouldbedeserted.Hedecidedthatintheinterestof
keepinghersafe,he'dbettercheckonher.

Sureenough,theparkinglotwasdeserted,exceptforanolder-modelbluesedanwithafamiliar

faceinit.

Confrontation,Langhadfound,wasthebestwaytoavoidrealtrouble.Hepulledupbesidethe

bluesedanandgotoutofhissecuritycar.Hewaswearinganautomaticunderhisarm,anecessityin
hisnewlineofwork.Hehopedhewouldn'thavetopullit.

“Whatareyoudoinghere,Erikson?”Langasked.“You'reonprivateproperty.”
Erikson, a thin, cold-eyed man, looked vaguely disconcerted by Lang's direct approach. “I'm

enjoyingtheview.”

“Enjoy it from another perspective,” Lang suggested to him with a dangerous smile. “And in

case you have any ideas about retribution, you'd do better to forget them. You may have had a few
yearsexperienceinthearmyandasasecurityguard,butIwasCIAforfiveyears.I'veforgottentricks
youneverevenlearned.”

Theimpliedthreatseemedtobeenough.Withoutareply,Eriksonstartedhiscarandpulledout

oftheparkinglot,givingLangaresentfulglareontheway.

Langwatchedhimdriveoutofsightbeforeheturnedandwentintothebuilding.
Kirrywasatherdesk,talkingonthephonetosomeonewhowasobviouslyaclient.
“Youhavenothingtoworryabout!”shewasreassuringthepartyattheendoftheline.“Honestly,

it'sallundercontrol.That'sright.We'lltakecareofeverything.Allyouhavetodoisjustshowup,
okay?Okay.We'lltakegoodcareofyou.Yes.Yes.Certainly.Thankyou!Goodbye.”

She hung up with an audible sigh of relief and leaned back in her chair. Her green eyes found

Langinthedoorwayandshejumped,butnotwithfear.Theimpactofhispresencehadalwayscaused
that reaction, although she was usually able to hide it. Tonight, she was tired. Ten things had gone
wrongsinceshewalkedinthedoor,andshe'dspentthedayuntyingtangles.

“Ididn'tthinkanyonewasstillinthebuilding,”shesaid,sittingup.
“Icamebytochecktheparkinglot,”hesaid,shrugginghisbigshoulders.Thesoftfabricofhis

gray-and-tansportcoatmovedwiththeaction,andthebulgeunderhisarmwasvisible.

“You'rewearingagun,”sheaccusedinvoluntarily.
Hisexpressionwasunfamiliarashelookedather.“I'vewornagunforalongtime.Younever

usedtopayanyattentiontoit.”

“That was before you signed on with the Company and went off to see how many bullets you

couldcollectandstilllive,”shesaidwithasweetsmilethatdidn'treachhereyes.

“Don'ttellmeyoucared,cupcake.”
She lowered her eyes. She was wearing a neat gray suit with a pale pink knit blouse, and she

lookedfragileandverypretty.Langcouldn'tdraghisevesawayfromher.

“IthoughtIdid,”shereplied.“Butyoucuredme.”
He moved forward, cleared a corner of her cluttered desk and perched himself there. The

movement pulled his slacks taut across his powerful thighs. Kirry had to fight not to look at them.
She'dtouchedhimthere,once.Shecouldstillremembertheimpactofit,hishandguidinghersinthe
heatofpassion,hishoarsemoanwhenshebegantocaresshim.

“Whyareyoustillhere?”heasked,breakingintoherembarrassingthoughts.
“Business,” she said, clearing her throat. “I'm a vice president. I'm in charge of arrangements

whenwehaveourclientsmakepersonalappearances.Sometimesthingsgowrong,liketoday.”

“Andyouhavetocleanthemup.”
Shesmiled.“That'sright.”
“It'sdarkoutside.”
“Yes,Iknow.Ihavethis,though.”SheproducedakeychainwithasmallcontainerofMace.
Hesighedgently.“Kirry,whatifthewind'sinthewrongdirectionwhenyouuseit?Anddoyou

realizehowcloseyouhavetobe?”

Sheflushed.“Well,Ihavethis,too.”Sheheldupacannedscreamer.
“Great.Whatifthere'snobodywithinhearingrange?”
She began to feel nervous. If there was one thing Lang did know about, it was personal

protection."Idon'tlikeguns,”shebegan.

“Agunisthelastthingyouneed.Haveyoutakenanyself-defensecoursesatall?”
“No.Idon'thavetime.”
“Maketime,”hesaidbluntly.
Helookedconcerned.Thatdisturbedher.Shebegantomakeconnections.Hispresencehere,his

insistenceonprotectionforher…

“Somebodywasintheparkinglot,”shesaidastutely,hergreeneyesnarrowedandintentonhis

hardface.“Erikson?”

Henodded.“Ithreatenedhimandranhimoutoftheparkinglot.ButIcan'trunhimoffapublic

street,youunderstand?There'snolawagainstit.”

“Butthat'scalledstalking,”shesaiduneasily.
“Andrightnow,itisn'tagainstthelaw,”herepliedgrimly.
Sherecalledcasesshe'dseenontelevision,mostlyofangryex-boyfriendsorex-husbandswho

stalkedandfinallykilledwomen.Thepolicecoulddonothingbecauseacrimehadtobecommitted
beforethepolicecouldact.Andbythetimethathappened,usuallyitwastoolateforthevictim.

“Hewouldn'tkillme,”shestammered.
“Thereareotherthingshecoulddo,”Langsaiddistastefully.
Herlipspartedassheletoutaquickbreath.“Idon'tbelievethis,”shesaid.“Iwasonlydefending

myselfagainstanimpossiblesituation.Inevermeant…”

“Do you think it would have gotten better if you'd ignored it?” he asked gently. “Men like that

don'tstop.Theygetworse.Youknowthat.”

Shepushedbackherwavyblondhair.“Iknow,butIneverexpectedthis.”Herwideeyessought

his.“He'llquit,won'the?He'llgettiredofitandgoaway?”

He picked up a paper clip on her desk and twisted it between his long, broad fingers. “I don't

thinkso.”

Her hands felt cold. She clasped them together, with a sick feeling in the pit of her stomach

makingheruncomfortable.“WhatcanIdo?”

“I'lltrytokeepaneyeonyouasmuchasIcan,”hebegan.
“Lang,thatwon'tdo,”shesaid.“Youcan'twatchmeallthetime.Itwouldn'tbefairtoaskyouto.

I have to be able to take care of myself.” She looked down at her slender body, remembering that
Erikson was much taller and outweighed her by about sixty pounds. She smiled ruefully. “I can't
believeI'lleverfrightenanyonewithself-defense,butIguessI'llseeifIcanfindaclasstojoin.”

“Mostofthemareatnight,”hesaid.“Veryfewkarateinstructorscanaffordtooperateamartial

artsstudiofull-time.”

“SurelythereareSaturdayclasses,”shesaid.
“Maybe.”Hesmiledtenderly.“Butnobodycanteachyouself-defensebetterthanIcan.AndIcan

keepaneyeonyouintheprocess.”

Sheavertedhereyes.“Thatwouldn'tbeagoodidea.”
He studied her down-bent head with faint guilt. “We were friends once. More than friends,” he

remindedhersoftly.“Can'tyoupretendthatnothinghappenedbetweenus,justforafewweeks,until
wecansolvetheproblemofErikson?”

Hereyeswerewary,distrustful.“Idon'tknow,Lang.”
“We'redifferentpeople,”hesaid,pointedly.“IfI'mnot,whywouldIhavelefttheCompany?”
Shefrowned.“Ihadn'tthoughtaboutthat.Whydidyouleaveit?Evenwhenyouwereyounger,

allyoutalkedaboutwasbecominganagent.”

“Igotmyprioritiesstraight,”hereturned.

“Did you really?” Her eyes narrowed. “How did you know that Lancaster, Inc., needed a new

securitychief?”

“Afriendtoldme,”hesaid.Hewasn'tgoingtotellherwhothefriendwas.Notyet.She'dnever

liked Lorna, and the reverse was also true. Lorna didn't have any romantic designs on him, but he
didn'twantKirrytoknow.Notyet.

His dark eyes slid over her face, down to her slender body and back up again. He wanted so

badlytoaskiftherewasamaninherlife,butthatwastoomuchtoosoon.Besides,hehadtobesure
abouthisownfeelingsbeforehestartedtryingtocoaxhers.Hecouldn'tbeartohurtheragain.

“Idon'tknowifI'dbeanygoodatmartialarts,”shebeganslowly.
Shewasgoingtogivein.Heknewitinstinctively,anditdelightedhim.Hesmiledatherwithout

mockeryormalice.“Let'sfindout,”hesuggested.

Herbreathsighedout.“Allright.I'llhavetofititinwithwork,though.When?”
“Twonightsaweek,twohoursanight,”hesaid.“Andyou'llhavetopracticeathome,too.”
“Thissoundslikealotofwork,”shemumbled.
“Itis.Butit'sworthit.Itcouldsaveyourlife.”
“You'rereallyconcernedaboutErikson,aren'tyou?”sheasked.IfLangwasworried,therewasa

causeforconcern.

“Let'ssaythatI'mstayingontherightsideofcaution,”hecorrected.Hisbigshouldersliftedand

fellcarelessly,andhesmiledather.“Humorme.Foroldtimes'sake.”

She frowned and chewed on a fingernail while she pondered the anguish of being so close to

Langwhenshe'dspentyearstryingtoforgethim.

“OramIoverlookingtheobvious?”heaskedsuddenly,andhisfacechanged,hardened.“Isthere

amaninthepicture,someonewhoexpectsyourcompanyintheevenings?”

Shewishedwithallherheartthatshecouldanswerhimintheaffirmative.Ridiculous,topinefor

amanallthattime,andafterhe'dtreatedhersoshabbily.Buthedidlookdifferent.Hewasn'tthesame
hard-nosed, arrogant man who'd left Floresville to join the Company several years ago. He'd
mellowed.Thethreatwasstillthere,theruthlessness,buttherewasanewtenderness,too.

“No,Lang,”shesaid.”There'snoone."
Hiseyelidsflickered,buthisfacegaveawaynothing.“Allright,then.Supposewegoshopping

tomorrowwhenyougetoffwork,andwe'llbegintomorrownight?”

Shefrowned.“Shopping?Forwhat?”
Hechuckled.“Waitandsee.”

ChapterThree

Kirrygroanedasshelookedatherselfinthemirror.“Lang,itlookslikepajamas,”shemoaned.

Langopenedthedoortoherbedroomandleanedagainstthedoorjamb,hisarmsfolded,tostudyher.
Shewaswearingwhatthey'dboughtthatafternoon;itwasawhitegi,thetraditionalkarateuniformof
white pants and a white top with one side folded over the other. For a beginner, the first gi was
secured by a white belt. Colored belts had to be earned with new skills at each level of
accomplishment,thehighestofwhichwasblack.

Kirry looked fragile in the outfit, slender and not at all threatening. Her head was bent, her

shouldersslumped,baringhernapewhereherhairwasshortinback.

“Letmeexplainsomethingtoyou,”hesaiddisapprovingly,jerkingawayfromthedoorframeto

standjustbehindher.“Thefirstruleofself-defenseistoneverlookvulnerable.Inthewild,ananimal
willnevershowillness,rightuptothepointofdeath,topreventbeingattacked.Itisn'tmuchdifferent
withpeople.Apotentialattackercanspotaneasyvictim.”

“How?”sheasked,peeringintohiseyesinthemirror.
“Youcarryyourselfasifyou'vealreadybeenbeaten,didn'tyouknow?”heaskedgently.“Your

shouldersarethrownforward.Youkeepyoureyesandheaddownwhenyouwalk.Youclutchyour
bagclose—notabadidea,butthewayyoudoitisadeadgiveaway.”

“WhatshouldIdo,walkdownthestreetaimingkaratechopsateverytreeIpass?”sheasked.
Hegrinned.“Notabadidea,ifyoucanlearnhowtoknockonedownthatway.Otherwise,pass

onit.Listen,youhavetowalkasifyouowntheworldandknowfullwellthatyoucanbreakevery
bone in an attacker's body. Sometimes just your posture is enough to ward off trouble. Stand up
straight.”

Shedid,givingherslenderbodyanaddedelegance.
“Now hold your head up. Don't make long eye contact—a man might construe that as an

invitation—butdon'tkeepyoureyesdownasifyou'reafraidtolookatpeople.”

“Iam,sometimes,”sheconfessedwithafaintsmile.“Peopleintimidateme.”
“Right.That'swhyyou'reinapublicrelationsjob.”
“Icanbluffenoughtodomyjob.It'safterworkthatgivesmeproblems,”shesaidwithasigh,

glancingcriticallyatherselfinthemirror.“Idon'tmixwell.”

“Youalwayswereshy,exceptwithpeopleyouknew,”herecalled.Hiseyesdroppedtohersoft

mouth, pink with lipstick, and he remembered it clinging hotly to him, pleading for more than any
honorablemancouldgiveher.Hehadn'twantedtogetmarried,andKirrywasnotthesortofgirlhe
felt comfortable seducing outside of marriage. He'd talked about marrying her, and he knew that it
waswhatshewanted,butthingshadn'tworkedout.Ithadbeenasadsituationaltogether,andhestill
wasn'tproudofhissolution.Insteadofjusttellingherhedidn'twanttogetmarried,he'dmadearun
for it. And his best friend had unwittingly given him the escape he needed. Kirry had been the one
who'dsufferedthemost.

“Wouldyoumindnotlookingatmelikethat?”sheasked,liftinghergreeneyestohisdarkones

inthemirror.“Thisisniceofyou,toteachmehowtotakecareofmyself,butI'dratherifitwasn't…
uncomfortable.”

“Sorry,”hesaidabruptly.“BacktowhatIwastellingyou,”hesaid,changingthesubject.“Walk

with a purpose when you go out, as if you know exactly where you're going—even if you're lost.
Keepyourchinup,lookatpeople,butjustenoughtoletthemknowyouseethem.Whenyou'regoing

to your car, always have your keys in your hand, not in your purse. Look in the back seat and all
aroundbeforeyouopenthedoorandgetin,andthenlockit.Don'tevergointoadarkparkinglot
aloneatnight,ortoanautomatedbankteller.Womenhaveriskedthatandturnedupdead.”

Sheshivered.“You'refrighteningme.”
“I want to,” he said. His dark eyes didn't blink. “I want you to understand how drastic the

consequencescanbe.”

“Womenshouldbeabletogowherevertheylike…”
“Don'thandmethat,”hesaidshortly.“Soshouldmenandkids,buttheymustabidebythesame

rules.It'sthatsortofworld.Nobodyissafeinacityaloneafterdark—man,womanorchild.Menget
attacked,too,youknow,evenifitisn'tusuallyforthesamereasonsthatwomendo.”

“Ourcultureissick,”sheremarkedphilosophically.
“Whatever.Wedealwithitasbestwecan.WhatI'mgoingtoteachyouwillkeepyoualive,at

least.Comeon.Getyourcoat.”

“ButIthoughtweweregoingtopracticehere…”shebegan.
“Do you really like the idea of being thrown flat on your back on a wood floor?” he asked

pleasantly.

Shegloweredathim.“Whatdoyoumean,thrownonmyback?”
“Didn'tImentionit?Inkarate,thefirstthingtheyteachyouishowtofallcorrectly.You'regoing

tobefallingalot,flatonyourbackandeveryotherway.”

“You'rekidding!”
“Thinkso?”Hehandedherthelightweightcarcoatsheworeoncoolspringnights.
Sheputitonwitharesignedbreath.Shehopedshecouldworkwithbrokenbones.
Langhadafriendwhoranagym.Themanwasmiddle-aged,butverymuscularandfit,andhe

andLangseemedtoknoweachotherfromwayback.

“Karate,huh?”theman,Tony,mused,studyingKirry.“Isshetoughenough?”
Kirrydrewherselftoherfullheightandglaredathim.“Shesureis,”shesaidwithajerkofher

head.

He chuckled. “Good. If Lang teaches you, you'll need to be. Most of his students quit after the

firstnightwhenhewasonthepoliceforce,teachingitinhissparetime.”

TonyambledawayandKirryfollowedLangovertoalong,thickmatonthefloorofthegym

nearthewall.“Ididn'tknowyoutaughtkarate,”sheremarked.

“Youdidn'tknowalotofthingsthatIdid,”herepliedcarelessly.“Youknowhowtostretch,don't

you?”

“Yes.Idothateverymorning.”
“DosomestretcheswhileIgetintomygi.”
Hewalkedawaywithhisblackduffelbag,andKirrysettledontothemat.
Whiletheminutestickedaway,shebecameslowlyawareofcuriousglancesfromsomeofthe

otheroccupantsofthegym.Mostofthemwereworkingoutonmachines.Twoyoungwomenwere
liftingweights.Anotherwasdoingisometricexercises.

Loudnoisesfromtheotherendofthegymdrewherattention.Shenoticedseveralmengathered

around a punching bag near where Lang had gone. Someone was doing kicks and spins with
incrediblespeedandgrace,whichmadeKirrydizzy.Shepausedinherownstretchingjusttowatch
him.Hewentupwithahighjumpkickandthegymvibratedashisfootconnectedwiththehanging
bag.Helandedandturned,laughing,andshesuddenlyrecognizedhim.ItwasLang!

Shestaredathimashespoketothemenandwalkedtowardher.Thegifithimverynicely,loose

though it was, giving an impression of great strength. Her eyes fell to his belt and she wasn't
surprisedtoseethatitwasblack,thehallmarkofthehighestranksofskillinthesport.

“We'dbetterstoprightnow,”shetoldhimbreathlessly,“becauseI'mnevergoingtobeabletodo

whatyoujustdid.”

Hegrinned.“Nottoday,anyway.Limberedup,arewe?”
Shegrimaced.“Iguess.”Sheeyedhimwarily.“Didyoumeanit,aboutmakingmefall?”
Henodded.“Don'tworry.There'sarightwaytodoit.Youwon'tgethurt.”
Thatwaswhathethought.Justbeingclosetohimmadeallhersensesstir.
“Readytogetstarted?”heasked.Hiseyesfelltoherwatch.
“Takethatoff,”hesaid.“Neverwearjewelryonthemat,it'sdangerous.”
“Oh.Sorry.”Shestrippeditoffandslippeditintothepocketofhercoat.Therewerenoringsto

worryabout.Shehadn'twornaringsinceLanghadgivenherasmallemeraldoneforherbirthday.
Shestillhadit,safeinadrawer,butsheneverputiton.

Shewentbacktothemat.Hetaughtherhowtoapproachthemat,becausetherewasritualand

reverence even in that. Then he taught her the bow to an opponent. Afterward, he taught her the
rigorousdisciplinedstretchesthatprecededallkaratelessons.Shewasworn-outfromthembeforehe
tookherbacktothematandshowedherhowtodoleftandrightsidebreakfallsandbackbreakfalls.
Shespentthenexthourfallingdown.Onceshemissedthematandlandedonherhiponthehardgym
floor.

“Yousaiditwouldn'thurt,”shemuttered,rubbingherbehind.
“Itdoesn't,ifyoulandwhereyou'resupposedto,”hereturned.“Watchwhereyou'regoing.”
“Yes,sir,”shemurmuredwithamischievousglance.
“Falldown.”
Shegroaned.“Whichway?”
“Yourchoice.”
“Mychoicewouldbeanicehotbathandbed,”shetoldhim.
Hesmiled.“Tired?”
Shehesitated,thenshenodded.
“Okay,tiger,that'senoughfortoday.Attention.”Hecalledhertothebeginningstance.“Bow.”
She bowed. He left her to change back into his street clothes and she leaned against the wall,

feelingpummeled.

Theydrovehomeinacontentedsilence.
“What kind of karate is it?” she asked. “During that last break one of the men mentioned that

therearedifferentkinds.”

“You're studying tae kwon do,” he told her. “It's a Korean form of martial art, one which

specializesinkicks.”

“Kicks.”
“You'vegotthelegsforit,andIdon'tmeanthatinanoffensiveway,”headded.“Youhavelong

legs,andthey'restrongones.Kicksarepotentiallymuchmoredangerousthanhandblows.”

“Ifeltthegymshakewhenyoudidthatjumpkick,justafteryouputonyourgi,”shemurmured

demurely.

He chuckled. “I did nothing but practice when I first joined the police force. While the other

singleguyswereoutchasingwomenanddrinkingbeerintheirsparetime,Iwasinthegymlearning
howtodospinkicks.”

“You're…amazingtowatch,”shesaid,searchingfortherightwordtodescribetheelegantskill

ofhismovements.

Hesmiled.“Flattery?”
“Notatall!”
“Ifyouworkatit,youcandothosesamemoves,”hesaid.“Plentyofwomenareblackbelts.In

fact,IworkedonacasewithanotherCompanyagentwhohadahigherrankthanmine.Shetaughtme
somenewmoves.”

Sheclosedup.“Didshe?”sheasked,glancingoutthewindow.
He smiled to himself. The woman he'd just mentioned was a retired army officer of sixty. He

wouldn'tdisillusionKirrybypassingthatlittlebitofinformationalong.

“Want to stop somewhere for a cup of coffee?” he asked. “I can't drink it at night,” she said

apologetically.“Iliketobeinbedbyten.”

Hescowled.“Woman,whatkindoflifeareyouliving!”
Not much of one, she could have said. “Oh, I stay up if there's a good movie on,” she said

defensively.

“You'retwenty-two.”
“Twenty-three,”shecorrected.
“Twenty-three,then,”hereturned.“You'retooyoungtospendthatmuchtimealone.”
“Ididn'tsayIwasalwaysalone,”shesaidstiffly.“Igooutondates!”Andshedid.Thelastone

had been a newly divorced man who talked about his ex-wife and cried. The one before that was a
bacheloroffiftywhowantedhertomoveinwithhim.Shehadn'thadalotofluckinhersearchfor
companionship,leastofallwithLang,whosememoryhadstoodbetweenherandthemostinnocent
involvementwithanyoneelse.

Langdidn'tknowthetruecircumstances,though.HewaspicturingKirryinanotherman'sarms,

andhedidn'tlikeit.Hishandstightenedonthesteeringwheel.

“Youusedtosmoke,”sheremarked.
“Onlyoccasionally,”hereplied.“ItwasinterferingwithmywindwhenIworkedout,soIgaveit

up.”

“Goodforyou,”shemurmured.
He pulled into the parking lot of her apartment building. A car pulled in behind them. A blue

sedan.

Langsawitandsuddenlyspunhisowncararoundandheadedstraightforit.Hedidn'tlookasif

hemeanttostop,andtheoneglimpseKirrygotofhisfacemadeherclingtotheseatforallshewas
worth.

ApparentlytheruthlessmaneuvergotthemessageacrosstoEriksoninthebluesedan,because

heburnedrubbergettingoutoftheparkinglotanddownthestreet.

“Damnhim,”Langsaidicilywhenhe'dparkedthecar.“MaybeIshouldjustbeatthehelloutof

himandputhiminthehospitalforafewweeks.Thatmightgettheideaacross.”

Kirrywasunnerved.ShelookedatLangwarily.“No,”shesaid.“Youmustn'tdothat.He'dhave

youputinjail.”

“He'dhaveahardtimekeepingmethere,”hereturnedwithasmile.“Ihaveconnections.”
Shetwistedhersmallclutchbaginherhands.“IthoughtIwasdoingtherightthing,tellingyou

abouthim…”

“You did,” he replied. “The days of men like Erikson are over. It's just going to take a few

lawsuitstoconvincethemofit.”

“Stalkerskillpeople,”shesaid,voicingherworstfear.

“Eriksonwon'tkillyou,”hereplied.“AndafterI'veworkedoutwithyouforafewweeks,he'll

regretitifhecomeswithinstrikingrange.”

Shesmiled.“Thinkso?WhatamIgoingtodo,fallonhim?”
“You'reprettygoodatthat,”hesaidwithaninstructor'sprideinhisstudent.
“Thanks.”
“I'llwalkyouup,justincase.”
Hegotoutofthecar,lockeditandcamearoundtotakehersofthandinhisastheywentintothe

buildingandstoodwaitingfortheelevator.

Kirryshouldhavepulledherhandaway,butshecouldn'tmanage.Itbroughtbackmemoriesof

theirfirstrealdate.He'dheldherhandthen,too,andshecouldstillfeelthethrillofit.

“Itwasyourfirstdate,andyouweresonervousthatyouweretremblingwhenItookyouhome

that night,” he recalled, glancing down at her surprised face. “Am I reading your mind again?” he
asked,liftingtheirclaspedhands.“Youaren'ttheonlyonewithmemories.Theyaren'tallbadones,
arethey?”

Shedidn'tanswerhim.Theelevatordooropenedandtheysteppedintothedesertedconveyance.

Langpushedthebuttonforherfloor.

“Wecouldhavewalkedup,it'sjustthesecondfloor,”sheremindedhim.
“Stayoutofstairwells,”herepliedseriously.
“Oh.Yes,Isee.”
“Thatgoesforworkaswellashome,”headded.
Theelevatordooropenedandhewalkedherdowntotheendofthedesertedcorridor,whereher

apartmentwas.Henoticedthatshehadherkeyinherhandwhentheygotthere.Notumblingforitin
apurseorpocket.Hesmiled.“Kirry?”heaskedassheunlockedthedoor.

Shehesitated,withherbacktohim.
“Doyouwanttheconventionalendtotheevening?”heaskedquietly.
Herhandclenchedonthedoorknobassherememberedhowitfelttokisshim.“Itwouldn'tbe

wise.”

“Probably not.” He shoved his hands into his pockets and leaned his shoulder against the wall

nexttothedoor.Hisdarkeyesslidoverherprofile.“WhateverhappenedtoChad?”heasked.

Hereyesshottohis.“Don'tyouknow?Hewasyourbestfriend.”
“Notafterhebrokeusup,”herepliedtightly.“Ordidn'tanyoneevertellyouthatIknockedtwo

ofhisteethout?”

“No,”shesaid.Shehuddledcloserintoherjacket,chilledbythelookonLang'sface.“Itwasa

littlelate,though,wasn'tit?”

“Mademefeelbetter,”hesaidlaconically.
Hisbroadchestroseandfellunderthesoftknitshirthewaswearing.Therewasadarkshadow

underit.Hewashairyunderhisshirt.Kirryhaddelightedinburyingherhandsandhermouthinthat
softthicket.

Thesadnessshefeltwasreflectedintheeyessheliftedtohisbroadface.“Youneverreallyknew

anythingaboutme,”shesaidsuddenly,“exceptthatyoulikedtokissme.”Shesmiledgently.“Maybe
that'swhyyouwouldn'tlistenwhenItoldyouthatChadhadframedme.”

Hedidn'tanswerher.Hiseyesfelltohermouthandlingeredthereuntilshemovedrestlesslyand

herhandturnedonthedoorknob.

“ThefirsttimeIkissedyou,yougaspedundermymouth,”herecalledquietly.“Itsurprisedme

thatyoudidn'tknowwhatadeepkissfeltlike.”

Shefeltuncomfortable.Hergreeneyesglitteredathimangrily.“There'snoneedtorubitin.”
“Ifyouhadn'tbeenavirgin,ourliveswouldhavebeenalotdifferent,”hecontinued.“Iwanted

yousobadlythatIcouldn'tthinkstraight,butyouweretheoriginalold-fashionedgirl.Nosexbefore
marriage.”

“I'mstilltheoriginalold-fashionedwoman,”shetoldhimproudly.“Mybodyismybusiness.I

candowhateverIwanttowithit,andthatincludesbeingcelibateifIfeellikeit.”

“Nightsmustgetrealcoldinwinter,”hechided.
Hereyebrowslifted.“Ihaveanelectricblanket,dearman,andnohealthworries.Isleeplikea

top.Howaboutyou?”

Hedidn'tsleepwell.Hehadn'tforyears.Hismemorieswereoftheviolentvarietyandinthepast

fewmonths,they'dbecomeconstantandnightmarish.

“Idon't,”herepliedfrankly.
“Nowonder,”shereturned.“Allthosewomen!”
“Kirry…”
Hecouldn'tdenyit,ofcoursehecouldn't.Shefoughtdownthejealousyandsmiled.“Thanksfor

thelesson.”

Heclampeddownhardonhistemper.“Noproblem,”herepliedafteraminute.“We'lldoitagain

inthreedays.Rememberthosestretches.Practicethem.”

HerminddartedbacktoEriksonintheparkinglot,andshefeltthreatened.Hereyesshowedit.
“Don't let him see that he's scared you,” Lang said curtly. “Don't you dare let him know. Keep

yourchinup.Lookathim,showhimyouaren'tintimidated.Makesureyou'rewithpeoplewhenyou
leavethebuilding,hereoratwork.”

“Okay.”
Hesmiledsoftly.“You'retough.Rememberit.”
“I'lltry.Thanks,Lang.”
“I'llbearound.Letmeknowifyouneedme.”Shenodded.
He pushed away from the wall and looked down at her almost hungrily before he turned and

walkedslowlybacktowardtheelevator.

Kirrywantedtocallhimback.Sheknewthesightofthatretreatingback,becauseshe'dlivedwith

italltheseyears.Itstillhurttowatchhimgo.Nothinghadchangedatall.

Whenhegottotheelevatorandpressedthebuttonheturnedandcaughtherstaringathim.He

looked back, aching to hold her. He had a feeling that he was going to get postgraduate courses in
self-denialbeforethisEriksonbusinesswasthrough.

Kirry lifted her hand in a halfhearted wave and went into her apartment, closing the door and

lockingitbehindher.ShehadtostopwantingLangtokissher.Itwouldbethesameoldmessagainif
sheencouragedhim.Thistime,shewasgoingtobestrong.

Thatattitudelastedallnightlong.Itgothertoworkandintothebuilding,despitethesightofthat

damnedblue sedan sittingon the streetin front of herapartment building andfollowing her all the
waytoLancaster,Inc.ShelookedstraightatEriksonwithoutasmileoraflinchasshewentintothe
building, and it seemed to disconcert him. Lang had been right, she thought as she went into her
office.Itreallywasworking!Shefeltbetterthanshehadsincetheordealhadbegun.

Kirry was promoting a public seminar for a local business firm that specialized in interior

design. She'd arranged for a special appearance by a famed European designer at one of San
Antonio'sbiggestmalls,andcoordinateditwithanamateurcompetitionforlocalcitizenswho'ddone
their own decorating. The European designer was to judge the entries and Kirry had bought

advertisingonlocaltelevisionstationsandnewspapers,allofwhichhadpromisedtosendreporters
tocovertheevent.

It was time-consuming and maddening to get all the details to fit together, though, and by the

timeKirryhadthemfinalized,shewasanervouswreck.

Itdidn'thelpthatwhenshewentouttohercarthatinfernalbluesedanwassittingtherelikealand

shark,withEriksoninthefrontseatglaringather.

Furious, she went back into the building and called the police. She explained the problem to a

sympatheticofficeronthedesk.

“Ishiscarintheparkinglotofyourbusiness,MissCampbell?”heaskedpolitely.
“Well,no.It'sonthestreetacrossfromtheparkinglot.”
“Apublicstreet?”
Shegrimaced.“Yes.”
Therewasapause.“Idon'tlikesayingthis,butIhaveto.There'snolawagainstamansittingin

his car, no matter what threats he might have made. If he hasn't actually assaulted you, or said
anythingtoyou,thereisn'tasinglethingwecando.”

“Buthe'sstalkingme,”shegroaned.
“Thelawneedstobechanged,”hetoldher.“Anditwillbe.Butrightnow,thelawsaysthatwe

can't touch him. On the other hand, if he makes a single obscene remark to you, or touches you in
anyway…”

“He'sbeenamilitarypolicemanandasecurityguard,”shesaiddully.”Iexpectheknowsthelaw

backwardandforward."

“Yes,ma'am,I'msorry,becauseIimagineyou'reright.Iwishwecoulddosomething.”
“SodoI.Thanksforlistening.”
She hung up and sat with her head down. She could call Lang, but she knew what he'd do. If

EriksoncouldgetLangarrested,he'dhaveaclearfield.Shedidn'twantthat.Andhehadn'tharmed
her,yet.Shehadtokeepheremotionsundercontrol.Ifshepanickedanddidsomethingstupid,she'd
beplayingrightintohishands.

Butwhatcouldshedo?Shegrabbedherpurseandwentbackouttotheparkinglot.Hewasstill

there.Shedidn'tlookathimthistime.Shegotintohercar,lockedthedoors,starteditandpulledout
ontothestreet.

Aglanceinherrearviewmirrortoldherthathewasfollowingher.
Well,shehadasurpriseinstoreforhimthistime.She'dspottedapolicecarcruisingdowntown.

ShedeliberatelypulledupbesideitandwatchedasEriksonfellback.Sohewasn'tquiteasconfident
ashemadeout.Thatwasusefulinformation.

Whenthepolicecarturned,Kirryturnedbehindhim.Shefollowedhimthroughthedowntown

area,withEriksontrailingbehind.Then,withoutwarning,sheswungthewheelandturneddownan
alley,cutthroughandcameinbehindErikson.

He was looking around for her, but he didn't seem to see her. Good. She had him where she

wantedhim.

HeturnedontoasecondarystreetandKirryturnedtheotherway.Shedlosthim,justtemporarily.

Itwasarelieftoknowthatshecoulddoeventhat.

Shewentbacktoherbuilding,parkedthecarinherspot,andrusheduptoherapartment,quickly

securingthedoor.That'soneforme,Erikson,shethought.

Afewminuteslater,thetelephonerang.Shelettheansweringmachinecatchit,certainthatitwas

anirateErikson.ButthevoiceontheotherendwasLang's.

“Areyouthere,Kirry?”heasked.
Shepickedupthereceiverandturnedoffthemachine."Yes,Iam.Hi,Lang,”shesaid.
“Whatthehellwereyoutryingtodooutthere,incitehimtoviolence?”heaskedangrily.“You

can'tplaygameswithamadman,Kirry!”

“Yousawme!”sheexclaimed.
“OfcourseIsawyou,”hemuttered.
“ButIdidn'tseeyou!”
“That'sthefirstruleofshadowingsomeone—don'tbeseen.”
Shesmiled.“Ididn'tknowyouwerelookingoutforme.Thanks,Lang!”
“I won't always be there. I can't always,” he said, “so please exercise some common sense and

stoptryingtooutfoxErikson.He'snofool.He'llrealizewhatyoudid,anditwillmakehimangrier.
Don'tyouunderstandthathissortcan'tbearbeingbeatenbyawoman?Hetakesitasachallengeto
hismanhood!”

“Well,poorhim.Whataboutme?”shestormed.“DoIhavenorightsatall?Ihatehavinghim

followmearoundandstareatme,”sheaddedfuriously.“Icalledthepolice,andtheysaidtherewasn't
athingtheycoulddo.Notathing!Whatifhekillsme?Cantheydosomethingthen?”

“You'regettingtoouptight,Kirry,”hesaid.“Calmdown.Useyourmind.Ifhewasgoingtohurt

you,he'dhavedoneitwhenIfiredhim.He'sonlytryingtowearyoudownandfreakyouout,tomake
youhurtyourselformakeafoolofyourself.”

“Thatisn'twhatyousaid…”
“Ididn'tknow,”hereplied.”Notatfirst.I'mstillnotcertainenoughtoriskyourlifebyguessing

whichwayhe'lljump.We'llhandleit.Iwon'tlethimhurtyou."

Thecalmconfidenceinhisvoicesoothedherbadlystretchednerves.“Iknowthat.”
“And when I'm through with you, you'll be able to take care of yourself. We'll have another

lessontomorrownight.Okay?”

Shesighed.“Okay.”
“Getsomesleep.I'llbeintouch.”
Hehungupandshesmiled,thinkingthatmaybeitwouldworkoutallright.Shewasjustjumpy,

thatwasall.

Thephonerang,andshelaughedasshepickeditup.
“Forgotsomething,didyou?”sheteased.
“Yeah,”acold,toofamiliarvoicereplied.“Iforgottotellyouthattrickslikeyouplayedonme

tonightwon'tworkagain.”

“Leavemealone,Erikson!”shesnapped.“Youhavenoright…!”
“You got me fired, you snooty little tramp,” he said. “No woman does that to me. I'm through

playinggames.”

“Listentome,youlunatic…!”sheveiledback,butthelinewasalreadydead.
Sheputthereceiverdownwithaslam,herfacehotwithtemper.Damnhim!Whatwasshegoing

todo?

ChapterFour

Kirryhadneverfeltsothreatenedinherlife.Sheleftherapartmentthenextmorningandfound

Eriksonrightinthefrontofthebuilding,sittinginthatbluesedan.

Withafuryshecouldn'tcontain,shepickeduparockfromthelandscapedcactiandflungitat

thecarwithallhermight.Heducked,shocked,butherpitchingarmwasn'twhatitshouldhavebeen.
The rock fell short. By golly, she promised herself, the next one wouldn't. She picked up three big
rocksandrantowardhiscar.

Beforeshecouldgetstarted,heroaredoff,leavingherstandingthere,shaking.Shefoughtfor

control of herself and slowly dropped the rocks, brushing off her hands. The man was crazy, she
thoughtbitterly.Crazy!Andshecouldn'tdoathingtostophim!

She got into her car and locked it and went to work. She knew the blue sedan would be sitting

there,onthestreet,andsureenough,itwas.Shewasshakingasshegotoutandlockedherowncar
andstartedtowardthebuilding.Therewerenorocksinthelandscapinghere,nothingthatshecould
throw at him. He smiled at her from cold eyes as she walked up the sidewalk toward her office
building.

“Youcan'tstopmefromsittinghere,andtherearen'tanyrocks,baby,”hecalledtoher.
Shestopped,herkneesvibratingfromfearandtemper.Shelookedstraightintohiseyes.“Ifyou

don'tstopnow,you'llwishyouhad,”shesaidquietly.

“Oh,yeah?Whatyougonnado,bigbadgirl?”hechallenged.
“Wait and see, Mr. Erikson,” she said, and smiled as if she had every confidence that he was

goingtowindupwearingprisonblues.

Sheturnedandwalkedintothebuildingwithoutlookingback.
Mack'seyesnarrowedasshepassedhim.“IsawhimsittingtherewhenIcamein,”hesaid.“I've

phonedthenewsecuritychiefandMr.Lancaster.They'reworkingonsomething.”

“A bomb?” she asked pleasantly. “Because that's what it may take. He won't stop. The law can't

touchhim,andheknowsit.”

“Isn'tyourmothermarriedtosomerichpersonoverseas?”Mackasked.
Shedidn'tliketalkingabouthermother.“She'smarriedtoawealthyEnglishnobleman.”
“Well,couldn'thehireyouahitman?”heasked.
She burst out laughing. “Oh, for God's sake, will you stop watching those mob movies?” she

mumbled,walkingoffintoherownoffice.

“It'sworthathought!”hecalledafterher.
Sheclosedthedoor.
Itwasabusyday.Shedidn'tgooutforlunch,choosinginsteadtohaveoneoftheotherwomen

bringittoher.IfEriksonwantedtositoutthereandbakeinhiscarallday,lethim.Shewasgoingto
trypretendingthathewasinvisible.PerhapsLanghadbeenright—ifEriksonmeanttohurther,he'd
havedoneitbynow.Shejusthadtokeephernerveuntilhegottiredofwatchingherandgaveitup.

Langwaswaitingforherwhenshegottoherapartment.Foronce,Eriksonhadn'tfollowedher

home.Butsheknewthathewasouttheresomewhere,watching,alwayswatching.

“Getyourgiandlet'sgo,”Langsaidastheyreachedherapartment.“I'mtakingyououttodinner

beforewegotothegym.”

“Youdon'thaveto…”
“Just a hamburger, Kirry, not a five-course meal,” he said curtly. “There are some things we

needtotalkabout.”

“Okay.”Shegotherthingsfromtheclosetandturnedonheransweringmachine.
Heheldherbagwhileshelockeduptheapartment.Heseemedverypreoccupiedandnotalittle

concerned. He hardly said a word all the way to a nearby hamburger joint, where they nibbled
burgersandfriesanddrankcoffee.

“You'reworried,aren'tyou?”sheasked.
Henodded.Hesippedcoffee,andhisdarkeyesnarrowedoverthecupashestudiedher.“Ihada

friendofminedosomeharddiggingintoErikson'spast.Hewasarrestedforkillingamanwhilehe
wasanMP.Hewasacquitted,butpeopleweregenerallysurethathedidit.Itwasaraciallymotivated
incident.”

“Oh,boy,”shesaidheavily.
“Itgetsworse,”headded.“He'scoveredhistracksprettygood,orhe'dneverhavegottenajobas

asecurityofficer.He'sbeeninjailthreedifferenttimesonassaultchargesthatweredroppedbecause
thewitnessesrefusedtotestify.Thevictimswerewomen,”headdedquietly.“Youngwomen.Twoof
themclaimedthatherapedthem,buttheyweretooafraidofhimtogotocourt.”

Kirry felt her face turning white. She wasn't a fearful person as a rule, but this was an

extraordinary circumstance. She put down the rest of her half-eaten hamburger and fought to keep
whatshe'dalreadyeatendown.

“YourmotherlivesinEurope,”hesaid.“Iknowyoutwodon'tgetalong,butitwouldbenefityou

togooverthereandvisitherforafewweeksuntilIcangetsomethingdoneaboutErikson.”

“Runaway,youmean?”sheasked.”You'rethesecondpersontodaywho'smentionedmymother,

butMackaskedifherhusbandcouldn'thireahitmantodealwithmyproblem."

Hepursedhislipsandhiseyestwinkled.“Whatamagnificentsuggestion.”
“Stopthat.Youwereagovernmentagent.”
“SoIwas,dashtheluck.”Heleanedbackinhischairandsearchedherface.“Youwon'tgoto

Europe?”

She shook her head. “I'm not running. He's not going to make a coward out of me, no matter

whathe'sdoneinthepast.”

Hesmiled.“Youalwaysdidhaveguts,Kirry,”hesaid,chuckling.
“Toomanytosuityourightnow,huh?”sheteased.
Hecaressedthepapercupthatheldamouthfulofwarmcoffee.“Ifyouwon'trun,howabouta

compromise?”

“Whatdidyouhaveinmind?”
“Safetyinnumbers.”
“Iwon'tliveattheYWCA,”shesaid,outguessinghim.
“Thatwasn'texactlywhatIhadinmind.”
She hesitated. She was doing it again; reading his mind. “You want me to move in with you.

You'reverysweet,Lang,butIcouldn't…”

“Idon'twanttomoveinwithyou,”hesaidbluntly.“I'veexplainedthesituationtoyourapartment

manager,andhe'sgivingmetheapartmentnextdoortoyou,”hesaidcalmly.

“Oh.”Shefeltchastened.Hemadeitveryclearthatlivingwithherwasnotsomethinghewanted

to do. Maybe it wouldn't have been a good idea, but it hurt a little to think that he wouldn't even
considerit.

“Ifyoumovedinwithme,nobodywouldcare,”shesaid,surprisingherself.“Peopledon'tsitin

judgmentoverthemoralvaluesoftheirfellowmananymore.”

“Wanttobet?”
She felt and looked irritated. “All right, then, move in next door. I don't want you in my

apartment,anyway.You'dseduceme,”sheaccused,andwasamazedthatshecouldjokeaboutit.

“Youwish,”hecountereddryly.“I'mveryparticularaboutmybody.Youmighthavenoticedthat

Ikeepitinraregoodcondition,andI'lltellyouflatthatit'singreatdemandbywomen.Idon'tshareit
witheveryonewhoasks.”

Hereyebrowsliftedandhereyestwinkled.“Youdon't?”
His broad shoulders lifted and fell. “It's a dangerous practice these days, sleeping around,” he

remindedherwithaquietsmile.

Shesmiledback.“Yes,Iknow.That'swhyIdon'tdoit.”
Thesmilewasstillthere,buttherewassomethingsomberinhisdarkeyes.
“Evercomeclose?”heaskedverysoftly.
She hesitated, and then shook her head. “Only with you, that one time,” she said involuntarily,

andhereyesflickeredwithpainfulmemoriesbeforetheyfell.

He slid his hands deep into his pockets. He remembered, as she did, the wonder of that night.

Nothinginhislifebeforeorsincehadeverequaledit,asrelativelyinnocentanexperienceasithad
been. Because he knew in his heart that he wasn't ready for marriage, he'd been too honorable to
seduceawomanasinnocentasKirry,althoughtheirintimacyhadbeendevastatingjustthesame.

Then the very next day, Chad had dropped his bombshell and the relationship had shattered

forever.

“Yousitprettyheavyonmyconsciencesometimes,”hesaidunexpectedly.
Herevesliftedtohis.“That'sashocker,”shemurmured.“IthoughtIwasjustoneinaline.”
“Fatchance.”Hisgazeslidoverherslowly,boldly.“Isuggestedthatwegetengaged,butIdidn't

reallywanttogetmarriedandyoudid.Thatwastherealproblem.Iguessthat'swhyIbelievedChad,
andnotyou.”

“That'swhatmymothersaid.”
“Well,sheisastuteeverynowandthen,”heobserved.
“Itwastheonlytimeinourlivesthatshereallytriedtoactlikemymother,”shereminisced."I

neededher,andshewasthere.Evenifitwasafairlyinnocentthing,ithurtonceitwasover.

“DidyouthinkIgotawayscot-free?”heaskedcuriously.
Sheshrugged.“Youwantedoutandyougotout.”
“I didn't want to get married,” he repeated. “That didn't mean I wasn't involved emotionally. It

hurtme,too.”

“That'shardtoimagine,”shesaid.“Younevertookanythingseriously,leastofallme.”
“You'd be surprised.” He looked at her intently before continuing. “The apartment I'm getting

isn'tverylarge,butIliketheview.Andit'sconvenienttoyours,ifEriksontriesanything.”

She didn't like to think about that. Knowing what she'd learned about the man made her very

nervous.“Couldn'twemanagebetterifyoumovedinwithme?”shesaid,thinkingoutloud.“Ihave
twobedroomsandIcancook.”

“I can cook, too,” he volunteered, ignoring her offer. “And I don't have a phobia of vacuum

cleaners.ThislastoneIboughthaslastedawholemonth.”

“Amonth!”
“Well, the damned things are like elephants. When you drag them around by the trunk and get

themhungonfurniture,andjerkrealhard…itpullstheirlittletrunksoff!”

Shelaughed.Hewasasincorrigibleasever.HemadeherforgetErikson,evenifjustforalittle

while.

“Feellikehelpingmemovetonight?”
“Ifwe'llhaveenoughtime,Iguessso.”Shehadvisionsofluggingfurnitureupontheelevator

as she toyed with her napkin. “Is there someone who'd mind if you stayed in my apartment?” she
prompted,curiousabouthisreasonsforrefusing.

“Awoman,youmean?”
Shenodded.
“No”hesaidgently.“Thereisn'tanyone.”
“Isee.”
“Probablynot.”Hechuckled.“Finished?Let'sgofallonamatforacoupleofhours.”
“I'mstillsorefromthelasttime,”shegroaned.
“Andwehaven'tevengottentothebag,yet.”Hesighed.“You'llhavetotakemorevitamins.”
“Itsuredoeslooklikeit,”sheagreedgrimly.
The side and back break falls went on forever, but this night he began to teach her the hand

positionsaswell.Themoreshelearnedabouteconomicmovement,themorefascinatingitbecame.
She could understand how people loved the sport. There were several women in the gym this
particularnight,beingtaughtaself-defenseclassbyTony,themanwhomanagedthegym.

“They'redoingalotmorethanweare,”shesaidpointedlytoLangwhileshewascatchingher

breath.

“Suretheyare.It'satwo-weekclass.Hehastogetthroughalotofmaterial.Andit'sjustbasic

stuff,likehowtobringahighheeldownonaninsteporputakneeinaman'sgroin.You'relearning
alotmore,anditwilltakelonger.”

“Oh,Isee.”
“You'reapromisingpupil,too,”hehadtoadmit.“You'retakingtoitlikeaducktowater.”
“Whydidn'tyouevershowmeanyofthisyearsago,whenweweretogether?”sheasked.
Hesearched her curiouseyes. “Because itwas hard enough tokeep my handsoff you. A class

likethis,withconstanttouching,wouldhaveputmerightovertheedge.”

Hereyebrowsarched.“Butyouneverwantedme.”Sheblurtedoutthewords.“Onlythatonce…”
Hemovedcloser,sothathisvoicewouldn'tcarry,soclosethatshecouldfeelthestrengthand

heatofhisbody.“Iwantedyounightandday”hesaidhuskily.“Youweretooinnocenttonotice.”

“Imusthavebeen,”sheagreed.“Butitdoesn'tseemtobotheryounow.”
“I'molder,”hereplied.“Andagooddealmoreexperienced.”
Hereveswentcold.“Ofcourse.”
He turned away. The jealousy he saw in those green eyes made his body ache. She still felt

possessiveabouthim,butthatdidn'tmeanshestillcared.Hehadtorememberthat,andnotreadtoo
muchintoherreactions.

“Let'strythisagain.”
Hepositionedheronthematandinvitedhertouseoneofthehold-breakingpositionsonhim.

She went through the motions smoothly, but she couldn't get him onto the mat. He countered every
moveshemade,laughing.

“That'snotfair,Lang,”shepanted,pushing.“Youwon'tcooperate.”
“Okay,goahead.Throwme.”Herelaxed,standingstill.
She put her whole heart into it, stepping in with one leg, tripping with the other, pushing and

pullinguntilshebrokehisbalanceandputhimdown.Butsheunderestimatedherownstability,andin
theprocess,shewentdownheavilyontopofhim.

“Youaren'tsupposedtofallwiththevictim,”heinstructed.
Shewastoowindedtomovemomentarily.Oneofherlegswasbetweenbothofhis,herbreasts

flattenedonhischest,herhandsoneithersideofhishead.Itwasasurprisinglycomfortableposition,
ifshe'dbeenalittlelessawareoftheintimacyofit.

“Couldyouhelpmeup?”sheaskedbreathlessly.
“Whynot?You'vecertainlyhelpedmeup,”hesaidwithablatantsensualitythatbroughtablush

toherfacewhenheshiftedandmadethepointveryclear.

“Lang!”shegasped.
Hechuckledwithpuredelightasshescrambledoffhisbodyandgottoherfeet,redfaced.
“Well,fortunatelyforusboth,thesejacketsarelooseandhiplength,”hesaidasherosetotower

overher.

“You'rehorrible!”sheexclaimed,pushingbackstrandsofdampblondhairfromhereyes.
“Youmightconsideritaformofflattery,”heremarked.“Actuallythisconditionisn'taseasyto

createasyoumightthink.Notwithotherwomen,atleast…”

“Iwanttogohome,”shesaidstiffly.
“Suityourself,butyou'regoingtomissthebestpart.Iwasgoingtoteachyouhowtodealwitha

kick.”

“Youcandothatanothertime,”shesaid,fightingforcomposure.
“Iwasonlyteasing,Kirry,”hesaidgently.
Sheletoutalongsigh."I'mnotlaughing,”shemuttered.
“Getyourstuffandwe'lldropbymyapartmentandgetmystuff.”
Shehesitated.“Maybehe'llgiveitup.”
Heshookhishead,andtherewaswearywisdominhiseyes.“Notachance.”
Lang'sapartmentwasonthesixthfloorofanolddowntownhotel,andthedecorwasRoaring

Twenties.Itwasdarkandcramped,andLang'sbelongingsbarelyfilledonesuitcase.

“That's all?” she asked uneasily, lifting her eyes to his when he'd changed in the bedroom and

cameoutwithonesuitcaseandalongsuitbag.

“That'sit,”heagreed.“Itravellight.”
“Butyoumusthavemorethanthat!”
“Ido.It'satBobandConnie'splace.”
“Oh,ofcourse.Iforgot.Youwouldn'twanttocarryheirloomsaroundtheworldwithyou.”
“Speakingofheirlooms,”hesaidslowly,“whatdidyoueverdowiththeemeraldIgaveyou?”
Sheavertedhereyes.“DoyoureallythinkI'dkeepsomethingthatremindedmeofyou,afterthe

wayyoudumpedme?"

“Yes,Ido,”hesaid.
Sheglaredathim.“Imeanttothrowitaway.”
“I wouldn't have blamed you,” he assured her. He smiled. “But I'm glad you didn't hate me

enoughtoactuallydoit.”

“It'saprettyring,”shecommented.
“Butyoudon'twearit.”
“It'spartofthepast.Iwantedtostartover.IwenttouniversityandwhenIcameout,withamajor

inpublicrelations,Iwalkedrightintothisjob.I'vebeenverylucky.”

“You'realone,”heremarked.
“Iwanteditthatway,”shesaidshortly.”WhenI'mready,I'llstartlookingforahusband."
“Haveanyoneinmind?”heaskedcarelessly,gatheringhisstuff.

“Mack,”shesaidtriumphantly.
Heraisedaneyebrowandgrinned.“Dotell.”
“Mack'ssettledandfinanciallysecure,andgoodcompany.”
“You'dshriveluplikeapruneifhetouchedyou,”hescoffed.“I'veseenthewayyoudrawyour

legsupwhenhecomesclose.”

“Youhavenot!”
“Kirry,youdon'tknowadamnedthingaboutmodernsurveillancetechniques,doyou?”heasked

dryly.“Maybethat'sgood.I'dhatetomakeyouinhibitedwhenyoudancearoundyourbedroominthe
nude.”

Shegaspedaudiblyandwentscarlet.“YouPeepingTom!”
“Accidental, I swear it,” he said, holding up a hand. “It was the mirror. I had the camera just a

littletoofartotheleft…”

Sheaimedablowathim,andhesidesteppedjustintime.
He laughed delightedly. “I thought you were spectacular,” he said deeply. “All pink and mauve

andblond.Anymphcaughtcavortingamongtheferns.Ididn'tsleepallnightlong."

Sheglaredathim.“Ihateyou.”
“Kirry,”hesaidsoftly,"Ididn'tseemuchthatIhaven'talreadyseenbefore.Iknow,youdon'tlike

rememberingthat,butit'strue.

“IfI'dknownwhatwasgoingtohappenlater,thatyou'dbelievethosesickliesofChad's…!”
“You'dneverhaveletmetouchyou.Iknowthat,”hereplied,hisvoicequietandsomber.
Shewrappedhercoatcloseraroundhergi.“I'mashamedofthatnight,anyway.”
That stung. “I can't imagine why,” he said matter-of-factly. “We were engaged. Most engaged

peoplemakelove,anditisn'tasifwewentalltheway.”

“They make love when they actually plan to get married. That's why you always held back

before,wasn'tit,becauseyouneverhadanyintentionofmarryingme?”

“Onceortwice,Ithoughtaboutit,”heconfessed.“Youwerehungryforthatdamnedring,forthe

proposal.Ihumoredyou,becauseyouwanteditthatbadly.ButIknewthatI'dbenogoodashusband
materialuntilIgotthewanderlustoutofme.Itriedtotellyouthat,butyouweresoyoung.”

“Youngandstupid,”sheagreed.“Anddesperatelyinlove.”
Heavertedhiseyes.“Inlove,hell,”hesaidcurtly.“Youwantedtosleepwithme.”
“OfcourseIdid,butitwasmuchmorethanthat,”sheargued.
“You were only eighteen,” he returned, moving toward the door. “It's ancient history now,

anyway,andwehavemoreimportantthingstothinkabout.”

“Sure.”Sheopenedthedoorforhim,refusingtolookup.
Hewentout,lethermovepasthimandthenturnedoffthelightsandlockedthedoor.Later,he'd

have a talk with the manager about his brief absence, to make sure the man knew that he was only
leaving temporarily. He'd pay the rent up in advance, too, just in case. With any luck, Erikson was
goingtobeabadmemoryinthenearfuture.

Kirryheldhisclothesbagwhileheunlockedtheapartmentnexttohersandopenedthedoor.It

wassmallerthanhers,butnotmuch.IthadabetterviewthanhersdidoftheAlamo,anditlookedas
thoughithadjustbeendecorated.Itwasdoneingreensandbrowns,andsomehowitsuitedLang.

“Yes, I like this,” he remarked as he looked around. He glanced back at her. “We live close

enoughtosharekitchenduty.YoucouldcookonenightandIcouldcookthenext.”

“Thatwouldbenice,”shesaid.
“But you can't sleep over,” he added sternly. ”No use begging, it won't work. I don't allow

womenintothebedroom.It'stoohardtogetthemout."

Shesmiledfaintly.“I'llbetitis.”
Hiseyebrowjerked.“Wanttofindoutwhy?”heaskedsensually.
“Ihaveaprettygoodidea,”shereplied,droppinghereyes.“You'reahardacttofollow.”
Heturnedbacktowardherwithhishandsdeepinhispockets.“Soareyou,”herepliedhonestly.
Hereyesscannedhisbroadfaceandshehadtobitedownhardtokeepfrombegginghimtokiss

her.Thatwaylaydisaster,sheremindedherself.SheknewbetterthantoencourageLang.

Sheturned.“Well,I'llletyougetsettled.I'mtiredandIwanttogotobed.”
Hefollowedhertothedoorandopeneditforher.“I'vealreadycheckedoutthisplace,”hesaid.

“The bedroom where you sleep is on the other side of the wall of mine. If you rap on the wall, I'll
hearyou.Idon'tsleepheavily,ever.”

“Thanks.That'snicetoknow.”
“Wearagown,willyou?”heaskedonagroan.“Ihavetokeepyouundersurveillanceforyour

ownprotection.Don'tmakeitanyharderonmethanyouhaveto.”

Sheglaredathim.“I'llwearbodyarmor,infact,”shesaidwithacurtnodofherhead.“Good

night,Lang.”

“Sleepwell.”
“Iwantanicehotbathand…”Shehesitated,hereyesshootingtohis.
He sighed with resignation. “Okay, I'll cut the camera off when I hear water running, will that

do?”

“Youdon'tneedacamerainthebathroom!”sheexclaimed.
“That'sodd,thelastmanweprotectedsaidthesamething,”hetoldherfrankly.“Wegotsome

veryinterestingpicturesofhimandhislady…”

“How is it that you're still alive?” she asked, exasperated. “Not for lack of effort by irate

taxpayers,that'sforsure,”hesaidwithtwinklingeyes.“Sleepwell,littleone.I'llbeascloseasashout
ifyouneedme.”

“You'llgetashoutifyoudon'tturnthosecamerasoff,”sheinformedhim.
“Spoilsport,”hemuttered.
“Idon'twatchyoutakebaths,”sheassuredhim.
He didn't smile as she expected him to. His dark eyes held hers until she felt her knees buckle.

“Wantto?”heaskedsoftly.

ChapterFive

Shegloweredathim.“Fatchance,”shesaidsmartly.
Heshrugged.“Yourloss,”heinformedherwithdancingeyes.“Keepthedoorlocked.”
Shegavehimaspeakinglook.
“Overkill,huh?”heteasedashewenttothedoorandopenedit.“Howaboutridinginwithmein

themorning?”hesuggested.“Icanguaranteeyouwon'tseeyourbluesedanbuddywhileI'maround.”

“Hemighttakethatascowardice,”shesaidsimply.
“Listen,”hereplied,leaningbackagainstthedoor,“youcanpushyourbodyjustsofarbeforeit

givesoutonyou.Stressisdangerous.Don'tletitgettothepointthatyournervesareshot.Ifyougo
inwithme,itwilltakesomeofthepressureoff.Don'tyouevenrealizehowtenseyouarelately?”

Shefeltthecoldnessofherownhandswithirritation."Yes,Iknow,butIdon'twanttomakehim

thinkI'mafraid,evenifIam.

Hesmiled.“Hewon't.He'llassumethatI'vetakenyouover.It'sthewaythatkindofmanthinks.”
“Well,IguessIcouldridewithyou,”shesaid.“Aslongasyoudon'treallytrytotakemeover.”
Hisdarkeyesnarrowedandwanderedoverherasiftheywerecaressinghands.“CouldI,Kirry,

ifIworkedatit?”heasked,andtherewassomethingunfamiliarintheglintofhiseyes.

“Sorry,I'mimmune,”sherepliedpertly.
“To measles, maybe,” he agreed. “But not to me. You still blush when I look at you, after all

theseyears."

“Skinhysteria,”shecountered.“Myporesareallallergictoyou.”
Hechuckled. “Remember whenwe went tothe park that time,and wound upwith six lost little

kids in tow? They wanted to know why you had freckles across your nose and I told them it was
becauseyouwereallergictoicecream.”

“And they almost cried for me.” She smiled back. “Oh, Lang, we had such good times.” The

expressioninherevesbecamesad.”Youweremybestfriend."

He winced. “And you were mine. But several years ago, I was a bad marriage risk. You must

have known it. There was so much I wanted to do with my life, things I couldn't have done with a
family.”

“Yes. Like joining the CIA .” She dropped her gaze to his broad chest, because she didn't want

him to see the remnants of the terror in them. She hadn't known exactly where he was for years,
exceptwhenConnieandBob,withwhomshewasstillfriends,letsliplittlebitsofinformationabout
hiswork.She'dworriedandwatchedthewholetime,afraidthathewasgoingtobekilled,thathe'd
comehomeinabox.Therealityofseeinghimagainthatfirstdayhe'dcometoworkforLancaster,
Inc.hadknockedherlegsoutfromunderher.Shewasstillreelingfromtheimpactofknowingthat
he'dgivenuptheoldlife.Andwonderingwhyhehad.

“Kirry?”Heaskedsoftly,interruptinghermemories.
“What?”
Heshookhishead.“Youweren'tevenlistening,wereyou?”hemused.
“Iwasthinkingabouthowitwaswhileyouwereaway,”shesaidinvoluntarily,scanninghiseyes.

“Ireadaboutcovertoperationsinthenewspapersandwonderedifyouwereinthemiddleofthem,if
youwereallright.”Shelaughed.“Silly,wasn'tit?”

Hisfacehardened.“ThatwaswhatIwantedtospareyou.”
“You wanted to spare me the fear?” Her green eyes wandered over his broad face. “And you

thoughtyouhad.Ofcourse,Istoppedlovingyoutheminuteyouwalkedawayfromme,right?”

Heleanedbackheavilyagainstthewall.“Right,”hesaiddoggedly.“YouhatedmewhenIleft.”
She smiled sadly. “I thought I did,” she agreed. ”But it wasn't that easy to put you in the past,

Lang. It took a long time. There were so many memories. Almost a lifetime of them.“ She turned
away.”Iguessit'sdifferentformen.It'sonlyphysicalwithyou."

“Whydoyousaythat?”
“It'strue.Menthinkwiththeirglands,womenwiththeirhearts.”
“That'sstereotyping,”heaccused.“Menfeelthingsasdeeplyaswomendo.”
“You wanted me, but you couldn't bring yourself to do anything about it,” she said. “If you'd

lovedmeenough,youcouldn'thavewalkedaway.”

“Youletmewalkaway,”hesaidshortly.“YoucouldhaveopenedthatdamnedletterIsentyou!”
“Did it say something besides goodbye?” she asked, her voice harsh. “I thought it was another

accusation,thatyoufiguredyouhadn'tsaidenoughaboutmylackofcharacterandmorals.”

Hestuckhishandsintohispockets.“IknewaboutChadbythen.I'dhadtimetogetmypriorities

straight.”

“I didn't know that,” she reminded him. “All I knew was that when you left, you held me in

contemptandneverwantedtoseemeagain.Yousaidso—explicitly.”

Hiseyesnarrowedwithpainfulmemory.“I'dneverhadtohandlejealousybefore,”hesaid.”It

wasnewtome.Besidesthat,Ifeltbetrayed.Chadwasmybestfriend."

“Oh,whyrehashit?”shemuttered,turningaway.”Youwantedawayoutandhegaveyouone.

That's it in a nutshell. I hope you enjoyed your stint with the government, Lang. What I can't
understandiswhyyougaveitupandcameback."

Hisdarkeyesslidoverherhungrily.“Can'tyou?”
Sheignoredthecaressinhisvoice.“I'mtired,”shesaidoverhershoulder.“I'llseeyouinthe

morning.”

“That you will.” He opened the door. “And you re riding in with me, whether you want to or

not.”Heclosedthedooronheropenmouthedexpression.

Shepickedupavaseandalmost—almost—flungitatthecloseddoor.Butitwouldonlymeana

cleanup that she was too tired to do. Arguing with Lang wasn't going to change anything, and she
didn'thaveenoughnervelefttodwellonadeadpast.

Shestartedpastheransweringmachineandnoticedthatitwasblinking.Shedidn'twanttolisten

tothemessages,becauseoneofthemwasprobablyErikson.Butherjobsometimesinfringedonher
freetime,becauseclientsoftencalledatnightwhentheyhadmoretimetotalk.Shecouldn'taffordto
ignorethecalls.

Grimacing,shepushedtheReplaybutton.
ThefirstmessagewasfromMack,remindingherthathewasbringinginanewclientforherto

workwiththenextmorningandtobeontime.Thesecondwasawrongnumber.

Thethird,asshe'dfeared,wasErikson.“Onenight,yourbodyguardwon'tbecloseby,andI'll

getyou.”

Hepurred.“Whatareyougoingtodothen,YourHighness?”
The line went dead. She took out the tape and replaced it with another one. That nasty little

remarkmightcomeinhandyincourtifEriksonmadeawrongstep.Sheslippeditintoadrawerand
wenttobed,totossandturnallnight.

WhenLangrangherdoorbellthenextmorning,shewasdressedinaneatlavenderdresswitha

patternedscarf.Hewaswearingagraysportcoatwithtanslacksandared-and-whitestripedshirt.He

lookedverynice,butshepretendednottonotice.

“Here,”shesaid,handinghimthetapefromheransweringmachine.Shetoldhimwhatitwas.
He slipped it into his pocket with cold eyes. “He'll overstep one day soon,” he promised her.

“Andwhenhedoes,I'llberighttherewaiting.”

“He'ssick,isn'the?”sheasked.
“Sick,orjustplaindamnedmean,”hereplied.Hewaitedwhileshelockedherdoorandescorted

herouttohiscarintheparkinglot.

“Waitaminute,”hesaid,holdingherbackbeforeshecouldopenthedoor.
Hewentaroundanddidaquickcheckofthecar,evenunderthehood.Satisfied,heopenedthe

doorandhelpedherinside.

“Whatwasthatallabout?Youdon'tthinkhe'dgosofarastoblowupyourcar?”sheasked.
He shrugged as he pulled out into traffic. “Caution is worth its weight in gold sometimes, and

youneverknowwhichwayamanlikethatisgoingtojump.”

“Isee.”
Heglancedatherwithasmile.“Don'tlooksoworried.Icandefuseabomb.”
“Canyoureally?”
Henodded.“Ifit'sasimpleone.TherewasthiscaseinEurope,whenwewere…”Hehesitated.

“Well,that'sclassified.ButIhadtodefuseabomb,justthesame.”

"Isthatsomethingtheytaughtyou?”sheasked,curious.
Hechuckled.“No.It'ssomethingIlearnedthehardway.”
Hereyesweresaucer-big.“Thehardway?”
“Sure,bygettingblownup.”Heglancedatherexpressionamusedly.“Kirry,itwasajoke.I'm

kidding!”

Shemadeafutilegesturewithherhands.“Inevercouldtellwhenyouwere,”shesaid,shaking

herhead.“IguessI'mhopelesslynaive,”shemuttered,glaringdownatthepurseinherlap.“AtleastI
canfalldownprettygood,though,”sheaddedbrightly.

“Sureyoucan.AndwhenIgetyouthroughthebasicsofself-defense,you'llbeaholyterroron

thestreet.Grownmenwillrunfromyouscreaming,”hepromised.“Ican'timaginewhyyouhaven't
done that before. Every woman should know how to take care of herself. They should teach it in
school.”

“Theyhaveenoughtodoinschoolwithoutthat.”
“No kidding, it could be part of gym class in high school, physical education. Mothers could

stopworryingsomuchabouttheirgirlsiftheyknewhowtofoilanattacker.”Heglancedather.“That
includesanover-amorousdate.”

“Ihaveheardofdaterape,thanks,”shereturned.
Hechuckled.“Inourcase,Iwastheonewithalltheworries.Youwereoneeagerwoman.”
“Goahead,rubitin,”shegrumbled,shiftingawayfromhim.
“HowcanIhelpit?Youwerebeautiful,andyouwantedme.Youcouldhavehadanybody.”
“Notquite,oryou'dneverhavegottenaway,”shesaid,tongueincheek.Itwasgettingeasierto

handletheoldrejection,nowthatsheandLangwerefriendsagain.

“Thinkso?”Heparkedthecarjustoutsideherofficebuilding,glancingaround.“NoErikson,”

hesaid,nodding.“Good.Maybehe'sterrifiedandgaveitup.”

“Right,”shesaiddryly.
“IcouldgettestimonialsfrompeopleI'veprotectedwho'lltellyouI'mterrifying,”heinformed

herhaughtily.“Thislastguy,infact,saidthatitwasamiraclewestillhadacountrywithpeoplelike

meguardingit.”

Shelaughed.“Themanwhosebathroomyoubugged?”sheasked.
“Theysaidtowatchhimallthetime,”hereplied.“SoIwatchedhim.Allthetime.”
She just shook her head. Then she remembered that he was watching her all the time, too. Her

eyesspokeforher.

“Notinthebathroom,”hesaid.“Notwhenthedoorisopenedorclosed.Scout'shonor.”
“Youwereneverascout,”shecountered.
“I was until I started my first fire.” He sighed, remembering. “Unfortunately it was in the

scoutmaster's living room, on his carpet. Never could get him to understand how that accident
happened.ItwasBob'sfault,anyway,”headdeddarkly.

“Bobwastheonewhogavemethestufftodoitwithandshowedmehow.”
“DidBoblikethescoutmaster?”
“Cometothinkofit,hedidn't.”
Shechuckled.“Isee.”
TheygotoutofthecarandLang'shandslidintohersastheywalkedtowardthebuilding.Hefelt

herjerkandhisfingerscontracted.Hestoppedandlookeddownather.

“Toogoodtoholdhandswiththehiredhelp,arewe?”hemurmureddryly.
She felt his big fingers caressing hers and his thumb found its way to her soft palm. It was

startingalloveragain,themagicshe'dfeltwhenhecameclose.

“No,”sheansweredsoftly,lookingstraightupintohiseyes.“ButIdon'twanttorelivethepast.”
“Notevenwithadifferentending?”heaskedsoftly.“Ahappyendingthistime?”
Her heart skipped. It was just a game, she told herself. Lang was playing and she was letting

herselftakehimseriously.

Shebegantolaughandtuggedatherhand.“Letmego,youtease,”shemurmured.
Helookedstunned.“Kirry,it'snot…”
Thesuddenroarofacarenginecaughthisattention.HejerkedKirryontothecurbjustasanold,

dark-coloredsportscarsweptbyontheroad.

“Lunatic,” Lang said angrily, glaring after the car. If it had been a blue sedan, he'd have gone

rightafterit.

“Carelessdriversareeverywhere,”shesaid,brushingdownherskirt.“I'mallright.Hemissed

mebyamile.”

“Notquite.”Hewaspale.Hiseyeswentoverherlikehands.“Thatwastooclose.”
“Atleastitwasn'tourfriendErikson,”shesaid.
Langnodded,buthewasn'tconvinced.Hetookherarmandescortedherintothebuilding.
Later, he took out his laptop and plugged in with a secret access code. He called up Erikson’s

nameanddidsomecrosschecking.Heclosedtheterminalafewminuteslaterfeelingangryandsick.
Eriksonhadtwovehicles.Onewasanoldblacksportscar.

Kirryhadalongday.Partofitwastakenupwithastaffmeetingandtherestwouldhavedragged

onendlessly,becauseshewascaughtupwithallhercurrentprojects.Mackhadpromisedheranew
clientfirstthingthismorning,buttheclienthadaconflictinherschedule,sothey'dpostponedituntil
thenextday.

Bettystoppedbyherofficethatafternoon.“How'sthenewclient?”sheaskedwithagrin.
“Idon'tknow.Shedidn'tshow.Macksaidwe'dtryagaintomorrowmorning,”shereplied.
“Iwasgoingtosuggestthatwegoouttoamovie,butIguessthat'snotagoodidea,withMr.

Nastyontheprowl.”

“Langwouldhaveascreamingfit,”sheagreed.
“He'sgood-looking,”Bettyventured.“Andthere'snocompetitionthere.”
“NonethatIcansee,”Kirryreplied.“Intheolddays,itwasadifferentstory.WhenLangandI

startedgoingtogether,he'djustbrokenupwithhiscurrentheartthrob.Shewasadish,too,amodel.
LornaMcLane.”

Bettyfrowned.“LornaMcLane?”
Kirrystaredather.“WhatdoyouknowthatIdon'tknow,Betty?”
“Thenameoftheclientwhodidn'tshowupthismorning.It'sLornaMcLane.”
Kirrysatdown.“Whatdoesshewantwithus?”
“She's worked her way up the ladder to an executive position at a local model agency that

specializesinsouthTexaslocationwork.Macksaysthatshewantsustocoordinateafashionshow
forher,publicityandall.”

“Well,wecan'taffordtoturndownsomethingofthatmagnitude,”Kirrysaid.“Besides,sheand

Langwereallwashed-upbeforeheandIevenstarteddating.Notthatitwouldmatteranymore,”she
addedquicklywhenshenoticedBettywatchingher.“LangandIarejustfriendsnow.He'soursecurity
chief.That'sall.”

Bettystudiedherringlesslefthand.“LornaandMrs.Lancasteraregoodfriends,didyouknow?”
Kirry'sheartstopped.“GoodenoughthatMrs.LancastermighthavetoldheraboutLang'snew

job?”

Theotherwomannodded.“Infact,goodenoughfriendsthatshetoldLangaboutthejobandput

inagoodwordforhimwithherfriend,Mrs.Lancaster.”

Sothatwashowhe'dmanagedtogetthejob.“Nobodyevertellsmeanything,”Kirrymuttered

darkly,hatingtheworldandfateforplayingsuchamonumentaljokeonher.

“I'msureeverybodymeantto.Listen,justbecauseLangworkshere,itdoesn'tmeanthatLorna

willbehangingonhissleeveallthetime.Youcanleadahorsetowater…”

“Spare me.” Kirry sighed and leaned back in her chair. She'd entertained false hopes and now

theywerebeingdashed.Shefeltdepressed.Eriksonwasgoingtodestroyherpeaceofmind,andhere
wasLornatoaidandabethim.Sherememberedthewomanalltoowell;shewastallandslenderwith
verydarkeyesandhair.Shewasbeautiful.IfshestilllookedasshehadwhenLanglefther,itwasn't
beyond the realm of reason that Lang might be tempted to try his luck again. After all, there was
nothingtostophim.Lornawaspresumablyunmarried,andsowasLang.AndKirry…well,shewas
right off the menu. She wasn't bad looking, but she couldn't compete with a top model. And while
Kirrywasold-fashioned,Lornahadneverbeensaddledwithcautioushabits.

“You can't quit,” Betty told her, reading her expression. “For one thing, I'd have nobody to go

outtolunchwith.”

“Iwon'tpromisenotto,”shesaidstubbornly.Sheglaredoutthewindow.“Didyoueverhaveone

ofthosespellswhereeverythingseemedtogowronginthespaceofaweek?”sheasked.

Bettyletoutalongbreath.“I'mgoingtogetyouacupofcoffee,”shesaid,turningaround.“It

isn'tonmyjobdescription,butIthinkIknowmywayaroundacoffeepot.”

“Betty,whydidLornapickthisagencywhenthereareseveralinSanAntonio?Wasitbecauseof

Lang,doyouthink?”

“IfIwereabettingwoman,thatwouldbefirstonmylist,”theotherwomanhadtoadmit.“Still

carryingatorchforLang?”

Kirryglaredather.“Iamnot.Idon'tevenlikeLang.”
“Andpigsfly,”Bettysaidunderherbreathasshewentoutandclosedthedoorbehindher.

Lang picked Kirry up late that afternoon, his eyes cautious and wary as he looked around the

parkinglot.

“Ihaven'tseenabluesedanallday,”Kirrytoldhimastheydroveoutoftheparkinglot.
“Oranoldblacksportscar?”heasked.
She frowned. “There was a black car.” His expression gave him away. He looked resigned.

“Don'ttellme,”shesaidsardonically.“Ericksonhastwocars,andoneofthemisblack.”

“Bingo.”
“Thisjusthasn'tbeenmyday.”
“Why?”
Shelookedathimandfeltherlifegoingintoeclipse.Itwouldbetheoldstory,alloveragain,

Langwalkingawayfromher.

“Didyouknowthatwe'regettinganewclientattheagency?”sheaskedinstead.
“Ifthatexpressionisanythingtogoby,itmustbesomeoneIknow.Doweplaytwentyquestions,

ordoyoujustwanttospititout?”

“LornaMcLaneisgoingtoletuspromotehernewmodelingextravaganza.”
Hedidn'tlookather.Sheknew.Hewassureofit.“Well,goodforher.”
Kirry didn't move a muscle. She went right on staring through the windshield as if she'd taken

rootintheseat.“Youknewshewashere.”

Heshrugged.“Yes,Iknew.HowdoyouthinkIgotthisjob?”heasked.“ShephonedmeinD.C.,

saidthatitwasonofferandsuggestedthatIapply.YoumightrememberthatLornaandIwereanitem
before you and I started going together,” he reminded her gently. “But it was never that serious.
Then,”headdedtomaddenher.

Shefeltherheartdrop.“Haveyouseenhersinceyou'vebeenback?”sheasked,tryingtosound

casual.

He speared a glance toward her, finding her brooding expression enlightening. “We had lunch

today,infact,”headmitted,smilingatthevenomouslookinKirry'sfaceattheremark.“She'salittle
older,butstillaknockout.Prettyasapicture,infact.”

Kirryclutchedherbagandstaredoutthesidewindow.
Hefelttenfeettall.Therewashope.Shedidstillcare!“Don'tforget.We'rehavinganotherlesson

tonight.”

“ButIthoughtweweredoingthattomorrownight,”sheaskedabruptly.
“Itwas.Erikson'smakingmenervous,”hesaid.“Ithinkagoodworkoutmightbenefitusboth.

Howaboutyou?”

Shecouldn'tdisagree.Itwouldtakehermindoffatleastoneofherproblems.
“YouandLornaalmostgotmarriedonce,didn'tyou?”sheasked.
“ShewantedtobeamodelandIwantedtobeagovernmentagent,”hesaideasily,pullingupto

theapartmentbuildingtheyshared.“ShemadesomedemandsandImadesome,thenwebothdecided
thatapartingofthewayswasthebestidea.”Heturnedofftheengineandlookedather,hisdarkeyes
somber.“IwantedacareermorethanIwantedanythingatthattime.I'mnotreallysorry,inaway.I've
donealotofexcitingthings,Kirry.I'vegrownup.”

“Itshows,”shereplied.Therewerelinesinhisfacethathadneverbeenthereintheolddays.He

hadanewmaturity,alongwiththeclowningpersonality.“ButIlikedyoujustthewayyouwere.”

“Ilikedyou,”hereturned,smiling.“Youusedtobealotmorespiritedandfulloffun.You've

gonequietonme,Kirry.”

“Ihavealotofresponsibilitywiththisnewjob,”shesaidevasively.“AndErikson'sbeenonmy

mind.”Shedidn'taddthatitwaskillinghertobearoundLangallthetime,withtheanguishofthepast
betweenthem.

“He'sbeenonmymindaswell.Buthe'llmakeaslip,Ipromiseyou,andwhenhedoes,I'llbe

standingrightnexttohim.”

“OrIwill,”shesaiddarkly.“Areweevergoingtogettodoanythingbesidesfallonamat?”she

addedplaintively.“Iwanttolearnhowtodosomething!”

“Whatdidyouhaveinmind?”heaskedinadeliberatelyseductivevoice,andleanedtowardher

withmockmenace.

"Learninghowtobreaksomebody'sarmwoulddonicely,”shesaid,smiling.
Heshivered.“Aslongasitisn'tmine!”
“WouldIdamagemyfriend?”shechided.“Shameonyou!”
Theywenttothegym,andLangwasaware,asKirrywasn't,thattheywerebeingfollowedagain.

Hewantednothingmorethantostopthecarandgetout,andbeatthedeviloutofErikson.Butthat
wouldbeplayingrightintotheman'shands.Hehadtoplayacoolandcarefulhandhere,orhecould
putKirryinevenmoredanger.

Meanwhile,itwasgoingtobeaverygoodideatoteachhersomedamagingmoves.
Theydidthewarm-upexercises,andwentthroughthehandpositions.ThenLangbegantoteach

herescapemaneuvers.

“Thisisboring,”shemutteredwhenhehadherbreakachoke-holdforthetenthtime.
“Pay attention,” he replied tersely. ”This isn't a game. Pretend that it's for real, and act

accordingly."

Shetriedto,butherhandsweregettingtired.
"Okay,honey,ifthisistheonlywayIcangetthroughtoyou…”
Hishandstightened,andhemovedinwithamenacingexpression.Kirrypanicked,butshekept

hernerve.Usingthetechniquehe'dtaughther,shebrokehishandholdaroundherneck,steppedin,
brokehisbalanceandpushedhimneatlyontothemat.

Herolledasgracefullyasaball,gottohisfeetinacombatstanceandrushedher,hishandrising

sharplyinasidehandposition.Hegaveaharsh,sharpyellandbroughthishanddown.

Kirrydidwhatcamenaturally.Shethrewherhandsoverherfaceandscreamed.
Therewerechucklesfromtheothersideofthegym,frommenwho'dseenLangusethatshock

tacticonyoungcopshewastraining,yearsago.

KirrycaughtherbreathandswattedangrilyatLang.“Youanimal!”sheraged.“Thatwasn'tfair!”
“People are born with two natural fears,” he informed her. “Fear of sudden, sharp noises and

fearoffalling.Asharpcrycantemporarilyparalyze,asyousaw.That'soneofthemethodsIliketo
teach.Sometimesjusttheyellisenoughtobuyyousometime.”

“It'sveryunpleasanttobeonthereceivingendofit!”
“Idon'tdoubtit.Butgettingusedtotheideaofanattackmightsaveyouoneday.”
Shesawhispoint.Shewasstillgettingherbreath,andherheartbeatwasfrantic.
“Hadenough?”hetaunted,bringingbackherfightingspirit.
“Notonyourlife,”shetoldhimshortly.“Ifyoucantakeit,Icantakeit.Doyourworst!”
Heproceededto,grinningalltheway.

ChapterSix

KirryslumpedbesideLangonthematafteranhourofexercisesinbreakinghandholds,balance

andrepellingattacks.Shecouldbarelybreatheatall,andeveryboneinherbodyfeltasifithadtaken
abeating.“Givingup?”heteased.

“Only for the moment,” she said, panting. Her face was red and her hair was all awry. Lang

thoughtshelookedlikeacharmingurchin.

“Remember the day we went swimming in the river?” he reminded with a gentle smile. “You

almostdrownedbecauseyouwouldn'tadmitthatyoucouldn'tlastlongenoughtogetacross.1hadto
towyouback.”

“Ialmostmadeit,”shesaid,recallingtheincident.
“Andonthewayback,”hesaid,loweringhisvoiceashebenttostareintohereyes,“yourtop

cameoff.”

Shefelttheimpactofhisgazeasshe'dfeltitthatday,whenshe'dexperiencedherfirstintimacy.

Lang'seyesonherbarebreastshadmadeherblushallover,hadmadeherheartrunlikeamadthing.
Hehadn'tembarrassedher,ormadefunofherplight.He'dliftedherveryslowlyoutofthewaterand
lookedather;justthat,thenhe'dputherbackdown,foundhertopandturnedhisbackwhilesheputit
onagain.Ithadbeensonaturalandtenderthatshe'dneverregrettedtheexperience.

“I remember the look on your face most of all,” he continued quietly. “You were shocked and

delighted and excited, all at the same time. An artist would have gone nuts trying to capture your
expressions.”

“Itwasthefirsttime,”sherepliedsimply.“Iwasallthosethings.Ofcourse,itwasn'tuniquefor

you.”

“Wasn'tit,Kirry?”Hewasn'tsmiling,andhiseyesweredarkwithsecrets.
Sheavertedherface.“Well,itwasalongtimeago.We'redifferentpeoplenow.”
He thought of all the places he'd been, all the adventures he'd had. He thought about the close

calls and Kirry's laughing eyes, suddenly filled with tears because he wouldn't believe her the one
timewhenitreallymattered.

“Ifailedyou,”hesaidaloud.
“You wouldn't have been happy tied to me,” she said, looking back at him. “You wanted your

freedomtoobadly.That'swhyitdidn'tworkoutforyouwithmeorLorna.”

Hiseyesnarrowed.“Lornawasdifferent”hesaidshortly.
“She knew from the beginning that I wasn't interested in marriage, and she took me on those

terms.ButIneverlaidanyconditionsonthelinewithyou.Ididn'tevenreallyruleoutmarriageat
first.”

“Until you thought I'd slept with Chad.” She finished the thought for him. “And that hurt your

pridemorethanyourheart.”

“Lovecomeshardtosomemen,Kirry.”Hesearchedhereyesforalongmoment.“Andsettling

down…”Hisvoicetrailedoffasheremembered,withoutwantingto,hisownchildhood.

“Iknewyouweren'tready.”Shedredgedupasmile.“Anddespitethefactthatyou'dproposed,I

wouldn'thavemarriedyou,knowingthatyoureallywantedtheCompanymorethanme.Itwasniceto
pretend,though.”

“Kirry,”hebeganslowly,“Iaskedyouoncehowyou'dfeelabouttryingagain.Youneverreally

answeredme.Iwasn'tkidding.”

Herheartleaped,butherexpressionwaswary.“Idon'tknow,Lang.”
“Wecouldstartfromwhereweleftoff,”hetoldher.“You'reawomannow,notagirljustpast

adolescence.Wecanhaveafullrelationship,withoutanyofthehang-ups.”

“Youmean,wecouldsleeptogether,don'tyou?”sheaskedbluntly.
Hestretchedouthislegandstudiedit,notlookingather.“Yes.That'swhatImean.”
“I thought so.” She reached into her bag for her shoes and socks and began putting them on,

withoutanswering.

“Well?”heaskedshortly.
Hereyebrowslifted.“Well,what?”
“Howwouldyoufeelaboutstartingover?”
“I don't like gluing broken mirrors back together,” she told him. “And you know how I feel

aboutsleepingaroundalready.”

“Itwouldn'tbesleepingaround,”hesaidangrily.“You'donlybesleepingwithme.”
“Forhowlong,Lang?”sheaskedmatter-of-factly,hergreenevesboringintohis.“Untilyouhad

yourfill?”

Hesawthebitternessinhereyes.“You’retwistingmywords."
“No,I'mnot.Youneedawoman,andI'mhandy,”shesaid,hereyesglitterywithanger.“Thanks.

Thanks a heck of a lot, Lang. It's so flattering to have a man look at me and see a half-hour's
entertainment!”

She got to her feet and so did he, feeling frustrated and angry. She wouldn't let him finish. It

seemedasifshedidn'twanthimtomakeanyseriouspropositions.Ontheotherhand,shedidn'twant
or love him enough to settle for just him, without the promise of permanent ties. That had always
beenthebarrierbetweenthem,anditwasstillfirmlyinplace.Kirrydidn'ttrusthim.

“Letmetellyousomething,”shecontinuedhotly,“whenIwantamantosleepwith,I'llfindmy

own.Anditwon'tbesomehotshotwithastringofex-lovers!Iwouldn'tsleepwithyouifyouhada
medicalcertificatesignedbythesurgeongeneral!”

Shepickedupherbagandwalkedpasthimtowardtheentrance.
“Holditrightthere,”hesaidwhenhecaughtupwithherandblockedherway.Hisfacewaslivid,

but he was in perfect control of his temper. “You go nowhere without me at night, or have you
forgottenyour'other'beau?”

Shehesitated.AngersuddenlybecamelessimportantthanthefactthatEriksoncouldbeoutthere

waitingforher.

“I'mgladyou'veusedyoursense,”Langrepliedcurtly.“WaituntilI'vechangedandI'lltakeyou

home.Afterthat,exceptfordoingmyjob,youandIarequits.Happy?”

“Ecstatic,” she said with a forced careless smile. “I don't have to have a man in my life. I get

alongverywellonmyown.”

“SodoI,”heresponded.“ButifIgetdesperate,there'salwaysLorna.Andshewasnevertheold-

fashionedtype.”

Withthatpartingstroke,whichwentrightthroughherheart,hesaunteredofftogetchanged.Just

asshethought,hewasgoingbacktoLorna.Well,heneedn'tthinkthatshewasgoingtostandaround
bleedingtodeathemotionallybecausehecouldn'tmakeacommitment.

Shestareddownatthegibagwithdeadeyes.She'dhopedthatLangmightbedifferent,butthose

years abroad hadn't changed his basic attitudes at all. He still didn't need anyone in his life
permanently,whileKirrycouldn'tsurvivealooserelationship.Shewastoointense,toopossessiveto
livewiththeconstantknowledgethatshewasjustapastime.Langwouldtakeherforgranted,useher

andcastherofflikeaworn-outshoe.Andwherewouldshebethen?Withherheartbrokenallover
again,that'swhere.

Langwasbackfiveminuteslater.Helookedfreshandcooldespitethefranticactivityofthepast

hour. Kirry, by comparison, felt sticky and sweaty. She followed him out to the car in silence and
climbedinonthepassengerside.

Withquietcaution,Langcheckedthecaroutbeforehegotinandstartedit.Eveninhispresent

mood, he couldn't let himself forget how unbalanced Erikson was. A man like that was a cunning
enemy.Itwouldn'tdotobecomelax.

He left Kirry at her door with a good-night that was just barely civil—like hers to him—and

wenttobeduncommonlyearly.Hehadn'twantedtostartafightwithheroverthepastorthepresent.
Hewantedtosettledown;itwaswhyhe'dcomebackhereinthefirstplace.

ButKirrywouldn'tlisten.Perhapsshedidn'twantto.Hercareermightbeallsheneedednow,and

justbecauseshewasjealousofLorna,thatdidn'tensurethatshewasinlovewithhim.

He'dexaggeratedhisrelationshipwithLorna,justtoirritateKirry.Lornahadbeenadelightful

flingyearsago,andshe'dnomorebeenseriousthanLanghad.Shewasstillaprettywoman,andhe
foundherattractive.ButKirryhadhisheart.Thethingwas,shedidn'twantitanymore.Evenlessdid
shewanthim.Thatwaswhathadangeredhimsomuch,whenjustlookingathermadehimgorigid
withdesire.

Well,hewasn'tgoingtoworryhimselfintoafitaboutit.He'dcrossthebridgeswhenhecameto

them.Herolledoverandclosedhiseyes.Whatheneedednowwassleep.Plentyofsleep.

Fordaysonend,therewasnosignofEriksonatall.ItwasashocktoKirry,wholookedforhim

everywherewithnervousapprehension.Butastimewentby,andtherewerenomorephonecallsor
surveillancefromhim,sheslowlybecamecomplacent.Shewashappy,too,becauseshebelievedthat
he'dgivenup.Maybehe'dputitallintoperspectiveanddecidedthatharassingherwasn'tworththe
possiblecosttohimself.Itevenmadesense—ifhewasn'tplayingsomepsychologicalgamewithher,
that was, lulling her into a false sense of security. She grew cautiously optimistic, though, when
nothinghappened.

Erikson's absence was the only thing that gave her cause for pleasure, however, because she'd

landedLorna'saccount.ThatmeantshehadtospendconsiderableamountsoftimewithLorna,who
wasnowdatingLangagain.AndLornaapparentlyfeltobligedtoshareeverylittledetailwithKirry.

“I do like the idea of making this ribbon-cutting appearance, dear,” Lorna purred as they

conferredoverabusinesslunch.“Butitmustn'tinterferewithmyprivatelife.They'llsimplyhaveto
changeittotheafternoon.Langistakingmetotheopera.”

Kirry didn't betray her feelings by even the batting of an eyelash, but she was certain that the

durableplasticsmileshereservedforLornawasgoingtobeonherlipswhenshewasburied.

“I'llseewhatIcando,”shepromisedtheotherwoman,mentallyanticipatingbeingcussedout

royallybythebusinessinquestion.Shewouldhavetodosomereallyfasttalkingtogetthemtoagree
towhatLornawanted.Eventhen,theymightnotcooperate.

“Good.Andonemorething,Kirry.Isitabsolutelynecessaryforyoutohaveanapartmentnext

doortoLang's?”sheaskedwithvisibleirritation.“Itseemstoinhibithimwhenwe'retogether.”

“Hemovednextdoortomebecauseofthethreatsanex-employeeherewasmaking,”shetold

Lorna.Shedidn'tmentionthatLangmadesuresheheardhimbringingLornatohisapartmentevery
othernight.Orthathearingthetwoofthemlaughingnextdoor,aftermidnight,hadlefthersleepless
forthepastfourdays.“Sincethethreatnolongerseemstoexist,Idon'tseewhyLangcouldn'tmove
back to his old place.” In fact, she'd be delighted if he left. Then she would at least be spared the

audibleevidenceofLang'spleasureinLorna'scompany.

“I knew you'd agree! I told him it wouldn't hurt your feelings if I made the suggestion to you!

Menaresuchcowardsaboutwomen'semotions,aren'tthey?”

Soshe'dbeendiscussingitwithLang,hadshe?Kirrywasasangryasshewashurt.“Hemight

haveaskedmehimself,”shesaid.

“Oh, he couldn't bring himself to do that.” Lorna dismissed it. “But when I tell him, he'll be

pleased.”

“I'msurehewill.”
“Now,aboutthenetworkcoverage,doyouthinkyoucouldgetCNNtocome…?”
Bytheendoftheday,Kirrywastotallywashed-out.Shecouldn'tremembereverfeelingquiteso

bad.

Langhadstoppedbyjustbriefly,astrangerwithhiscoldfaceandeves.Hehardlyspoketoherat

all lately unless he had to. He was remote and polite. She knew that he was still keeping her under
surveillance for her safety's sake, but there was nothing personal about it, and no warmth in him.
Kirrygrievedalloveragainforthepast.Whycouldn'thehavestayedoutofherlife?shewondered
miserably.

He'd stuck his head into her office door just to tell her that she'd be on her own that one

afternoon, as he was to meet Lorna at a local restaurant for a quick dinner. He cautioned her about
watchingoutforErikson,whichledtoaheatedexchangeofwords.Itwasareliefwhenheleft.She
could function, she told herself, without someone shadowing her. She really felt that way. Until she
gottohercar.

Eriksonwassittinginthefrontseat.Shecametoasuddenhaltandgapedathim.Hewasback.

Shewasn'tsafe.Hehadn'tgivenup.Shecouldhavecried.Itwasgoingtostartalloveragain,andshe
feltherstomachtyingitselfinknotsasshewonderedhowshewasgoingtocopewiththis.

“Hello,sweetthing,”hesaidwithacoldsmile.”DidyouthinkI'dforgottenyou?"
“Getoutofmycar!”
“Makeme,”hechallenged.
She knew better than to try that. Erikson was a trained security officer. Her few hold-breaking

routines might work on a novice, but he probably had a colored belt, and hers was still white.
Knowingwhentobackoffwasasimportant,Langhadoncetoldher,asknowingwhentoattack.And
youneverattacked;youwaitedfortheopponenttocomeatyou,whichgaveyoutheadvantage.All
thesethoughtsworkedthroughhermindwhileshestaredatthemanoccupyinghercar.“Okay,Mr.
Erikson.I'llletthepoliceextricateyouforme.”

Sheturnedandwentquicklybacktowardthebuilding,red-facedwithtemper.Asshegottothe

door,sheheardacardoorslam.Shewhirled.Eriksonhadlefthercarandwasonthewaytohis.As
shewatched,hegotintoitanddroveslowlyaway,tootingthehornashereachedthecorner.

Foramomentshewavered,wonderingifsheshouldcallthepoliceanyway.Butitwouldhardly

doanygood,whenhewasnolongerthere.

She walked back to her car and opened the door, just in time to see the grenade on the

floorboard.Shegaspedandstartedtostepback,butitexploded.Shecoveredhereyesinstinctively,
expecting the concussion to knock her backward, but it was only a gas grenade. There was a loud
noisethathurtherears,thenhercarfilledwithnoxiousfumesandshegotoutofthewayintimeto
escapeeverythingexceptastingingpaininhereyesandthroat.Thefumesmadehercough.

It was the last straw. Damn Erikson! Sobbing with bad temper, she got into the building and

called911.Minuteslater,twopoliceofficersarrived.Langwasjustbehindthem.

Hestartedtowardher,grim-faced,butsheresistedtheneedforcomfort.Sheturnedtothefirst

policeofficerwhoreachedherandtoldhimexactlywhathadhappened.

Lang stood by, his face hard and unreadable, and listened while she talked and then answered

questions.

“He'slonggone,now,”shesaidmiserably.”Ididn'tthinkhe'dtrytohurtme…"
“If he'd wanted to do that, it would have been a hand grenade, not a gas grenade,” the young

patrolmanassuredher.“Butthisqualifiesundertheterroristicthreatsandactslaw,andwecanalso
gethimforbreakingandentering.”

“Ifwecangetanyprintsoffthecar,”anolderofficeramendedquietly.HelookedatKirry.”Was

hewearinggloves?"

SherememberedErikson'shandsonthewheel,andastheyflashedintoherconsciousness,she

rememberedtheblackcoveringonthem.

“Yes,”shesaidmiserably.
“Theregoesthecase.It'syourwordagainsthis,”theoldermansaid.
“But…!”
“It'sthewaythelaw'swritten”hesaidirritably.“Noneofuslikeit.Doyouhaveanyideahow

manycreepspreyonwomenandgetawaywithitbecausewecan'tdoanythingtohelpthem?God,I'd
give anything for a stalking law with teeth, but we haven't got one yet! You aren't the only victim,
althoughIexpectitfeelsthatwayrightnow.”

“Itdoes.”
“Watch this guy,” the older police officer said suddenly. “You shouldn't have been out here

alone.”

Lang'sfacewenthardandheactuallyflinched.“No,sheshouldn'thave,”heagreed.“I'mchiefof

securityhere,andIthoughthe'dgivenitup.Mymistake.”

“Itcouldhavebeenafatalone,forher,”theoldermansaidbrutally.
Lang'seyeswereanguished.“Don'tyouthinkIknowthat?”Hegrittedoutthewords.
Something in his expression made the other man leave it alone. He apologized once again to

Kirryandleftwithhispartner.

“Ihavetodriveithome,”Kirrysaiddully.
“Youdonot.We'lllockitandleaveit.Foronething,itwillhavetobecleanedbeforeyoucan

driveitagain.”

“Oh.Yes,Isee,Ihadn'trealized…”Shewenttolockit,feelingnumbfromthebraindown.
Langhelpedherintohiscaranddroveherbacktoherapartment.“I'msorry,”hesaidthrough

histeeth.

“It isn't your job to watch just me all the time,” she said patiently. “You have lots of people to

protect.”

“Ireallythoughthewasthrough.It'sbeenalmosttwoweekssincewe'veevenseenhim.Iacted

likeagreenagent,notlikeaprofessional.Iheardthecalloverthecitybandonmyscanneronthe
waybacktotheoffice.IhadnoideawhatI'dfindwhenIgothere.Ishouldhaveknown!”Hishandhit
thesteeringwheelhardwithimpotentrage.

His pride was hurt, she decided. He'd fallen down on the job because his mind had been on

Lorna.Hedidn'thavetosayso,butKirryknewit.Shestaredoutthewindowuntilheparkedthecar,
andthenshefollowedhiminsidethebuildingandupontheelevatorwithoutaword.

She turned to him outside her apartment, feeling haggard and worn-out. “Thanks for bringing

mehome.”

Hescowled.“Areyougoingtobeallright?”
“Ofcourse.I'mnotbric-a-brac,”shechided.”Iwon'tbreak."
“Keepyourdoorslocked,”hesaid.“Anddon'tstandnearanywindows.”
“You're getting paranoid,” she muttered. “He isn't going to come at me with a high-powered

rifle.”

“Idon'tknowwhathe'sgoingtodo,”hesaidgrimly,runningahandthroughhisthickhair.“But

we'renotgoingtogetcarelessagain.Gotthat?”

“I wasn't careless. I looked, and I didn't see anybody anywhere in the parking lot,” she said

angrily. “I didn't see him until I was standing right next to the car. I didn't go close enough to get
grabbed.”

“Whatifhe'dhadagun,Kirry?”heaskedinahauntedtone.
“Oh,forGod'ssake,heisn'tgoingtoshootme!”
He didn't answer her, or smile. He was seeing her lying facedown on the pavement, her eyes

open, her body broken from gunfire. He'd seen other agents go that way He knew, as Kirry didn't,
howunpredictablepeoplelikeEriksonwere.

“I'mallright,”shesaid,driventoreassurehim.“Don'tgooffthedeepend,Lang,I'mfine.”She

hesitated. “And if you want to move out, I've already told Lorna it's all right with me. I'm not
afraid…”

Hefrowned.“Whatthehellareyoutalkingabout?”
“Lorna told me that you were getting tired of having to live next door to me,” she said. “She

mustbeinsecure,becauseIgeteverylittledetailofwhatyoudowithher.”

“I didn't say anything to her about moving out of here,” he told her angrily. “I wouldn't even

considerituntilthisEriksonsituationisresolved,onewayortheother.”

Thatmadeherfeellight-headedwithjoy.Lornahadlied.Hedidn'twanttogetridofher!
“Ididn'tknowthatshewashavingthatmuchcontactwithyou,”hesaidcurtly.
“I'mhavingtohandleheraccount,”Kirrytoldhim.“Theothersjumpedoutwindowsandhidin

restroomsuntilIgotsaddledwithher.She'saperfectionistandshedoesn'tlikeme,butwegetalong.
Iletherthinkshe'skillingmewithhertalesofdoglikedevotionfromyou.Workslikeacharm.”

Hedidn'tlikethat.“Doglikedevotionisn'twhatshegetsfromme.”
“Oh, I know what she does get from you. She tells me that, too,” she added, and this time she

couldn'tkeepthestingitcausedoutofherface.

“Thereisn'tanythingtotell,”hesaidthroughhisteeth.“I'mnotsleepingwithher!”
She shrugged with majestic acting ability. “Don't deprive yourself on my account,” she said

carelessly.“I'mcertainlynotnursinganyhopesinthatdirection.WhenImarry,andIwillsomeday,
myhusbandisgoingtobemyfirstlover.”

His pride felt as if she'd lanced it. His face felt hot as he glared down at her. “He'll have to be

somethingspecial,tosettleforavirginalwifethesedays,”hesaidicily,strikingout.

“Maybe he'll think he's blessed,” she countered, refusing to allow his words to bother her. “It

takesanintelligentwomannottoriskherhealthandherfuturehusband'sforthesakeofnotstanding
outinacrowd.”

“Youpuritan,”heaccusedcoldly.
“Mymoralsaremyownaffair,andnoneofyourbusiness.You'rejustthesecuritychiefformy

company!”

Hisdarkeyesslidoverhers.“Tryagain.”
“Youhavenorightto…Oh!”

He pulled her close in his arms, and his mouth was hard and hungry over her soft lips. She

stiffenedandtriedtorejecthim,buthisarmsonlyclosedmorefirmly,envelopingheragainsthisbig,
powerfulbodywhilehismouthnudgedandcoaxedandteaseduntilherlipsfinallyparted.

Even men, he didn't take immediate advantage of it. His open mouth brushed lazily over hers,

tormentingituntilshemoanedandbeganpushingupward,tryingtocapturehiselusivemouthagainst
herown.Itwasyesterday,andshewasinloveandachingforLang,alloveragain.

“Tell me what you want,” he coaxed. His hands were on her hips, now, pulling and dragging

themagainstthehardmalethrustofhim,somatshecouldfeeltheevidenceofhisneed.

“Lang.”Shechokedouthisname.
“Comeon,”hesaid,daringher,“tellmewhatyouwantmetodo,Kirry.”
“Not…fair,”shestammered.
“Islife?”Hishandslidintothethickshorthairathernapeandcontracted,tiltingherfaceatjust

theanglehewanted.Hiseyeswerevaguelyfrighteningastheyglittereddownintohers.“Now,”he
breathed,loweringhishead,“now,openyourmouthandtastemeinside,andletmetasteyou.Make
meforget…”

Shefelthismouth,warmandmoist,burrowingslowlyintoherown.Thecontactwithhisbody,

thestrengthofhisarms,tookherownstrengthaway.Sheyielded,meltingintohim,unmindfulofthe
pastorthefuturewhileshesavoredtheintimatetouchofhistongueslidingintohermouth.

Theeroticsymbolismofthecaressmadeherbodygotautwithsuddendesire.Sheshivered,and

helaughed,thendeepenedthekisswithaslow,teasingrhythm.

Knotscoiledinherlowerbelly.Herlegstrembledhelplesslyandshemoanedasthefeverburned

higherbetweenthem.

His other hand dropped to the very base of her spine and began to move her against him. She

madeasoundthatwentrightuphisbackbone,andhismouthechoeditinthestillnessofthehallway.

Only the steady hum of the elevator broke them apart. He stepped back from her just as an

elderly couple got off the conveyance, glanced toward them indulgently and walked hand in hand
downtheotherendofthehalltotheirownapartment.

Langfelttoodrainedtomove.Heheardthedoorcloseinthedistanceandonlythendidhelook

atKirry.Sheseemedtobeasdevastatedashe.Shewasleaningbackagainstherowndoor,andher
softmouthwasswollenandredfromhiskisses.

“Icouldhaveyourightnow,”hesaid.Hisvoicewasdeepwithfeeling.“Youknowit,too.”
“Let's not forget Lorna,” she said through the maelstrom of emotions that were buffeting her

mind.

“DamnLorna!Iwantyou!”
Shehadtodraghereyesawayfromhis.“You'veoverheated,that'sall,”shesaidstiffly."Anice

coldshowershouldfixyourightup.

“Lornawouldn'tsendmeintoashower,”hesaidinasoft,threateningtone.
Hereyesnarrowed.“Thenwhydon'tyougoandseeher,dearman.”
Her lack of cooperation made him furious. “Thanks for the suggestion,” he said. ”I might do

that."

He whirled on his heel, in a furious temper, and stalked to the elevator. He jabbed the Down

buttonfuriously,andasiftheelevatorknewhismood,itappearedpromptlyfromthefloorabove.He
gotintoitwithoutevendartingaglanceatKirry.

Shecouldhavescreamed.Shewasn'tgoingtogotobedwithhimjusttokeephimawayfrom

Lorna,andifhethoughtshewas,hestilldidn'tknowherverywell.

Sheunlockedthedoorandslammeditfirmlybehindher.Howcouldhe!Whyhadhekissedher

inthefirstplace?Nowshewasgoingtotossandturnallnight,sickenedbyimagesofLornanudein
his big arms in bed. She hated him! How in the world had she ever imagined that she could love
someone as cruel as Lang? She was going to have to get herself together. Lang was no longer her
concern.Thesoonersherealizedit,thebetter.

Lang,meanwhile,wasdrivingaimlesslyaroundtown,andnowherenearLorna'sapartment.He

shouldneverhavetouchedKirrythatway.Nowhewasgoingtospendhoursrememberinghersoft
warmthinhisarms,thehungerinherkisses.Shewantedhim;shecouldn'thideit.

Buthe'dletherthrowhimoff-balancewiththosestingingcommentsshemade.Shewasjealous

ofLornaandafraidtotrusthim.Thatwasthecruxofthematter.He'djusthavetolearntokeephis
temper and try harder. But meanwhile, there was Erikson to deal with. The gas grenade had shaken
LangasmuchasithadKirry.HehadtodosomethingaboutEriksonwhiletherewasstilltime.

Thenextmorning,Langwasmorecautiousthanever.HebuzzedKirry'sdoorbellthirtyminutes

beforeshewasdueatwork.Shedraggedherselfoutofbedinhershortnightieandlookedthrough
thepeepholebeforeshereluctantlyopenedthedoor.

“Don'tstare,”shetoldhimirritably,herhairtousledfromsleep,hergreeneyeshalf-closedwith

it.“I'mnotapeepshow.”

“Darlin',Ineversaidyouwere,”hedrawled,smilingattheexquisitetannedlengthofherlegs

andthesoftthrustofherbreastsagainstthethinfabric.Shehadadevastatingfigure.“Butinthatrig,
youcouldturnablindman'shead.”

“Idon'twanttoturnyourhead.Ijustwanttogetdressedandgotowork.There'ssomecoffeein

thekitchen.YoucandrinkitwhileIgetchanged.”

“You'resureyouwouldn'tliketogoinlikethat?”heasked,smilingatthepleasureshegavehim

intheskimpyoutfit.

Sheputherhandsonherroundedhipsandgloweredathim.“It'sonlyabody.Lornahasonejust

likeit,asI'msureyoufoundoutalloveragainlastnight!”

Hiseyebrowsliftedandhesmiled.“Jealous?”
“OfLorna?Hah!WhyshouldIbejealous?Idon'twantyou!”
“Youdidlastnight,”heremindedher.
“I won't dignify that statement with an answer. And I did not want you!” She whirled and went

intothebedroom,pushingthedooralmostshut.Shestrippedoffthenightieandwasstandingtherein
herlacypinkbikinibriefs,fumingwithbadtemper,whenthedooropenedandLang'seyesfrozeon
herbody.

ChapterSeven

Kirrycouldn'tevenbreathe.ThewayLangwaslookingathermadehergohotallover.“Don't

panicandstartleapingforcover,”hesaidquietly.Heputhishandsintohispocketsandleanedback
against the door facing. “I can't help staring—you're unbelievably pretty like that—but I promise I
won'ttouchuntilyouwantmeto.”Shefelthotandcoldallover,andtherewereswellingsinherbody
thatwerefamiliar,leftfromthedayswhenLangmadesoft,slowlovetoherwithoutevercrossingthe
line.

Sheshouldgetdressed,shetoldherself.Shewasbrazen,standingtherewithherbodyopento

him, letting him look. Oh, but it was sweet to feel his eyes! They made her throb with forbidden
pleasures.

Hesawtheneedinherface,inthefainttremblingofherlegs.Withasoftsoundinthebackof

histhroat,hejerkedawayfromthedoorandmovedtowardher.

Run, her mind said. But her legs wouldn't work. He came closer, filling the room, filling her

hungryeyes.

Hestilldidn'ttouchher.Hesearchedherfaceinsilence.Afteraminute,asoftsmileflamedon

his mouth. His hand went to his tie and slowly unfastened it. He tossed it aside. He slid out of his
jacket,anditfollowedthetieintoachair,whileKirryshiveredatwhatshesawinhisface.

“I don't…want to…now,” she whispered when his hands went to his shirt. But she still wasn't

moving.

“NeitherdoI,”herepliedquietly.“Butsomethingsarefated,Isuppose.”
Hisshirtwasunbuttoned,removed,baringabroad,bronzedchestthickwithblack,curlinghair.

Hebroughtherhandstohisbelt.

“Takeitoff,”hewhispered.
Herhandstrembledonthebuckleandherwideeyessoughthisforreassurance.
“I'lltakecareofyou.Wewon'ttakerisks,”hesaid,readingtheapprehension.Hesawherrelax,

despitethetracesofguiltthatremainedinhersoftgreeneyes.Hebentandbrushedhismouthover
herclosingeyelids,hidingtheaccusationinthem.“I'lltakealongtime,”hewhispered.“Doyoutrust
menottohurtyou?”

Shemovedcloser,drawnlikeamagnettothefeelofhishair-roughenedchestagainstherbare

breasts.Sheshiveredasthenippleswenthardwhenshepushedintohimandletherarmsencirclehis
waist.“Itrustyou,”shestated.

Heletoutasavagebreath.Hehadn'tdreamedthatitwouldhappenlikethis.Yearsofwantingher,

waiting,hoping…Andshewasgivingin,withoutasingleprotest.

The stillness in the bedroom was haunting. Above it, he could hear faint street noises in the

distance.Closer,hecouldhearKirry'storturedbreathing,feelthewarmthofitagainsthischestwhere
herlipstouched.

“Willyouhateme?”heaskedheavily.
Sheliftedhermistyeyestohis.“WillyouthinkI'mcheap?”sheaskedwithequalconcern.
Hesmiled.“You?”hewhisperedtenderly.
Shepressedcloser,restinghercheekagainsthiswarmchest.Sheclung,trembling,asthefinality

ofittrespassedintohermind.

Hisbighandssmoothedoverherbareback,savoringitssilkiness.“There'sacondition,”hesaid

throughatightthroat.

“What?”
“Afterward,youhavetoputtheringbackon.”
Hereyesopened.Shecouldseetheheavyvibrationofhischest.“Thering?”
Hismouthbrushedhungrilyagainstherhairandhishandspulledhercloser.“Theengagement

ring, Kirry,” he whispered, and his mouth quickly worked its way down her flushed face to her
mouth.Hetookithungrilyandfeltitopen,feltherbodyquickenevenasheheardherhelplessmoan
ofpleasure.

He interpreted her response as an agreement, a sacred oath. After that, nothing on earth would

havestoppedhim.

Heliftedher,hismouthstillcoveringhers,andcarriedhertothebed.
Shelookedupashelaidhergentryonthecovers.“Areyougoingtoclose…closethebedroom

door?”

“Who's going to see us, my darling?” he whispered. He slid down beside her, letting his eyes

caress the soft thrust of her breasts before his mouth lowered to tease and torment them into rigid
peaks.

Kirrycouldn'thaveimaginedthepleasure.Itwasfrantic,all-consuming.Shelethimremovethe

finalbarrierandthenlaytrembling,watchinghimwithhungryeyeswhileheundressedtorher.She'd
never seen him totally nude. She looked at him now without embarrassment, glorying in the
perfectionofhispowerfulbody.

Heloweredhimselfagainsther,smilingatherexpression.“Wecan'thavesecretsanymore,can

we?”heaskedgently.Hismouthtouchedhers,andthenroamedoverherfacewhilehishandsbegan
tolearnherwithinfinitepatienceandtendercaresses.Hefelthertremble,heardhersoftgaspsashe
wentfromoneintimacytoanotherintheraptsilence.

She'd never imagined making love in broad daylight. Now it seemed natural, perfect. She led

wherehefollowed,awashinpleasuresointensethatshehadnocontrolleftwhenhefinallypaused
for a moment to protect her, and then moved down. She felt his body slowly invade hers and she
shivered,herhandsclutchingwithanticipationandalittlefear.

Hismouthwasatherear,hisbreathhotandquick.Histongueteasedinsideherear.Hishandslid

downherbellyandhetouchedher,laughingwithintimatetendernesswhenshegaspedandherhips
archeduptoaccommodatehim.

“Lang!”shecriedout.
“Yes, isn't it shocking?” he breathed with joyful conspiracy. “Shocking, earthy…” He pushed

downandheardthebreathleaveherbody.“Andnowyouknowitall,don'tyou?”hewhispered,ashe
possessedhercompletely.”Youknowme.Allofme."

“AndIknowall…of…you.”
Hisbodywasmoving.Shefelthimaroundher,withinher,feltatensionthatmadeherreachup

tohim,movewithhim,searchingfortherightpressure,therightrhythm.Sheswallowed,gasping.
She felt the heat and dampness of him with wonder. She heard his rough breath at her ear, felt his
controlgivewayatlast.

Hisleanhandgrippedherthighandtherhythmgrewruthless.Shewasbeyondcaringabouthow

heheldher.Itwasthere,thepleasurewasthere,andshewas…about…totouchit…!

Shewassobbing.Sheheardherownvoicewithasenseofdisassociation,asifshewasnolonger

inherbodyatall,butsailingaroundwithLanginamiasmaofgoldenheatandthrobbingsatisfaction.
Shecriedoutsomethingandarchedherbacktoprolongtheexquisitesensationsthatrippledoverher
inwavesofpleasure.

Forafewseconds,therewasnothingelseintheworldexceptLang,whohadbecomecompletely

partofher.

Far away, she heard ragged breathing and felt a crushing weight the length of her body. She

opened her eyes. The ceiling was there, with the sunlight reflecting on the light fixture. She moved
her fingers experimentally and felt the cold silk of Lang's thick hair. She remembered then, and
smiled.

He felt the smile against his cheek and lifted his head. His eyes, like hers, were soft in the

aftermathoffulfillment.Heliftedhimselfenoughtoseeherfaceandsmiledback.

Herbodybegantothroballoveragain.Hehadn'tmovedawayandwhensheshiftedoneleg,she

felthimintimately.Hisevesgrewmistywiththereturnofdesire,likeherown.

Hemoved,too,andwatchedherlipspart.
She reached up, arching her hips so that she caressed him in the most exciting way, and he

reactedwithincredibleease.Hisbreathcaughtatthequickening.

“That'simpossible,”sheassuredhim.“Ireaditinabook…”
“Writtenbyavirgin,nodoubt,”hebreathedintoheropenmouth,andbegantomoveagain.
“Lang…isn'titrisky…?”
He stilled. “Yes.” He bit off the word. “My God, yes!” With anguish in his face, he lifted away

fromher,andfellontohisback.Helaythere,hisfistsclenched,totallyvulnerablewhilehefoughtto
stillthedemons.

Sheleanedoverhim,boldlywatchinghisfacewhilehestruggledwiththedesirehedidn'tdare

satisfy. His eyes held hers while he forced himself to breathe normally until the pain subsided. His
gazesliddowntohersoftbreastsandlingeredthere.Hepulledhercloserandkissedthemhungrily.

“I want to do it again and again and again,” she whispered softly, savoring his mouth on her

body.

“SodoI.ButIdon'twanttomakeababyinthefeverofit,”hewhisperedback.Heheldherclose

then,whiletheyslowlycamedownfromtheheights.

She closed her eyes and went heavy against him, gloriously contented. “Do you really want to

marryme?”sheaskeddaringly.

“Yes,”hesaid.
She drew her cheek against his chest, and the clean scent of him came up into her nostrils.

“When?”

“We can talk about dates later,” he murmured, oddly reluctant to pin it down to a certainty. He

smoothedherhair.“Wehavetogettowork.”

Sheliftedherselftolookattheclockandgroaned.“Oh,mygoodness,I'manhourlate!”
“Theworldwon'tend,”hemurmureddryly.
“That'swhatyouthink!Ihaveabusinessmeetinginahalfhour!”
“Lookatme.”
Shedid,andhissmilewasherundoing.“Don'tpanic,”hesaid.“I'llgetyouthereintime.”
Hekissedhergentlyandputheroutofthebed,stretchinglazilyashegottohisfeet.“Comeon.

We'llhavetimeforaquickshower.”

He led her into the bathroom and put her into the shower with him. It took longer than it

normallywould,becausehemadeherbathehimandthatledtoexplorationandsoftkissesthatmade
himgrithisteeth.

“I'mnotprepared.”Hechuckled,liftingheroutofthespray.Heturnedtheshoweroffanddried

her.“Noaccidents.”

Hisconcernseemedratherbeyondwhatshemighthaveexpected.Shefeltinsecure.“I'llseethe

doctor,”shepromised,“sothatwecanmakesurenothinghappensuntilwewantitto.”

Hestudiedherraptfacequietly.“Yourcareermeansalottoyou,doesn'tit?”heaskedsolemnly.

“Fornow,atleast?”

Shereadthethoughtsinhisface.“Yes,”shesaidslowly.Shefrowned.“You…doeventuallywant

achild?”

He smiled, but it didn't reach his eyes. “Of course I do. Now, let's get to work. Tonight, we'll

drivedowntoFloresvilleandtellBobandConnieourgoodnews.”

Shewantedtopinhimdownonthesubjectofafamily.Perhapshewasjustthinkingofher.But

therehadbeensomethinginhiseyeswhenshementionedchildren…

Hesmootheddownthefrown.“Stopborrowingtroubleandgetdressed.Justlookwhatyou've

mademedo,”hesaid,glowering.”I'vebeenseduced,forGod'ssake!"

Hereyestwinkled.“Why,soyouhave.Wouldyouliketopresscharges?”
“I'dliketopresssomething,”hemurmured,chuckling.
“Ididoffer,”sheremindedhim.
Hebentandkissedhercarelessly.“I'llbepreparednexttime.”
“OrIwill,”sheadded.
WhileLanggatheredhisownclothesandbegantodress,shemovedtoherdresserandpulled

outabraandslipandquicklyputthemonwithherbacktoLang.Feelingalittleshynow,shewalked
totheclosetandtookoutagreen,patternedshirtwaistdressandputiton.

“Youlookniceingreen,”hesaid.
“Thanks.”Shehesitated,suddenlyrememberinghisabruptarrival.“Whydidyoucomebythis

morning?”sheasked.

“I'mgivingyouarideintowork.AndIwantedtoknowifyougotanycallslastnight,”hesaid

withalazysmile.

She smiled back and shook her head. “There was nothing on the answering machine. Nobody

botheredmeatall.Isthissomenewtactiche'susing?”sheaskedthen.“Ishetryingtodrivemecrazy
bywaitingseveraldaysbetweenincidents?”

“It'sagoodpsychologicaltrick,”heagreed.“Iwouldn'tputitpasthim.Butthatgasgrenadewas

dangerous. Sometimes they start fires. If it had been beneath the seat, and it had exploded under
you…”

“Igetthemessage,”shesaiduneasily.Hereyesmethisinthemirrorwhilesheputonmakeup

andranacombthroughhershorthair.“Inotherwords,we'renotoutofthewoodsvet.”

Henodded.
She put down the brush and searched in another drawer for her panty hose. She put them on

while Lang watched with appreciative eyes, then she slipped on her high heels and picked up her
purse.

“Whataboutmycar?”sheasked.“Youdidn'tgetitpickedup,didyou?”
Heshookhishead.“Sorry.I'llseetoitthismorning.”
Sheturnedandlookedathimblatantly.“DidyouseeLornalastnight?”sheaskedslowly.
Heliftedanamusedeyebrow.“IfIhad,doyouthinkI'dhavebeensohungryforyou?”
Sheflushed.“Well…"
Hedrewheragainsthim.“Youstilldon'tknowmuch.Somemencangoallnight.Ican't.IfI'd

beenwithanotherwomanallnight,Iwouldn'thavebeencapablethismorning.Doesthatanswerthe
questionyoucan'tquiteaskme?”

“Yes,”shesaidruefully.“Sorry,Ishouldn'thavepried.”
Hefrowned.“Kirry,youtrustedmeenoughtoletmemakelovetoyou,”heremindedhersoftly.

“Thatgivesyoueveryrightintheworldtoknowaboutme.Ihaven'tsleptwithLorna,andIwon't.I
wanttomarryvou.”

Hesaidhedid.Buthewouldn'ttalkaboutadateandhedidn'twanttoriskmakingherpregnant.

Shealmostmentionedthat,butwhatthey'dsharedwastoonewandexcitingtospoil.Shedecidedto
liveonedayatatime.Atleasthedidwantherforkeepsthistime.Shecouldsettleforthat.Fornow.

She reached up and kissed him very softly. Her eves adored him. She tried not to notice the

indecisioninhis.“Let'sgoseeifwe'refired,”sheteased,andsteppedawayfromhim.

“Right.”
Hedrovehertotheofficeinafaintlystrainedsilence.He'dburnedhisbridgesthistime.There

would be no going back. He'd compromised her, and as old-fashioned as it might seem to another
modernman,hefeltobligedtodotherightthingandmarryher.Hedidcareabouther,verymuch.It
wasjustthathewastrappednow.Itdidn'tfeelascomfortableashe'dthoughtitwould,tobetotally
committed.Andshewantedchildren.

HelovedMikey,ofcourse,butitwouldbedifferentwhenthechildwashisown,andhebecame

responsibleforitandKirry.Shewasaworkingwoman.Shewantedacareer.Butshe'dsleptwithhim,
and now his old footloose days were gone forever, because he hadn't been able to hold back. He'd
wanted Kirry to the point of madness. He glanced at her, remembering how it had been, and he
couldn'tmanagetoregretthatheatedlovinginherbed.Nomatterwhatthecost,itwasworthit!He
onlyhadtogetusedtotheideaofbeingcommitted.Thatshouldn'tbesohard,hetoldhimselffirmly.
He'dgottenusedtobeingontheroadallthetimewhenhejoinedtheCompany,he'dgottenusedto
wearing a gun. He'd even managed to live with worse things. It would grow on him. And as for
children,he'dfindsomewaytoputheroff.Withthatcertaintyinmind,hesmiledatKirryandbroke
intocasualconversation.

Butshewasn'tfooled.Shesawtheworryonhisface,theindecisionhecouldn'thide.He'dgone

overtheedgewithherandnowhewassorryaboutit,shecouldtell.Hewasgoingtomakethebestof
it,buthowwasshegoingtobeabletolivewithamanwhowasforcinghimselftoactcontented?It
wasaglimpseofanightmare.

TheonenicethingaboutthemorningwasthatEricksonwasnowhereinsight,ineitherofhis

cars.Butshe'dbeenoverlyrelievedonetimetoomany,soshewasn'ttakinganythingforgranted.He
mightbehidingnearby,waitingforhertorelax.

Langstoppedthecaratherofficedoorandturnedtoher.“Don'tletyourguarddown,”hesaid

gently.“Justbecausewedon'tseehimdoesn'tmeanthatheisn'taround.”

“I was just thinking the same thing,” she replied. Her eyes searched his. “I'm sorry,” she said

gently.

Hefrowned.“Aboutwhat?”
Sheshruggedathinshoulderandforcedasmile.“Youaren'tready,”shesaid.“Youthoughtyou

were,butyouaren't.Iwasasmuchtoblameasyouwereforwhathappened,soyoudon'tneedtofeel
guilty.Youdon'tneedtofeelobligatedtomarryme,either.Wewerecareful.Therewon'tbeany…
consequences.”

Hestaredatherwithconflictingemotions.“Areyousureyoudon'twanttomarryme,Kirry?”

heaskedslowly.

Thewayhephraseditsaideverything.Shedidn'tdarecryorlookregretful.“Ienjoyedwhatwe

did,”shesaid.“Butwhenthenewnessworeoff,we'dstillbestuckwitheachother.Youhaveyourjob

andIhavemine,andmarriageisn'ttheendoftherainbowanymore.Maybewe'dbetterthinkabout
thisbeforewejumpintoit.”

“That's exactly how I feel,” he said, and looked relieved. “But we can still be engaged, while

we'rethinkingaboutit.Okay?”

Wimp,shetoldherself.“Okay,”sheagreedtooreadily,andthengrimacedatherownscramble

forcrumbs.

“WecandrivedownandhavesupperwithConnieandBob.I'llcallthem.”
“I'denjoyseeingthemagain.”
“I'llpickyouuphereafterwork.Becareful.”
Shenodded,hesitatingweakly.
Hiseyesbegantoglitter.“Wantmetokissyou?”hemurmured,teasing.
Shestartedtodenyit,buttheironyofthesituationmadehersmile.“Yes,”shesaid.
Hesmiled.“Ilikethathonesty,”hesaid,hisvoicehuskyanddeep.“Iwanttokissyou,too.”
Shemovedcloserandtiltedherfaceupforhim.Heframeditinhisbighandsandbent,drawing

his lips softly over her own. But the passion between them was too raw and new to allow for
tendernessjustyet,andveryquickly,hehadhercloseinhisarmsandwaskissingthebreathoutof
her.Shemoaned,andhecametohissenses.

“I can't take much of that,” he said with graveyard humor. He took out his handkerchief and

removedthesmearedlipstickfromaroundhermouthandthenhisown.“I'llcomebyandtakeyouout
tolunch,ifyou'refree.”

“I'mnot,”shesaidmiserably.“IhavetomeetsomeofLorna'sgroupforabusinesslunch.”
Hesighed.“Okay.Anothertime.”
Shenodded,reachingforthedoor.
Hestayedherhand.“Ihaven'tgivenLornaanymessagesforyou,”hesaidquietly.“Ifshestarts

handingouttidbitsaboutme,takethemwithagrainofsalt,willyou?”

Shesmiledoverhershoulder.“Okay.”
“I'llseeyoulater.”
“Sure.”Shegotoutandwalkedintothebuilding,andhadtoforceherselfnottolookback.She'd

madeherbed.Nowshewasgoingtohavetolieinit.

“You'relate,”Mackgrumbledtheminuteshewalkedinthedoor.“LornaMcLanehasbeenonthe

phone ten times asking where you were. She couldn't seem to locate our security chief, either.” He
lookedatKirrysuspiciously.“Doyouknowwhereheis?”

“Hewaswithme,”shesaid,fightingablush.
Mackhesitated.“Oh.”
“Youneedn'tlooksoshocked.LangandIareengaged,”sheadded.
Hisfacerelaxedintoabeamingsmile.“Congratulations.”
“Thosemightbealittlepremature.We'renotplanninganelopement.”
“Youneverknow,”hereplied.“Langstrikesmeasanimpulsiveman.”
“He strikes most people that way. But he's actually very cautious,” she said, remembering him

withthefamiliarityofyears.“He'sverymethodical.Healwaysthinksfirst.”

Sherememberedthatwhenshewasaloneinheroffice.Langwasextremelycautious,infact.He

never leaped before he looked, or let his emotions lead him around. So why had he let himself go
withherthismorning?Despitethefactthathetookprecautions,itwastotallyunlikehimtoleapin
without considering the consequences. At the very least, Kirry's feelings for him would lead her to
expectcommitmentfromamanwhoseducedher.Heknewthat.Hadhereallylosthishead?Orhad

hechangedenoughthathemightactuallywanttomarryher?

Shedidn'thavetimetoponderthequestionforverylong.LornaMcLanecalledagain,andshe

wasfuming.

“Wherehaveyoubeen,MissCampbell?”sheaskedinascathingtone.“Ireallydon'thaveallday

tochaseyoudown.Doyouwantthisaccountornot?”

Kirrybithertonguetokeepfromtellingthetruth.“Certainlywewantit,MissMcLane,”shesaid

inapacifyingtone.“I'msorry,Iwasunavoidablydetainedgettingtoworkthismorning.”

“ByLang?”camethepoisonousreply.
Kirry'shandtightenedonthereceiver.“Ifyoumustknow,yes,”sherepliedcurtly.
“Youlittletramp,”Lornasaidhuskily.
“LangandIareengagedtobemarried,MissMcLane,”Kirryinformedher.“Whatwedoinour

privatelivesishardlyanyofyourbusiness!”

Therewasanindrawnbreathandalongpause,withaudiblebreathing.“Hewouldn't…heisn't

themarryingkind!You'relying!”

“Ifyouthinkso,you'reatlibertytoaskhim.”
“I'vecalledhimanumberoftimes,buthe'sneveraround.Iguesshe'sbeenwithyou.”
“I'vehadsomeproblemshere.Langhasbeenteachingmeself-defense,”shereturned.
“And a few other tricks, I'll bet. He's a wonderful lover, isn't he?” she drawled. “But wait until

yougethimtothealtarbeforeyoustartlookingforcongratulations.Hewasengagedtome,once,
too.Hedoesn'twantchildren,didyouknow?”sheaddedwithapoisonousnoteinhervoice.“Hehas
tobefreetowalkoutifhewantsto,sokidsareoutofthequestion.”

“Hewantschildren.Webothdo,”shesaidhesitantly.
“Really?Pinhimdown,dear.Idarevou.”
“MissMcLane,thisisreally…”
“I'llexpecttoseeyouatlunch,”Lornacontinuedunabashed.“I'veaskedtheLancasterstojoinus

whilewediscussthedetailsofthispromotion.Iwouldreallyprefertohaveyourcolleague,Mack,
workonit.Ifindthatwomenaren'tquiteascooperativeasmenwhenImakesuggestions.”

I'mnotsurprised,Kirrythought,butshedidn'tdaresayit.ShewastryingtopictureMissMcLane

wrappedfromtoestoeyesingreensatinandpinnedwithsafetypins.Itkepthersane.

“I'msureIdhavenoobjectionstoMackreplacingme,”Kirryvolunteered,thinkingthatMack

wouldkillherforsteppingdown.HehadnoaffectionforLorna.

“Then,we'llbeabletosettlethisamicably.I'msoglad.”
“I'llseeyouatlunch,then.”
“Indeedyouwill,”Lornapurred,andmadeitsoundlikeathreat.

ChapterEight

Lorna had a surprise for Kirry at lunch. Not only had she insisted that the Lancasters be in

attendance,butLangwasthere,too,lookingirritableandreluctant.“I'msureyouwon'tmindifLang
joinsus,”LornatoldKirryprivately.“IthoughtyoumightliketheLancasterstoshareinthenewsof
yourengagement.”

Shemovedawayinacloudofexpensiveperfumetogreetthedark,elegantlydressedLancasters

before Kirry could reply. “I know that I won't be giving away any terrible secrets if I tell you that
LangandMissCampbellaretobemarried,”LornatoldtheLancasters,smiling.

Kirry wanted to tell her that feathers were sticking out of her mouth, but she didn't dare. She

smiledinstead,althoughshecouldn'tkeepitfromlookingstrained.

“Isthistrue?”Mrs.Lancasterasked,delighted.
Langstraightened.HeglaredatLornaandmovedclosertoKirry,takingherhandinhis.“Yes,it

is,”hesaid,buthedidn'tsoundlikeahappybridegroom.

“Well,wemusthelpwiththearrangementsforthewedding,”Mrs.Lancastercontinued,andher

husbandsmiledhisagreement.“Whenisittobe?”

“Wehaven'tsetadate,”Langsaidstiffly.
“Surelyyouplantomakeitsoon,Lang,dear?”Lornamused,leaningbacktosmileathimwith

hatredinhereyes.

“There'snorush,”hesaidfirmly.“KirryandIhaveplentyoftime.”
Kirry knew that he didn't like to be pushed, but there was more to it than that. He was so

obviouslyreluctanttobepinneddownonadatethatitwasembarrassing.

“That'sright,”Kirrysaidquickly,backinghimuponlybecauseshedidn'tlikeLorna.“Weplan

onalongengagement.”

“Isee,”Mr.Lancasterrepliedwithnarrowedeyes.
“Well, if you're not planning to start a family right away, I suppose there's no hurry about it,”

Lornapurred.“Howmanychildrenareyougoingtohave,Lang?”sheasked.“Twoorthree?”

Lang'sfacewentrigid.“Wehaven'tdiscussedthat.”
“Surelyyouwantason?”Lornapersisted.
Heglaredatherandthendeliberatelyglancedathiswatch.
“We'dbettergetstarted,”Mr.Lancastersaid,takingthehint.“Weallhavedutiestoperform.Now

whatisthisaboutswitchingtheserviceonyouraccount,MissMcLane?”heaskedpolitely.

“It's nothing against Miss Campbell,” Lorna assured him, “but I think Mack would be more…

accessible. I've spent the entire morning trying to track down Miss Campbell, who seems to be
celebratingherengagementwithalittle,shallwesay,excessiveenthusiasm?Youknowhowthejob
cansufferwhenpeoplehavetheirheadsintheclouds,”sheaddedwithasilverylittlelaugh.

Why,youviciousshrew,Kirrywasthinking.Inonestroke,Lornahadmanagedtomakeherlook

likeanincompetentairhead.

“Iwaslatetowork,yes,”Kirrysaidangrily.“Butitwashardlyderelictionofduty…!”
“Miss Campbell,” Mr. Lancaster said sharply, and smiled pointedly. “We wouldn't want to

alienateMissMcLane,now,wouldwe?”

Kirryflushed.“Excuseme.I'msorrythatIwasn'tavailablethismorning,andIcanassureyou

thatinthefuture…”

“Inthefuture,IwouldprefertodealwithMack,”shesaid,smilingatherwarmly.“HeandIwill

getalongverywell.Andthisaccountissoimportant…”Shelethervoicetrailaway.

Kirry was being railroaded, and the Lancasters were taking it all in without question. Mrs.

Lancaster'sfriendshipwithLornaobviouslyinclinedhertobelievewhatevertheformermodeltold
her.ShegaveKirryaspeakingglance.

“Indeedtheaccountisimportant,”Mrs.Lancastersaidcoolly.“I'msurethatMissCampbellwon't

mindlettingMacktakeitover.”

Theinferencewasthatshe'dbetternotmind.Kirrywaslosinggroundandshedidn'tknowhow

toregainit.

“OfcourseIdon'tmind,”shesaiddiplomatically.“MissMcLane'ssatisfactionmustbeourfirst

priority.”

Lorna inclined her head graciously. “I'm delighted that you're willing to cooperate. Heaven

forbidthatIshouldcauseanytrouble.Butthispromotionmustbeperfect.Anditwillleadtoothers.I
havemanyconnectionsinthefashionindustry.”

“I'm aware of that, my dear,” Mrs. Lancaster said brightly. “Your influence is far-reaching,

indeed.”

Mr.LancasterwaswatchingKirryclosely.“Youhaveotheraccountstoservice,Ipresume?”he

askedhercurtly.Itwasthefirsttimehe'dtakenanyrealinterestinwhatshedidforhiscompany.

“I'vebeenworkingonapromotionalcampaignforanewchainofsoupandsaladbars,”Kirry

toldhim.“Thefirsttelevisionadrunstonight,infact,ateight.”

“We'llbesuretowatch,”heinformedher.
Kirrywasconfidentthatthecampaignwouldbesuccessful,andshewasn'tworried,despitethe

faintthreatinLancaster'svoice.Shewasobviouslyontrialnow,thankstoLorna'sdirtywork,butshe
wouldn'tcower.Sheheldherheadupthroughtherestofthemeetingandsmiledasifshehadn'tacare
intheworld.

“IhopeI'llbeinvitedtothewedding,”LornatoldLangasthemeetingbrokeup.“Andthefirst

christening,ofcourse.”

Langdidn'tsmile.“Thatwasalowthingtodo,”hesaidquietly.“Whatevervendettasyouhave

againstmeshouldn'textendtoKirry.She'sneverdoneanythingtohurtyou.”

“No?”Lorna'seyesglittered.“Shetookyouawayfromme,didn'tshe?”
“Nowomancantakeamanwhoisn'twilling,”heinformedher.“YouandIarewaterandwax.

We'retoodifferenttomakeapair.”

“Youwantedme!”sheaccused.
Henodded.“Youwereanimportantpartofmylifeforawhile.IhopeIwasasimportanttoyou.

ButInevertoldyouanylies,ormadeanypromises,andyoudamnedwellknowit.”

Shewasbarelyincontrolofhertemper.SheglancedatKirry,talkingtoMrs.Lancaster,andtook

asharpbreath.“Shelookssleptwith,”shesaidbluntly,lookingupintimetocatchLang'sexpression.
“So that's it. Poor little compromised virgin. Did you feel obligated to offer her marriage in
exchange,Lang?”sheasked.“Howinteresting.DoyouknowwhatsortofpeopletheLancastersare?
They'refundamentalists.”

“Areyoumakingthreats,Lorna?”heasked.
“Why, yes, I am,” she said with a smile. “Either you break that engagement or I'll give the

Lancasters an earful about her lack of morals. And when I get through, she won't have a job…or a
reference.YoudoknowwhatImean,don'tyou,dear?”

Shewalkedaway,smiling.Langstaredafterherwithmurderouseyes.Hehadn'tdreamedthatshe

couldbesospiteful.He'dtakenherouttomakeKirryjealous,buthehadn'tdoneitinanyspitefulor

obviousway.ForallLornaknew,hewassimplyrenewinganoldacquaintance.OnlyLornahadtaken
itseriously,andshewantedtoplayforkeeps.NowLangwasbetweenarockandahardplace.Either
hehadtomarryKirryimmediatelyorgiveherup,becauseifLornacarriedthroughwithherthreat,
Kirrywouldliterallybeaskedtosacrificehercareer.Herjobmeantalottoher.Heknewtoowell
howmuchcareersmatteredtosomewomen…

“You're very quiet,” Kirry remarked when they were on the way down to Bob and Connie's

houseinFloresville.“What'swrong?”

He glanced at her and back at the road. “Just thinking. Have you seen anything of Erikson

today?”

Sheshookherheadandwrappedherarmstightlyaroundherchest,leaningbackintheseatwith

ashiver.“Couldyouturnuptheheat,Lang?”

“Sure.”Hefrowned.“Youaren'tcatchingacold,areyou?”
She shook her head. “I'm just tired and worried. The Lancasters didn't like what Lorna said at

lunch,Iknowtheydidn't.WhatiftheythinkI'mtooincompetenttokeepon?”

“Aren'tyougoodatyourjob?”
“Well,yes,butsoarealotofotherpeople.I'moriginal,atleast.WhichismorethanIcansayfor

poor old Mack,” she said, grimacing. “He doesn't like Lorna and he hates high fashion. He finds it
boring.He'snotgoingtodoajobshe'lllike.”

“Whatdidyouhaveinmind?”heasked,smiling.
“Astar-studdedextravaganzawithsomesocialiteshelpingtomodelLorna'sclothingline,”she

said.“They'dnotonlylovethelimelight,they'dbuytheclothes.Itwouldmeanquicksalesandalot
more than just surface promotion. At least one local debutante has a father who owns a network of
boutiques internationally. Even Lorna doesn't have connections like that.” She shrugged. “But she's
not interested in my ideas. I tried to show her what I had in mind, and she just ignored me. She
wouldn'tevenlisten.”

“Pityshedoesn'thaveanycompetition,”hemused.“Youcouldputhernoseinasling.”
“Shedoeshavecompetition,”sheremarked.“Butthey'rerepresentedbyanothercompanyandas

farasIknow,theydon'thaveanypromotionsplannedfortherestoftheyear.”

Hegaveheralingeringlookatatrafficlight.“Thereissuchathingastakingthebitbetweenthe

teeth.Whydon'tyougotothecompetitionandoutlineyourideasandoffertotakethethingonasan
independentpromoter?”

Shegasped.“Thatwouldbeunethical.”
“GiveyournoticeatLancaster.Changejobs.Gamble.”
“Lang,Ihavebillstopay,”sheexclaimedwithasurprisedlaugh.“Ican'ttakeachancelikethat.

I'mnotagambler.”

“I'mnot,either,asarule.Butsometimesyouhavetotakeachance.”
“Youdon'ttakechances.”
“No?Iaskedyoutomarryme.”
Sheavertedhereyesandstaredoutthewindowwithasinkingheart.
“Thatwasbadlyput,wasn'tit?”heaskedquietly.“I'msorry.Iwastryingtocheeryouup.”
“Lorna saw right through you today,” she said. “She pushed you into a corner and as much as

madeyouadmitthatyoudidn'twanttomarryme.”

His hand tightened on the steering wheel as he was forced to remember the threat Lorna had

made.

“Iadmittednothing.”

Sheturnedinherseat,adjustingherseatbelt,andstudiedhisprofile.“Youaren'tready,”shesaid

simply.“Toyou,commitmentisstilltheboogeyman.Youthinkofmarriageasasortofprison,with
childrenasthechainsthatkeeppeoplethere.”

Hewinced.“Kirry…”
Shetouchedhissleeve,feelingthewarmstrengthofhisarmunderit.“Wecanbeengagedfora

littlewhile,untilImakeupmymindwhatI'mgoingtodo—staywiththeagencyortakethatchance
and go independent. But I won't take the engagement seriously, and I don't want you to. Your
consciencemaystingforawhileaboutwhatwedid,butyou'llgetoverit.Nothinghappened,Lang.
Wejustmadelove.Peopledoitallthetime.Nobigdeal.”

“Itwastome,”hesaidshortly,gloweringdownather.“Andifitwasnobigdeal,whyhaven't

youdoneitbeforenowwithsomeotherman?”

Sheleanedherheadagainsttheseatandlookedathimquietly.“Youknowwhy.You'vealways

known.It'sbecauseIbelongtoyou.”

Hisheartshiveredinhischest.Hecouldn'tlookatheragain.Shewastyinghiminknots,butthey

wereofhisownmaking.

Hedidn'twanthertobelongtohim.Hedidn'twanttobeaprisonerofhisconscienceorevenof

love.

Shewithdrewherhandandlookedoutthewindshield.She'dembarrassedhim.Attheveryleast,

she'd made him uncomfortable. “Don't torture yourself,” she said quietly. “I'm not asking for
anything.”

“Iknowthat,”hesaidtersely.
Sheclosedhereyes,enjoyingthecompanyandthedarknessastheyspedtowardFloresville.If

onlytheycouldkeepdrivingforever,shethought.Itwouldbelovelynottohavetogobacktoallher
problemsandthefuture,whenLangwouldbeoutofherlifeagain,andforeverthistime.

Shewasdreaming.Langhadmadelovetoher,andtheyweresprawledunderabigoaktreebya

beautifulstreaminameadow,holdingeachother.Hewaswhisperinghowmuchhelovedher…

“Willyouwakeup?”hedemandedcurtly,shakingher.“We'rehere,andallhellhasbrokenloose

fromthesoundofthings!”

Shesatup,herdreamshatteredbyhisharshtone.“What?”sheasked,confused.
“Listen!”
The car was sitting in the driveway of the old Victorian house where the Pattons lived. A loud

voice—Bob's—was disclaiming some accusation that came from Connie. In the background, a soft
Spanishvoicewastryingtoassertreason.

“Housekeeper,myblueelbow!Youwerekissingher!”Conniewasraging.
“Iwasholdingherwhileshecried,becauseyouhurtherfeelings!”Bobyelled.Allthreeofthem

wereoutlinedonthefrontporch.“Youdidn'thavetoaccuseherofbeingahome-wrecker!”

“Well,she is!” Conniesaid. “She's eventaken over Mikey! Hewants Teresa toread to him, he

wantsTeresatotakehimtoschool,hewantsTeresatositbyhimwhenweeat…he'smyson!”

“He'dneverknowit,wouldhe,whenyou'vegotyournosestuckinenginesalldayandhalfthe

night!”

“Oh!”Conniethrewupherhandsandstartedtosaysomethingelsewhenshenoticedthecarin

thedriveway.ShesmootheddownhergreasycoverallsandglancedfromthecartoBob.

“Lang!”hisbrotherexclaimed,gratefulforthediversion.“Lang,isthatyou?”
“Lookslikeit,”Langsaidruefully.HegotoutandwaitedforKirrytojoinhimatthesteps.“We

just got engaged and thought we'd come and tell you. This doesn't look like the best time for an

announcement.”

“Engaged?”Conniestumbled.“YouandKirry?Again?”
“Weweren'tactuallyengagedthen,”Langsaidirritably.“Wewerealmostengaged.”
Connie'sfacesoftened.“Well,well.Andwhenareyougettingmarried,soon?”
“Iwisheverybodywouldstopaskingthat!”Langburstout,runninganirritatedbighandthrough

hishair.

“We haven't set a date,” Kirry said quickly. “It was very sudden. We haven't really had a lot of

timetotalkaboutit,whatwithourjobs…”

“Well, of course they haven't,” Bob told his wife. “Can't you stop throwing questions at them

whenthey'veonlyjustgottenhere?Teresa,makesomecoffeeandslicesomecake,willyou?!”

“Si,SenorBob,”Teresa'ssoftvoicecameback,followedbythescurryingoffeet.
“She'sa sweetheart,” Bobsaid with asmile. It faded whenhe looked athis haggard wife. “She

doesn'tthinkso.Shedoesn'tevenappreciateallthehardworkTeresadoesheretosaveherwork.”

“I'msureConnieappreciatesit,Bob,”Kirryinterjected.“Canwegoinside?I'mcold.”
“It'sallbutsummer,”Langmuttered.“Howcanyouhavechills?”
“Areyoufeverish?”ConniefeltKirry'sforehead.“Notatall,thankgoodness.Youknow,Ihad

chillswhenIgotpregnantwithMikey…”

“There'snopossibilitywhatsoeverthatKirry'spregnant,”Langsaidshortly.
“Oh,Iknowthat,forheaven'ssake,”Conniemutteredathim.“Iwasjustmakingastatement.”
Lang flushed, but no one noticed except Kirry. She averted her eyes. They'd taken precautions,

andithadonlybeentheonetime.Shecouldn'tbepregnant.Thethingwas,precautionsdidfailone
timeoutofahundred…But,no,shewouldn'tthinkaboutit.

“This is Teresa.” Bob introduced the young Mexican-American woman with a smile. His eyes

weretwinklingashelookedather.“Ninita,ésteesmihermano,Lang.”

“Muchogustoenconocerlo,señor,”shesaidwithasmile.Shehadalovelyroundfigureandbig

browneyesinaframeoflong,jetblackhair.Shewasabeauty.NowonderConniewasfurious!

“Ymi,”Langreplied.“Sealegrodetrabajaraquí,señorita?”headded.
“Oh,sí,”shesaidwithoutenthusiasm,andshelookedworried.“Estefamiliaesmuysimpático,

especialamenteelninito.”

She liked Mikey. She didn't mention liking Connie, who was glaring at everybody who spoke

Spanish,becauseshedidn't.

“SpeakEnglish,”Conniesaidharshly.
“She'slearning.Ittakestime.”Bobshotbackthewords.“Stopbeingsounpleasant!”
Connie put her hands on her hips and glared at him. “I will not. You're imagining yourself in

lovewithher,aren'tyou?”

Bobflushed.“Forheaven'ssake…!”
“Admitit,youcoward!”Conniegoadedhim.“Comeon,admitit!”
“She'sasweet,kindlittlethingwholikeskidsandhouseworkandmen!”hesaidfinally,hisdark

eyesglaringather.“Howdoyouexpectmetofeelabouther,whenmywifelooksandsmellslikea
greasepitandneverhastimeformeorherson?”

Conniegaspedandsuddenlyturnedandranforthebedroom,wheresheslammedthedoorwitha

loudsob.

Bobgrimaced.“NowI'vedoneit.”
LangandKirryexchangedlooks.“Ithinkwepickedabadnighttocome,”Langbegan.
“Therearen'tanygoodones,”hemuttered.HesawTeresa'shugeeyesfillwithtearsandmoved

toputanarmaroundher.“Noseatriste,amada,”hesaidsoftly.“Todoesbien.”

“Everythingisnotwell,”Langreplieddarkly.“Andsheshouldbesad,sinceitseemstomethat

she's about to break up your marriage. You're a married man. Bob. Why don't you act like it? The
personwhoneedscomfortingisyourwife,notyourhousekeeper.”

Bob'sfaceflamed.HetookhisarmfromaroundTeresaandgloweredatLang.“Idon'tneedyou

totellmehowtoconductmymarriage!”

“No?”Langlookedpasthim.Conniewascomingoutofthebedroomwithasuitcaseinonehand

andMikeybytheother.

“Wherearewegoing.Mom?”heaskedsleepily.
“Tomysister's!”sheinformedtheworld.SheglaredatBob.“Whenyoucometoyoursenses,if

youdo,I'llbeatLouise's.”

“Whataboutyourpreciousbusinessoutback?”heasked.
“PutupaClosedsign.Youcanspellthat,can'tyou?”sheaskedsweetly.”Inthemeanwhile,Todd

Steelehasavacancyforamechanicinhisgarage,andhe'llhiremeinaminute."

Hiseyesbulged.“Iwon'thaveyouworkingforyourex-sweetheartwhojustgotdivorced!”he

toldher.

“Whynot?I'mabouttobedivorcedmyself!”
“Connie!”hewailed.
“Mom,whyareyouyellingatdaddy?”Mikeyasked,stilldrowsyandnotmakingmuchsenseof

theconfrontation.

“Because he's deaf,” Connie replied, glaring at her husband. “He doesn't understand simple

languagelike'fireher'!”

“Youcan'ttellmewhotofireinmyownhouse,”Bobinformedher.
“It used to be my house, too, and Mikey's,” Connie returned proudly. “Now it seems to be

Teresa's.”

Bobseemedtorealizeallatoncewhatwashappeningtohislife.“She'sjustthehousekeeper,”he

began.

“That'sright,”Conniereplied.“Butyoudon'ttreatherlikeone.”
“Youdon'ttreatmelikeahusband,”heretorted.
Conniedidn'tanswerhim.“Saygood-nighttoeveryone,Mikey,”shetoldtheirson.
“Goodnight,”hesaidobligingly.
ConniesmiledapologeticallyatLangandKirry,ignoredtheothersandstalkedoutthedoorwith

Mikey.Minuteslater,hercarstartedupandmovedoutofthedrivewayaroundLang's.

Bob's eyes narrowed. “Connie isn't my wife, she's the resident mechanic. She has no time for

anything except her damned job! Mikey and I were just flotsam, don't you realize that? She doesn't
wanttobeawifeandmother,shewantsacareer!Okay,Iletherhaveit.Butit'snotworkingout.”

Kirry stared at Bob with carefully concealed horror. Was she seeing what marriage to Lang

wouldbelike,exceptinreverse?Wouldheonlyhavetimeforhisjob,andhisfamilywouldbelittle
morethananafterthought?

Lang,too,washavingsomedifficultieswithhisthoughts.Kirrylovedherjob,too.Shewouldbe

likeConnie,tryingtojuggleajobandchildren,ifshehadany.Itwouldbeadivisionofloyaltiesthat
couldbemanaged,ifshelovedandwaslovedenough.ButhewasseeinginBob'srelationshipwith
Connie all the inherent dangers of marriage. He didn't like what he saw. He'd had cold feet before
aboutmarriage.Theywereice-coldnow.

“Seewhatyou'reaskingfor?”BobaskedLangwithahumorlesslaugh.“Shesaidshewanteda

husbandandafamily,butwhatshereallywantedwasagarage.You'dbetteragreebeforehandabout
whatkindofmarriageyou'regoingtohave,”hesaidbitterly.

“DidyouevertellConniehowyoufelt?”Kirryaskedhesitantly.
“UntilIwasblueintheface,butit'salwaysbeenwhatConniewants,notwhatIwant.”Heglanced

atTeresaasshecameintotheroom,shyandquiet.“Areyouleaving,too?”

Teresa explained in Spanish that she wanted to go to her brother's home in San Antonio. She

askedifLangandKirrywoulddropheroff.

“Comeon,Teresa,”Langsaid.“Youcanridewithus.”
“Muchas gracias.” She walked to Bob and looked up at him with those huge, soft eyes. “Lo

siento.Notepusefuriosoami,porfavor,”shewhispered.

Bob'sfacecontorted.“OfcourseI'mnotmadatyou,”hesaidsoftly,andhisexpressionandtone

gotthroughevenifthewordsdidn'tquiteregister.

Shesmiledathim.“Hastaluego.¿Nosvamos?”
Langnodded.“Wego.I'llbeintouch,Bob.”
Bobhesitated.“Don't…blamemetoomuch,”hesaidmiserably.
Langmovedforwardandhuggedhimwarmly.“You'remybrother,youidiot,Ionlywantyouto

behappy.”

ChapterNine

LangandKirrydroppedTeresaoffatherbrother'shouseontheoutskirtsofSanAntonio.Lang

wentwithhertothedoor,explainingthathissister-in-lawhadleftthehouseforthenight—without
going into any detail about the reason for it—and that it wouldn't be fitting for Teresa to spend the
night alone with Bob. The brother was gracious and appreciative, and Lang came back to the car
feelinglesssad.

“She'sgotanicefamily,”hetoldKirry.
“Yourbrotherisreallysmittenwithher,”Kirryreplied.“I'msorryforConnie,becauseIdon't

thinkBobisgoingtobeabletoresistTeresa.”

“Don'tbesosure,”hesaidcurtly.
“You'reworried.”
“Ibelieveinmarriage.Sometimespeoplegiveuptooeasilyonarelationship.”
“Sometimestheyhangontoonethathasnofuture.”
Heglancedather,andhiseyesbecamesearchingonherface.“Connieshouldn'thavemarried,”

he said. “She should have opened her own garage and spent years building it up before she settled
down.”

“Yes.”
Hesighedheavily.“Youdon'treallywanttogetmarriedyet,doyou?”heaskedwithhisattention

ontheroadahead.“Youwantacareer,justlikeConnie.”

Herheartleaped.Wasthatwhathethought,thatajobmeantmoretoherthanmakingahomefor

Langandtheirchildren?Orwasthatwhathewantedtothink?Washelookingforawaytobreakthe
engagementalready?Itfeltlikeareplayofthepast.

Shetwistedherfingersinherlapandwatchedthemtangleanduntangle.“Somewomenaren'tcut

outtobemothers,Ithink,”shesaid.“ConnielovesMikey,butshe'sneverbeenparticularlymaternal.”

“It'salittlelateforhertofinditout,”hesaidangrily.
“Perhaps she didn't know herself,” she said. He didn't reply. He was taking it hard. Unusually

hard.Sheglancedathim.“Somemenaren'tcutouttobefathers,either,Iguess.”

Hestiffened.“Really?”
“Youfreezeupeverytimesomeonementionsafamily,Lang,haven'tyourealized?”
Hishandsgrippedthesteeringwheelandthenrelaxed.“Childrenmeanpermanentties.”
“Iknow.”Shesmiled.“Youaren'tready,anymorethanConniewas.”
“Neitherareyou,”hereturnedangrily.“Youwantacareer.”
“OfcourseIdo.Everyonewantstomaketheirmarkintheworld,butit'spossibletocombinea

careerwithafamily,”shesaid,laughing.“Peopledoitallthetime.”

“LikeConniehas?”heaskedangrily.
“Connieishavingtrouble.She'sactingtoosingle-mindedlytojuggleajobandafamily.”
“Jugglethem!”hesnapped.
Kirrywassurprisedattheantagonisminhisdeepvoice.SheknewthatthePattonboyshadlost

theirmotherwhentheywerejustalittleolderthanMikey,butLangneverspokeofher.Theirfather
hadraisedthemandhe'ddiedwhenKirryandLangwerejustnoticingeachother.

“Lang,younevertalkaboutyourmother,”sheremarked.
“Ineverwill.”
Shewasshockedatthevehemenceintheassertion.“Noteventome?”

“Whatdoyouwanttoknowabouther?”heasked.
Shehesitated.“Whatwasshelike?”
“Shewasacareerwoman,”hesaidwithacoldsmile,glancingherwav.“Shewasoneofthose

women who should never have married. She didn't have time for Bob and me. She was too busy
flyingalloverthecountrytosellrealestate.Andonedayshewentupinaplanethatwasdueforan
overhaul,butshecouldn'twaitbecauseshemightmissasale.Theplanewentdownandweburiedher
inpieces.”

Herbreathcaughtinherthroat.“Oh,Lang,I'msosorry.”
“Why? We never loved her, damn her,” he retorted. “She never loved us, either. We were a

nuisance,aninconvenience.Shetoldourfathereverytimetheyhadafightthatsheneverwantedusin
thefirstplace,buthe'dworriedhertodeathaboutwantingkids,soshegavein.Wewerehergreatest
regret. She didn't remember a birthday the whole time we were kids, and she never remembered
Christmas presents. I made her an ashtray at school in clay and painted it her favorite colors. She
threwitinthetrash.”

Why hadn't he ever told her this? She realized then that Lang had never shared his deepest

feelingswithher.Inalltheyearsshe'dknownhim,he'dneverspokenofhischildhoodatall—until
now.Andsheunderstoodforthefirsttimewhyhewassoreluctanttomarry.

“Youthinkitwillbethesameforus,”shesaidsuddenly.“YouthinkI'llbelikeyourmother.”
Helookedintherearviewmirrorbeforehemadethenextturn,withsmoothease.“Won'tyou,

Kirry?” he asked with world-weary cynicism. “This is the era of single-parent families. I know all
aboutthat.Iwastheproductofone,evenifmyparentsweremarriedonpaper.Iwasalatchkeykid
fromtheageofsix.Wouldyouliketohearsomehorrorstoriesthatcamefromit?”

“Icanimagine,”shesaid.Hersofteyesslidoverhisface.“It'sadifferentworld.Lifestylesare

changing almost overnight. What used to be the norm isn't anymore. We can't go back to the past,
Lang.Weallhavetoadjust.Withtheeconomyinitspresentstate,mostfamiliescan'tmakeitonone
income,sowomenhavetowork.Ifwedidgetmarried,I'dstillhavetohaveajob.”

He grimaced. He didn't like what she was saving. It was all too true. They could hardly have a

decent standard of living and children on just his salary, as good as it was. And what if he became
disabled? If Kirry couldn't work, how would she support herself and their family if something
happenedtohim?

“It'snotsuchabadthing,awomanbeingindependent,”shesaidgently.
“Mymothercertainlywas,”hesaid.
He turned into the parking lot of the building where they lived, closemouthed and quiet. Old

memorieswerehurtinghim.Hedidn'tlikerememberinghismotherandhersingle-mindeddevotion
tothealmightyjob.Hisfatherworkedasalaboreratafeedmill.Hedidn'tmakealotofmoneyand
heworkedlonghours,sohewasn'thomewhenBobandLanggothomefromschool.

Their mother could have had time for them if she'd wanted to. She was pretty much self-

employed.Herjobschedulecouldhavebeenrearranged.Butshewasalwaysgone.Andwhenshewas
home,sheexpectedLangandBobtohavethehouseworkdoneandwaitonherbecauseshewastired.

Theirfatherhaddonehisbesttoaccommodateher,andthathadmadeLangandBobresentful

andangryatthewaysheusedhim.Whenshediedintheplanecrash,theirstandardoflivingdropped
radically.But Lang hadn'tcried. Neither hadBob. Their father hadtried to explainit once, to make
them understand that she'd loved them, in her way, but she hadn't wanted to get married in the first
place.He'dcompromisedher,andthey'dhadto,forherparents'sake.Inthosedays,inasmallTexas
town,church-goinggirlsdidn'thavebabiesoutofwedlock.

“Myparentshadtogetmarried,”Langmuttered,staringintothepast.
“I'msorry.”
He cut off the engine and turned to her. “Why were you having chills?” he demanded. “Could

Conniehavebeenrightwiththatshotinthedark?”

“Weusedsomething,”shesaidweakly.
“Andnothingisfoolproof.”Helookedhaunted.“Tellme!”
“I can't tell you what I don't know, Lang,” she replied very quietly. “It's way too soon to even

guessyet.”

Herelented.Hishandruffledhisownhairasheleanedbackintheseat.“Idon'twantyoutobe

pregnant,Kirry,”hesaid.

She felt her body stiffen. That was blunt enough. “You can't forgive your mother, so I'm to be

punishedforhersins,isthatit?”

Helookedpuzzled.“Thathasnothingtodowithit.”
“Sure.”Sheopenedthecardoorandgotout.Herlegsfeltshaky.Herself-confidencewasonthe

blinkentirely.

Hegotout,too,andfollowedherintothebuildingandtheelevator.Herammedhishandsinto

hispocketsandstaredatherbroodinglyastheywentup.

“Don'tpretendthatyou'dbethrilledaboutitanymorethanIwould,”hepersisted.
Shedidn'tlookathimoranswerhim.
They got off on their floor and she paused at the door of her apartment. “Lorna said that you

didn'twanttolivehereanymore.Youdeniedit,butwasittrue?”

Hefrownedashestudiedher.Lorna'sthreatcamebackfullforce.Shewasavindictivewoman,

andLangknewfromthepastthatshedidn'tbluff.

“Whatifyoulostyourjob,Kirry?”
“I'dfindanother,”shesaid.“I'mnothopelesslyuntalented.”
“Ifyouleftunderacloud,itmightbedifficulttofindsomethingelseasgood.”
“I'mnotgoingtobefired,”shesaidheavily.“Lornamaynotlikeme,butMackdoes,andhecan

clearmewiththeLancasters.Itisn'tasifI'vedonesomethingunforgivable.”

Helookedworriedandcouldn'thideit.Hisdarkeyessearchedhergreenonesquietly.Shedidn't

knowwhatLornahadthreatened.Hecouldn'ttellher,either.

“Areyousurethattherewon'tbeanyconsequencesfromwhatwedid?”heaskedheavily.
“You'reworryingittodeathbecauseofoneidleremarkConniemade!Lang,I'mnotpregnant,

allright?”

“All right.” He laughed at his own concern. He was overreacting. “Then if you're that sure,

maybeitwouldbebetterifwelettheengagementfadeaway.”

Hereyesnarrowed.“That'swhatLornawants,Igather?”
Hehesitated.“Yes,“hesaid.”That'swhatshewants."Hedidn'taddwhy.
Shesearchedhisfaceasifsheweresayinggoodbye.Infact,shewas.“Thengiveherwhatshe

wants,” she replied. “I don't want to sacrifice my future to your conscience. The only reason you
wantedtheengagementinthefirstplacewasbecauseyoufeltguiltythatweslepttogether.That'sabad
reason to marry someone, especially when there is no possibility of any consequences,” she added
firmly.

Women were supposed to know if they were pregnant, he assured himself. She sounded

confident.Rightnow,gettingLornaoutofthepicturebeforeshecoulddamageKirry'sfuturewasthe
mostimportantthing.Letherthinkshe'dwon.Yes.

“Considertheengagementoff,then,ifthat'swhatyouwant,”hesaid.
Shemanagedasmile,butitwasstrained.“It'swhatyouwant,”shesaid,pointedly.“Youcan'tlet

goofthepast,canyou?Ineverknewwhyyoureallywantedout.Younevertoldmeanythingabout
yourlife,andIdidn'tevenrealizeit.Youwantedme.That'salliteverwas.”

Hedidn'tdenyit,buthisfacewastautandhisevesunreadable.
Sheturnedaway.“That'swhatIthought”shesaidquietly,assheunlockedherdoor.
Langwatchedherhungrily,avertinghiseyeswhenshelookedbackathim.
“I'llstillbearound,”heremindedher.“Don'tletyourguarddownwhereErikson'sconcerned.

Andifyou'drathernotkeepthelessonsgoingwithme,I'llhaveoneofmyadvancedstudentswork
withyou.Itwouldbeashametostopnow.”

“Whateveryouthink,”sheagreedcomplacently.
His eyes were weary. “Maybe I am living in the past,” he said then. “The fact is, I don't want

childrenandIcan'tsettleforhalfamarriage.I'msorry.Sexisn'tenough.”

Sheknewherfacehadgonepale,butshesmiledlikeatrooper.“No,itisn't,”sheagreed.“See

youaround,Lang.”

Henodded.Hecouldn'ttrusthimselftospeak.
SheclosedthedoorwithafirmclickandLangstoodstaringatitwithhisheartinhiseyesfora

longmomentbeforeheturnedandwentbacktohisownapartment.Ithadneverseemedasemptyin
thepast.

Kirry lay awake most of the night, thinking about Lang's comments. Somehow she couldn't

equatethemanwho'dsaidsexwasn'tenoughwiththeincrediblytenderloveroftheothernight.Ithad
been much, much more than physical lust. But he wouldn't acknowledge it. And he'd seemed
withdrawnthenightbefore,especiallywhenshe'dmentionedLorna.Shedidn'tknowwhatwasgoing
on, but it had to have something to do with her job. Was she going to be fired? Did he know
somethingshedidn't?

Perhapshe'dmadethatsuggestionaboutanalternatecampaignforapurpose.Whenshegotup

thenextday,itwaswithanewresolve.Shewasn'tgoingtohangaroundandwaittobebumpedfrom
the company roster. She had some good ideas. Lorna might not appreciate them, but she knew
someonewhowould.Sheputinhernoticethatverymorning,cautioningMacknottoshareitwiththe
Lancasters just yet. He agreed, feeling personally that Kirry had been deliberately dealt a bad hand
throughLorna'scattyremarkstoherfriend,Mrs.Lancaster.

KirrywenttoseeReflections,Inc.,onherlunchhour.Itwasanewpublicrelationsfirm,andthe

ownerhadaleanandhungrylook.HehiredKirryonthespotwhenheheardsomeofherideas,even
going so far as to offer her a percentage of the business as well as a salary if she pulled in new
businessforthem.Herfeethardlyleftthepavementonthewaybacktowork.MarryingLangwould
havemadeherfloattwiceashigh,butnowthejobwouldhavetobehersatisfaction.Ifsheallowed
herselftothinkaboutlosingLangagain,she'dgomad.

Bythetimeshegotreadytoleavetheoffice,muchlaterthanshe'dplannedto,she'dforgottenall

aboutEriksoninthejoyoftheday.Hermindwasonhernewpositionandthedelightshewasgoing
to feel when she walked out the door for the last time. Her only regret was poor Mack. His ideas
weren't pleasing Lorna, and she was taking out most of her frustrations on him. Everyone in the
officecouldhearherdispleasure.

“I'll cope,” he'd told Kirry, tongue in cheek. “When she's had enough, she'll go looking for

anotheragency.ThejokewillbeontheLancasters,notme.”

Kirry had to agree, and she couldn't help feeling a little sting of pleasure at the thought. Mrs.

Lancaster hadn't learned that friendship had to be kept separate from business if she wanted her
companytoprosper.ByallowingLornatomanipulateher,she'dcostherselfalotofnewbusiness.
Andanemployeewhocouldhavehelpedherkeepit.

ShewasthinkingaboutthemarketsshecouldhelpbringtoReflections,Inc.,whenshesuddenly

realizedthatitwasdarkandshewasaloneintheparkinglot.

Hercarwasinplainview,andthelotwaslighted.Shelookedaroundquickly,buttherewasn't

anothercarinsight.Shewasbeingparanoid,shetoldherself.Eriksonhadn'tbeenseenallday.Itwas
highlyunlikelythathe'dbelayinginwaitforhertonight.

She had her keys in her hand, locked in between her fingers to make a formidable weapon if

necessary.Shewalkedquicklyandhereyesdartedaroundcautiously.Sheunlockedthecar,butbefore
shegotin,shelookedinthebackseat.Thenshedashedinsideandlockedthedoorsagain.Safe!

Therewasnothingsuspiciousintheinterior,andshecheckedcarefully.Thenshestartedthecar

andputitingear.NoErickson.She'dworriedfornothing.

Sheturned the carout into trafficand drove toward herapartment building. Ithad been a very

profitable day. She wondered how Lang had fared, and if Bob and Connie had talked over their
differences.ItwouldbesadforlittleMikeyifhisparentsdivorced.Shefeltsorryforallofthem.She
feltsorriestforLangandherself.

Asshepulledintotheparkinglotofherapartmentbuildingandturnedofftheengine,shelooked

aroundcautiously.Buttherewereotherpeoplenearbyandsherelaxed.Nothingtoworn'about,she
assuredherself.Hewasgoingtogiveitup.Sheknewhewas.Shefeltbetterabouteverything.

Shegotherpurseandlockedthecar,pullinghercoatcloseragainstthechillynightair.Hereyes

sparkledasshethoughtaboutheronepleasure,thechangeofjobs.

Shewalkedintotheapartmentbuildingandgotintotheelevatorwithacoupleofothertenants.

Nobodyspoke.Shegotoffonherfloor,wonderingasshewalkeddownthehallifLangwasathome.
Shestaredathisdoor,butsheonlyhesitatedforaninstant.He'dmadehisfeelingsclear.Shewasno
longerpartofhislife.Infact,hemighthaveevenmovedoutbynow.Shewasjustgoingtohaveto
learnhowtolivewithouthim.

Sheunlockedherapartmentdoor,idlyawarethatitwasunusuallyeasytogetintotonight,and

closed and locked it behind her. She turned on the light and walked into her bedroom to change
clothes.

Assheenteredtheroom,anarmcamearoundherneckandtrappedher,hurting.
“Hello,girlie.”Afamiliarvoicechuckled.“DidyouthinkI'dforgetaboutyou?Notachance!It's

paybacktime,blondie.”

Herheartranwild.Herkneesfeltlikejelly.Hewashurtingherandinaminutehe'dcutoffher

wind.Shehadtokeepherhead.Ifshepanicked,itwasallover.

“Mr.Erikson,you'llgotojail.”Shegotthewarningoutthroughdrylips.
“Do you think so? It will be my word against yours. Nobody will believe you.” His free hand

touchedherblatantlyoverherjacket.“Nice.Youfeelrealnice…”

Now or never, she thought. Now or never. Her heartbeat went wild as she came back with her

elbowrightintohisdiaphragmashardasshecould.Hisintakeofbreathandtherelaxingofthearm
aroundhernecktolditsownstory.

Shewhirled,actinginstinctively,allLang'strainingfirmlyinplaceasshebroughtupherknee

intohisgroinandthensteppedin,brokehisbalanceandsenthimcareeningdownontothefloor.

Getout,sheheardavoiceinherhead,don'tbeaheroine.Sheranforthefrontdoor.Herhands

fumbledwiththelock,butonlyforasecond.Shegotthedooropenandranintothehall.Herhands

beatonLang'sdoor,andshescreamed,buthewasn'thome.Thehallwasdeserted!Sheheardnoises
comingfromherapartment.

Sherantotheelevator,givingwaytopanic,andpressedthebuttonrepeatedly.Buttheelevator

didn'tbudge.Sherememberedthewarningaboutthestairwell,butshewastoofrightenedtoheedit.It
wastheonlywayout.

Sheranintothestairwellandtrippedgoingdownthesteps,strainingthemusclesinherankleso

thateachnewstepwaspainful.Shewasbreathingraggedlynow,andeverybreathhurt.Asobcaught
inherthroatasshemadeittothegroundlevelandburstoutintothelobby.

Thesecurityguardfrownedashesawher,andhecametowardheratonce,withahandonthe

gunathiship.

“Areyouallright,MissCampbell?”heaskedquickly.“What'shappened?”
“Inmy…apartment.Aman.Heattackedme,”shegasped.
Hisfacewenttaut.Hetookhertothemanager'sofficeandhandedherovertoaconcernedclerk,

whotookherinbackwhilethesecurityguardwentintothestairwell.

Kirryknewwhathewasgoingtofind.Eriksonwastoosavvytolethimselfbecaught.He'dbe

longgone,andoutforbloodnow.She'dhurthispride.Itwouldn'tbeagametohimanymore.He'd
wanttokillher.

Nausearoseinherthroat,makinghersickallover.Theclerkhelpedhertotherestroom,justin

time.Shewaswhiteanddrawnwhenshewentbacktotheoffice,tofindthatthesecurityguardwas
back,andgrim-faced.

“Iknewhe'dbegone,”shewhisperedunsteadily.“ButIhurthim.”
“Hegotoutoverthebalcony.Somebodymusthaveseenhim,though,”hetoldher.“Nobodygets

awaywiththatsortofthinginmybuilding,”headdedcoldly.“Istheresomeoneyoucanstaywith,
MissCampbell,fortonight?Idon'tlikethinkingaboutyoubeinguptherealone.”

She laughed bitterly. It hadn't occurred to her before that she had nothing in her life except

friendlyacquaintanceslikeBetty.Shehadnofamilyinthiscountry;Godonlyknewwherehermother
was,andtherewasn'tanyoneelse.

“No,”shesaid,chokingdowntears.“Ihavenoone.”
He looked worried. He scowled as he tried to come up with a solution. “We'll have to call the

police,”hesaid.

Shedidn'thavethestrengthtoargue.Herwillpowerwasatitslowestebbinyears.
The police came and questioned her. She gave them a description of Erikson, explaining the

problemandreferringthemtopeopleatheroffice—andtoLang.

“We'llpickhimup,”ayoungofficersaidcoldly.“Hecan'tbetoohardtofind.”
“Good thing you knew some self-defense, young lady,” his older partner added. “I taught my

daughterwhenshewasjustakid.It'shandystuff.”

“Youcansaythatagain,”sheagreedwithawansmile.
“I've called in one of our part-time security guards,” the apartment security officer said,

rejoiningthemwithatautexpression.“He'llbeoutsideyourapartmentallnightlong,MissCampbell.
Youneedn'tworry.”

Shefelttearsslidingdownhercheeks.“Oh,it'ssokind…!”shewhispered.
Helookedembarrassed.“You'reatenant,”hesaid.“Wecan'thavepeopleupsettingourtenants.

Here,now,don'tdothat.It'sallover.”

The cluster of people in the lobby piqued Lang's curiosity as he came into the apartment

building.He'dhadtointerviewapplicantsandthentherehadbeenafaultyburglaralarmthathadtobe

dealtwith.Hewaswornfromtherigorsoftheday,andfromhatingwhathe'ddonetoKirry.Damn
Lorna,hewasn'tgoingtoletherdictatehislifeorintimidateKirry.He'dtoldherso,too.And,he'd
added,ifshetoldtheLancastersaboutKirry,he'dhavesomethingtotellthemabouther.

Shehadn'texpectedthat.Herfacehadgonepaleandshe'dblusteredaroundfortenminutes.But

intheend,she'dgivenin.Shehadothermeninherlife,she'dinformedhim.Shedidn'tneedtodrag
upoldrelationshipstokeepherwarm,andshedidn'twanthim,anyway.

Langhadfeltsorryforher.Butnotsorryenoughtohangaround.Hewasguiltyovertheway

he'd treated Kirry, and he'd done some hard thinking about his position on marriage. He was
overreacting because of his mother, Kirry had said, and she was right. He'd come back with the
intentionoftellingherso,andsuggestingthattheymightthinkaboutstartingoveronemoretime.But
therewouldbenomoresecrets.Andwhateverproblemstheyencountered,they'dworkout.

Butthecommotionnearthemanager'sofficedistractedhim.Hewalkedtowardit,andsuddenly

sawKirry'swhitefaceandtornblouse.Erikson!

Hepushedhiswaythroughthecrushofpoliceofficerstoher,andwithoutaword,hepulledher

intohisarmsandwrappedherupthere.

“Areyouallright?”heaskedwithoutagreeting.
She was stiff in his arms, but she didn't push him away. “Erikson was waiting for me in the

apartment.Irememberedjustenoughofwhatyoutaughtmetogetawayintime.Buthe'svanished.
They'researchingforhimnow.”

Langliftedhisheadandlookedintohereyes.Shewasputtingupagoodfront,butthatwasfear

inherface.

“Damnhim,”hesaidthroughhisteeth.
“We'repostingamanoutsideherapartment,”thesecurityguardbegan.
“Tohellwiththat.I'mtakinghertomybrotherandsister-in-law'shome.She'llbesafe,”hesaid

abruptly.

“Thatwouldbethebestthingyoucoulddo,”oneofthepolicemensaid.“We'llgethim.Butshe'll

besaferwherehecan'tfindher.”

“I'lltakecareofher.”Langturnedtothesecurityguard.“Thanks,”hesaidhuskily.
Theothermanshruggedandsmiled.Sothatwasthewayofthings.Niceyoungwoman,andthat

beauofherswasprettyprotective.She'dbelookedafter.

ChapterTen

Langwaitedforhertochangeandpackinherapartment,whilehetelephonedBobandexplained

what had happened. “Come on down,” Bob said in a subdued tone. “Connie and Mikey came back
today.”

“AndTeresa?”Langasked.
“I was a fool. Connie isn't speaking to me, but if you bring Kirry, maybe it will help all of us

out.”

“I'llseeyoushortly.Andthanks.”
Hehungup.Kirrywasstillstandinginthedoorwayofherbedroom,inthesameclothes.
“Youhaven'tchanged,”hesaidgently.
“Idon'twanttogointherealone,”shesaidwithaself-consciouslaugh.“Silly,isn'tit?”
“Notatall.Ithinkyou'reprettybrave,”hesaid,smiling.
Shesmiledback.“Idon'tfeelit.Iwassick.”
“Nowonder.”Hecameintothebedroomwithher.“Whatdoyouwanttowear?”
Shelaidoutsomejeansandatop.Beforeshecouldmove,hedid,tobeginundressingher.
Shelookedupathimlikeachild,hereyeswide,curious.
He smiled at her tenderly. “I could learn to like this,” he remarked as he stripped her out of

everythingexceptherbriefsandbra.“You'reexquisitelydesigned,MissCampbell.”

“Ifeelweakallover.”
“Do you?” He pulled her close and bent to kiss her with breathless tenderness. His hands slid

downtoherhipsandhisthumbsspreadoverherbelly.Heliftedhisheadandsearchedhereyeswhile
hetouchedhergently.“SodoI.MykneesbucklewhenIkissyou.”

Thatmadeherlaugh.“Theydonot.”
Herubbedhisnoseagainsthers.“Howdoyouknow?Youaren'tlookingdown.”
Shedrewinaslowbreathandherfacewasworried.“DidIhearyousaythatConniewasback

withBob?”

“Forthetimebeing.He'scometohissenses.”
“Maybeshehas,too.”Sheliftedherhandtohisfaceandhadtofighttearsatthehungershefelt

forhislove.“Iwish…”

“What?”heaskedsoftly.
Shewithdrewherhand.“Nothing.Weshouldgo.”
“Withyoulikethat?”heasked.“We'dbearrested.”
“Ifyou'llletmego,I'llgetdressed.”
“No,Idon'tlikethatidea,”hemurmured.”Coveringupsuchabeautifulbodyoughttoqualifyas

acrime."

Sheblushedandlaughed.“Lang!”
Hetiltedherfaceupandkissedherwithslow,sweetardor.“Wecouldmakelovebeforewego,”

hewhispered.Hishandsmoveduptoherbreastsandteasedthem,possessedthem.“Wouldyoulike
to?”

“We'vealreadyagreedthatitisn'tagoodideaifweseeeachother,”sheprotestedweakly.
“Thatwasbefore,”hemurmuredagainstherlips.
“Beforewhat?”
“BeforeIdiscoveredthatIwouldn'tminditwehadababytogether.”

Her body stilled against him. She lifted her eyes to his and found warm, dark secrets in them.

“Wh…what?”

Hebentandliftedherintohisarms.“You'llstillhavetowork,”hesaidashecarriedhertothe

bed.“Imakegoodmoney,butwe'llhaveabetterlife-stylewithtwosalaries.Besidesthat,youneedto
beself-supporting.Wecanfindagoodday-carecenter,onethatwebothfeelcomfortablewith,and
I'lllearntododiapersandfeedhim…unlessyouwantto?”headdedwithawickedlysensuoussmile
ashiseyesdroppedtoherbreasts.

She shivered with the force of her feelings. “Oh, yes, I'd like…to,” she moaned. “Lang, I love

yousomuch,”shesobbed.“Morethanmylife…!”

Heeasedoverherandpressedhergentlydownintothemattress.Hismouthcoveredhersandhis

handsfoundfasteningsandrevealedthesoftbarenessofherbodytohismouthandhishandsandhis
eyes.

“Iloveyou,”hewhisperedback."Itwasthethoughtofafamilythatunsettledme.Ididn'teven

knowwhy,untilyoumademerealizehowbadlymychildhoodhadscarredme.ButIthinkIcancome
totermswithit.TheonethingIcan'tdoiswalkawayfromyoutwiceinonelifetime.Sowe'lljust
havetocope.

“Wewill.Iknowwewill.”Herheartwasinhereyesasshelookedupathim.“Lang?”
“Hmm?”hemurmuredagainstherthroat.
“Couldyoutakeyourclothesoff?”
Hechuckled.“Iguessso.Wanttowatch?”
Herbreathcaught.“Yes,”shewhispered,hereyeswideandardent.
He laughed unsteadily as he stood and pulled off everything that concealed his powerful body

fromher.Whenheturnedbacktothebed,sheshiveredalittleinanticipation,becausesheknewnow
whatpleasurehecouldgiveher.

Hesliddownbesideher,hiseyeswarmandalivewiththejoyofwhattheyweresharing."Wecan

usesomething,ifyouwantto.

Shepulledhimdownwithlovingarms.“You'resocertainthatIcan'tbeawifeandamotherat

thesametime,aren'tyou?”sheaskedgently.“Whydon'tyouletmeshowyou?”

“Darlin',”hewhisperedashecoveredheropenmouthwithhis,“I'dlovenothingbetter!”
Sheopenedherarmstohimashisbodymoveddowntopressagainsthers.Forendlessminutes,

theylostthemselvesinthesoftcaressesthatledtotheurgent,slow,sweetrhythmoflove.Therewasa
newtendernessintheexpressionofit,butthepassionwasjustasfamiliarastheupswingoffrenetic
pleasurethatleftthemshudderinginitsexquisiteaftermath.

“MyGod,”hegroanedintohermouthashisfullweightdescendedonher.“AmIdreaming?”
“I hope not,” she whispered, shaken. Her legs tangled in his and she pressed her face into his

dampthroat.“Theworldtrembled,didn'tit?”

Helaughed.“Andafewotherthings,”hemurmureddryly.
“Ilovethewayyouloveme,”shewhispered.“Iloveyou.”
“Showmeagain,”hesaidagainsthermouth,andhishipsshiftedslowlyagainsthers.“Makeme

cryout.”

“Butcanyou?”sheaskeduncertainly.
Hemovedsharplyandchuckledatherwide-eyedwonder.“Let'ssee,”hemurmured,andpushed

down.

ItwasthreehourslaterwhentheyarrivedatBobandConnie'shouse.
“Weweregettingworried,”Bobsaidastheyclimbedoutofthecarinhisdriveway.“Kirry,are

youallright?”

“Oh,I'mfine,”sheassuredhimwithasmile.“I’malittlesore,butthat'snormal.”
“ShelaidEriksonout,”Langaddedwithpride,gladthathisbrothercouldn'tseetheflushonhis

highcheekbones.“Iappreciateyourlettinguscomedown.”

“Whatarefamilyfor?Connie,they'rehere!”
Conniecameout,inadress,lookingsubduedandsofemininethatLangactuallyleanedforward

foracloserlook.“Connie?”heasked,shocked.

Sheglared at him.“Yes, it's me,can't you recognize mewhen I'm notcovered in grease?” she

askedcaustically.

Hegrinned.“Well,cometothinkofit,no,”heteased.
Shehadherarmstightoverherbreastsandshewasn'tlookingatBob.Shemovedthemtohug

Kirry.“Areyouallright,honey?”sheasked,concerned.

“I'mfine,”Kirrysaid,smilinghelplesslyatLang.“We'reengaged,”shetoldthem.
“You'vealreadytoldus,don'tyouremember?”Connieaskedgently.
Theyhadn'tknownabouttheengagementbeingbroken.KirryandLangexchangedglancesand

smiles.

“Nouseexpectinganysenseoutofyoutwo.”Bobchuckled.“Comeonin.Mikey'sgonetobed.

We'llhavesomecoffeeandcake.”

“Mycake,nothers,”ConniesaidsharplytoBob,wholookeduncomfortable.“Ijustbakedit.I

cancook.”

“Honey,Ineversaidyoucouldn't,”Bobbegan.
“Hmmph!”shemuttered,andledthewayintothehouse.
“She'sbeenlikethatsinceshegothere,”Bobsaidmiserably.“Shetreatsmelikeanadulterer.I

sweartoGod,IneverputahandonTeresa.”

“HaveyoutoldConniethat.'”
“Wouldshelisten?”hemuttered.
“Ifyoutellhertherightway,shemight,”Langmused,hiseyeswarmandlovingonKirryasshe

wentintothekitchenwithConnie.

Bob glanced at his brother curiously. “Are you serious this time about marrying Kirry?” he

asked.

Langpaused,stickinghishandsintohispockets.“I'mserious,”hesaid.“Iguessthewaywegrew

up had a worse effect on me than it did on you, Bob,” he added. “I couldn't bear the thought of
bringingachildintotheworldwhosemothertreateditlikeanuisance.”

“I can't believe you thought Kirry would be like our mother,” he mused. “Kirry's a motherly

type.”

“Notanymore,”Langtoldhim,withasenseofpride.“She'sgotagoodmindandsheshoulduse

it. Besides that, she's one of the best karate students I've ever trained,” he added with a chuckle.
“Eriksonattackedherandshelaidhimout.”Hiseyessparkledwithquicktemper.“Damnhim,Ihope
wecanputhimawayforever.Ifshehadn'tknownwhattodo,theleastthatwouldhavehappenedis
thatshe'dhavebeenraped.Hemightevenhavekilledher.”

Bobfrowned.“Whatdidshedotohim?”
“Hewasasecurityguardattheoffice.Sheobjectedtobeingtalkedtolikeaprostitute.”
Bob'seyebrowsrose.“Howdidhekeephisjobsolong,withthatsortofattitude?”
“Womenhavekeptquietaboutharassmentinthepast.They'vestartedobjectingtoit,andsothey

should.Youknow,intheearlydaysofthecentury,despitethefactthatwomenweren'tpermittedthe

freedommenenjoyed,atleasttheyweretreatedwithrespect.Amanwhoinsultedawoman,married
orsingle,couldexpecttobebeatenwithinaninchofhislife.Thesedays,you'dbesurprisedatthe
languagemenfeelcomfortableusingaroundthem.”

“Listen,haveyoueverheardConniewhenshehitherthumbwithahammer?”Bobmused.
Langclappedhisbrotherontheback.“Pointtaken.”
Kirry'sbadexperiencewasthetalkoftheevening,butthelookssheandLangwereexchanging

amusedBob.

“Iguessyoustillhaven'tsetadate,”hecommented.
“Nextweek,”Langsaideasily,smilingatKirry'ssurprise.“Ifyoudon'twantabigwedding,that

is.”

“Ijustwantyou,”Kirrysaidhonestly.“Ajusticeofthepeaceandasimpleweddingringwillsuit

mefine.”

“That'showConnieandIdidit,”Bobsaid,hisdarkeyessearchinghiswife'ssubduedface.“We

usedtositupallhoursjusttalking.Weweregoodfriendslongbeforewewantedtolivetogether.And
whenMikeycamealong,hewasthebeginningofthewholeworld.”

Connie'seyessoftenedassherememberedherson'sbirth.
ShestaredatBobwithpaininherwholeexpression.“Andyou'rewillingtothrowawaytengood

yearsforalittlegirlplayinghouse."

Hisfacehardened.“Atleastshelikesit.”
“Fornow,”Connieagreed.“Butshe'sveryyoung.Whenshegetsafewmoreyearsonher,she'll

realize that a woman has to be a person in her own right, not just an extension of her husband.
Thinkingupnewrecipesisn'tenoughanymore.”

“Keepingacleanhouseandraisinggoodchildrenwhowerelovedandgivenattentionusedtobe

enough,”Bobsaidangrily.

“Ofcourseitdid,”hiswiferepliedwithasadsmile.“Buttheworldhaschanged.It'ssotoughon

one salary. When I worked, I could afford so many nice things that we could never have before. I
guess I went wild.” She shrugged, glancing uncertainly at Bob. “I almost lost my family in the
process. I've decided that I want to be a mechanic, but that I don't want it more than I want you and
Mikey.”

Bobstudiedthecoffeecupinfrontofhim.“Idon'twanttostartgettingusedtoanotherperson

thislateinmylife,”heconfessed.

Shesmiled.“Icouldworkforsomeone…”
He looked up. “You could work at your own shop, in the back,” he said stiffly. “But you can

close up on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and we'll spend those days, and Sunday, as a family.
Meanwhile,havingsomeonetohelpkeepthehousecleanisn'tabadidea.”Beforeshecouldspeak,he
added,“Iknowateenageboywholikestocookanddoesn'tmindcleaning.Mrs.Jones'sson,andhe
couldusethemoneybecausehewantstogotooneofthoseFrenchcookingschoolswhenhegetsout
ofschool.”

Conniewassurprised.“Butyouhatemywork!”
“I was jealous of it,” he confessed with a smile. He looked at his brother. “I guess Lang and I

nevertalkedenoughabouthowwewereraised.Wewereadysfunctionalfamilyandneverevenknew
it.Nowwe'rebothhavingtolearnthatmarriageiswhatyoumakeofit.”

Connie'sfacehadbrightened.SheflushedwhenBobsmiledwarmlyather,andhechuckled.“It

isn'tsobad,havingamechanicinthefamily.Exceptthatmycarsuredoesrunrough,”headded.

“Icanfixit,”Conniemused.

“Iknow.”
KirryfeltLang'shandcurvingaroundherswhereitlayonthetable.Shelookedathimwithher

heartinhereyes,andhisbreathcaught.

“Whereareyougoingtolivewhenyou'remarried?”Bobaskedthem,breakingthespell.
“I like the security where we are,” Lang said with a chuckle. “My apartment or hers, it doesn't

matter.I'dlivewithherinamudhut,”headdedsolemnly.

“Thatgoesdoubleforme,”shesaidsoftly.
“Until the kids come along,” he added very slowly, holding her eyes. “Then I think we might

wantahouse.Onewithabigyard,sowecanhaveadog.”

Thereweretearsofpurejoyinhereyes.
“WillyougoonworkingforLancaster,Inc.?”Connieaskedher.
Kirrycaughtherbreath.“Oh,thatremindsme!”Andshetoldthemwhatshe'ddone,andabout

hernewjob.

Langburstoutlaughing.“AndIthoughtyouweren'tlisteningwhenIsuggestedit.”
“I was listening. Mack says Mrs. Lancaster is going to be very sorry indeed, because Lorna is

alreadytalkingaboutpullingtheaccount.”

“That doesn't surprise me in the least,” Lang ventured. “I'm sorry that Lorna gave you a hard

time.IhopeyoubelievethatIwasseriouswhenIsaidtherewasnothingbetweenus.”

"Oh,ofcourseIdo,”sheassuredhim.Itwouldbeimpossibletobelieveanythingelse,whenhe

lookedatherthatway,witheverythinghefeltnakedinhisface.

“Whatwilltheydotothatmanwhentheycatchhim?”Connieasked,concerned.“Willtherebe

enoughevidencetokeephimlockedup?”

Lang was remembering the times Erikson had gotten away with what he'd done, and he was

worried.“Ihopeso.”

Kirrywasthinkingthesamething.SheclungtoLang'shandandtriednottobroodaboutit.She

hadvisionsofalong,drawn-outcourtcaseandlegalexpensesthatwouldbankruptthem.

“Don'tworryaboutit,”Langsaidsoftly.Hebentandkissedherforeheadsoftly.“We'llworkit

allout.Ipromiseyouwewill.”

Theystayedthenight,partingreluctantlyasshewenttotheguestroomandLangbeddeddownon

thesofa.Shedidn'twanttobeawayfromhimlongenoughtosleep.Apparentlyhefeltthesameway,
becauseintheearlyhoursofthemorning,hepickedherupoutofthebedandcarriedherbacktothe
sofa,bundlingherupinhisarmsuntilmorning.

Connie and Bob came upon them like that, and stood looking down at them with indulgent

smiles,theirarmsaroundeachother.

“Remember how that felt?” Bob asked gently. “To be so much in love that you can't bear the

agonyofbeingapartevenforafewhours?”

“Oh,yes.”Conniereachedupandkissedhim.“Istillfeellikethat.It'swhyIcamehome.”
Hesmiledanddrewherclose.“SodoI.I'mgladwebothwokeupintime,Connie.”
“Marriagehastohavecompromiseoritcan'tlast.ForMikey'ssake,andourown,I'mgladwe're

bothreasonablepeople.”

Hechuckled.“Afterlastnight,I'mnotsurethatI'mveryreasonableanymore.Infact,IthinkI'm

loopy.”Hewhisperedinherear,“Didyoureallydothat,ordidIdreamit?”

Sheflushedscarlet.“Bob!”
ThecrywokeLangandKirry.Theyblinkedandstaredupattheirhosts.Langsmiledsheepishly.

“Thisisn'tquitewhatitlookslike…”

“Looksliketwopeopleinlovetome.”Bobchuckled.“Comeandhavebreakfast,youidiots.”
Laterintheday,LangandKirrydrovebackuptoSanAntonio.Bothofthemwereanxioustosee

ifanyprogresshadbeenmadeaboutErikson.Whattheydiscoveredshockedthem.

“It was kind of tragic, in a way,” the police lieutenant who spoke to them at the precinct said

matter-of-factly. “He was going too fast and just shot right off the bridge, through the railing. We
foundhimafewhoursago.Itriedtocallyouboth,butnoonewasathome.”

“Wewereatmybrother'shouseinFloresville,”Langsaid.HepulledKirrycloser.“It'sbeena

hellofafewweeks.”

“Yes,Iknow.Thisisn'ttheonlystalkingcasewe'veeverhad,”thepolicemanreplied.“I'vetalked

tooneofourlegislators,andhe'swillingtointroducesomelegislationaboutit.He'dliketotalkto
you,MissCampbell.”

“I'dliketotalktohim,”sherepliedquietly.
“Atanyrate,you'resafenow,”hetoldher.“Trynottoletitscaryou.Theworldisfullofpeople

whoenjoyhurtingotherpeople.It'swhyIhaveajob.”

“Thanks.”
Theywalkedoutintothesunlight,andKirryclungtoLang'shand.
“Thisiswhywomenputupwithit,”shesaiduneasily.
“What?”
“Harassment on the job,” she said simply. “They're afraid of something like what happened to

me. They're afraid of being the object of gossip by other employees, or being fired, or being
discriminatedagainst.Evenifyoukeepyourjob,peoplestillresentyou.Evensomewomenthinkit's
stupid for a woman to cause trouble because a man is vulgar in front of her, or because he makes
sexistremarks.”

Heturnedtoher.“Nobodyeverpromisedthatlifewaseasy.Sometimesit'sdangeroustodothe

right thing. Sometimes it causes heartache. That doesn't change the fact that people have a right to
workunmolested.”

Shehesitated.Thenshenodded."Allthesame,Idon'tknowifI'dhaveenoughcouragetodoit

againafterwhathappenedtome.

Hechuckled.“Really?Ithinkyouhaveenoughcourage.”
“You'reprejudiced.”
“Iloveyoutodistraction,”hesaidsimply.“Doesn'titshow?”
Herevessparkledwithdelightasshelookedathim.“Coldturkeyandinbroaddaylight,even!

Youmustmeanit.”

“Didn'tyoubelieveme?”
“Yes,”shesaidafteraminute.“Ididn'treallythinkIcouldcaresomuchaboutyouunlessyou

caredaboutme,too.”

“Smartlady.WhendoyouleaveLancaster,Inc.?”
“Monday after next. I got a raise, too, at Reflections, Inc.” He grinned. “Even better. Will it

involveasmuchtravelingasyou'redoingnow?”

“No”shereplied,herfacebright.“BecauseItoldmynewbossthatIwantedtobehomeatnights,

and he said that he's got two single employees who love to travel, and they'll carry the ball in that
respect.Imayhavetogooutoftownoccasionally,butitwon'tbeeveryweek.”

“ThatIcanhandle.”Hepursedhislips.“Myjobwillkeepmeintown,thankGod,soifyouhave

tobeaway,Icanmindthekids.”

“Kids?Plural?”

Hiseyesslidoverherwithkindlingdesireandslowpleasure.“Ithoughtaboyandagirlwould

benice.”

“Didyou,now?BoysruninyourfamilyforthreegenerationsandI'mthefirstgirlinmyfamily

intwo.Theoddsareagainstlittlegirls.”Hestartedtospeakandsheputherfingersoverhismouth,
smiling.“Ilikeplayingbaseball,don'tyouremember?AndIneverdidplaywithdolls.”

Hechuckled.“Okay.We'llseewhatweget.”
“Whydon'twegohome,sincewedon'thavetogointotheofficetoday,andyoucanseewhat

youget.”

Hewhistledsoftly.“Mykneesaregoingweak.”
“So are mine.” She pressed close to him as they walked toward the car. She allowed herself a

littlepityforErikson.“Hedidn'thaveafamily,didhe?”sheasked.

Heknewwhoshemeant.“No.”
“Poorman.Hewassick,Lang.Sickinthemind.I'msorryforhim.”
“SoamI,inaway.Butitwasfate,honey.I'mgladyou'resafe.I'lltakecareofyou.”
Shelikedthatprotectivenessinhim.Shenuzzledherfaceagainsthisshoulder.“I'lltakecareof

you,too,mydarling.”

He kissed her forehead. “Let's stop by city hall and get the marriage license. Then,” he added

softly,”we’llseehowwickedwecangetbehindcloseddoors."

Shedidn'thaveanargumentwiththat.
They were married less than a week later, with Bob and Connie and Mikey for witnesses, and

they managed a brief honeymoon trip to Jamaica. When they came back, Kirry started her new job
andfounditmuchtoherliking.TheLancasterslosttheLornaMcLaneaccountinshortorder,along
withthepromiseofnewcustomers.TheyapologizedtoKirry,oncetheyfoundoutjusthowLorna
hadtwistedthingstomakeherlookincompetent.Kirryacceptedtheapologygracefully,butwouldn't
return, even though Lang stayed with them. There were no hard feelings, and the Lancasters gave
themahandsomebelatedweddingpresentofasilverservice.

“Thatwasniceofthem,”KirryremarkedlaterasshewaslyinginLang'sbigarmsinbed.
“Ithoughtso,too.”Heopenedoneeyeassheproppedoverhim.“Youlostyourbreakfastthis

morning.Wasitsomethingthatdidn'tsitwellonyourstomach?”

Shesmiledwickedly.“It'ssomethingthatprobablywillsitwellonmystomachuntilitgetstoo

big.”

Botheyesopened,withloveandsoftwonder.“Arewesureyet?”heaskedwithaglowingsmile.
Shenodded.“Igotoneofthosekitsthismorning,anddidittwice.I'llgotothedoctortomake

sure,buttherewon'tbeanysurprises.”

He pulled her down and kissed her tenderly, smiling against her mouth. “Are you sure we're

goingtohaveaboy?”

She laughed. “There's absolutely no chance that it will be anything else,” she said smugly, and

squealedwhenhisfingersduggentlyintoherribs.

Sevenmonthslater,LangstoodinthehospitalroomwithCecilyMaureenPattoninhisarmsand

oneeyebrowliftedwithsuperiorironydownathisprettywife.

“Goahead,”shechallenged.“Iknowyou'redyingtosayit.”
He chuckled. Then his face sobered and he looked at Kirry with such love that she flushed.

“Thankyou,”hesaidgently.“Ineverknewwhatlifewasallaboutuntiltheyputherinmyarms.”

“Iknow,”sherepliedwithwonder.“Lang,I'veneverfeltlikethis.Toknowthatwedidthat,that

wecreatedsomethingsoincrediblebetweenus.”

“Andhadsuchdelightfromdoingit,”heteasedgently,lovinghersoftflush.Helookeddownat

hisdaughter.“Isn'tsheabeauty?Daddyloveslittlegirls,”hecooedashekissedthetinyface.“He'll
takeheronpicnicsandbuyhertoysandkillboyswhobreakherheart.Daddywillteachhertoshoot
guns,anddomartialarts,andtrackspies…”

“And Mama will teach her how to promote people and write brilliant ads,” she said with

twinklingeyes.

Langgrinnedather.“Guesswhichthingsshe'sgoingtolikelearningbest?”
Kirry pursed her lips and didn't say another word. Their daughter was going to have a very

interestinglife,andtheirmarriagegotbetterbytheday.Shelookedbackovertherockyroadthey'd
traveledtothisdayandknewthatshe'ddoitalloveragain.Herwholeheartwasinhereyeswhenshe
smiledatherhusband,andinhiswhenhesmiledback.

TableofContents

ChapterOne
ChapterTwo
ChapterThree
ChapterFour
ChapterFive
ChapterSix
ChapterSeven
ChapterEight
ChapterNine
ChapterTen

TableofContents

ChapterOne
ChapterTwo
ChapterThree
ChapterFour
ChapterFive
ChapterSix
ChapterSeven
ChapterEight
ChapterNine
ChapterTen