Free Handle With Care by Patrice Wilton Page B

watch, then at the door of her son’s bedroom. “We got distracted.”
    He leafed through the book, looking for the right section. “I’ve been having problems with this one—”
    “It’s been a year.”
    He looked up at her. “What has?”
    “Since my last kiss.”

CHAPTER TEN
    L auren waited for a reaction.
    Shane dropped his pen on the floor, bent down to pick it up, and hit his head on the table’s edge as he straightened. “Damn!”
    He looked so embarrassed and confused, Lauren almost laughed.
    “You okay?” she asked.
    “Yeah.” He rubbed his head. “I thought we were done with that conversation. As you said, it’s none of my business.”
    “I changed my mind.” She abruptly pushed her chair back and stood. “I’ll be right back. I need to put Josh to bed.”
    Unusual for her, she dragged out the bedtime ritual, reading Josh an extra two pages in their current book and then letting him retell part of what he and Shane did at the Aquarium. She needed a bit of time away from Shane. This whole evening was threatening to get out of hand.
    First there had been her untoward delight in having him in her home; then that long moment when they had simply stared at each other in her kitchen; and then her confession about her attraction to him. Which he had echoed. And then she’d gone and told him it had been a year since she’d had a kiss. What was wrong with her?
    Exactly that, she thought as she turned out Josh’s light and left the room. It had been a year since she’d been kissed. All of these exciting sensations that went zinging inside her when she spent time with Shane were simply signs of sexual neglect. They had nothing to do with Shane himself. And she’d prove it.
    “Okay,” she said when she returned to the kitchen. “Where were we?”
    “Someplace we didn’t want to go.” He tapped a pen on his open book and kept tapping.
    “Oh, yes, I remember now. The kiss.”
    He crossed and uncrossed his legs, looking clearly uncomfortable. “I don’t want to know about it.”
    “Sure you do. It was with Ron, the guy I told you about. We dated for two and a half months.”
    “And he left. The jerk.”
    “That’s right, but before he left, he was very nice to me.” Lauren gave him a direct look. “I’m not always stuffy like I am at the hospital.”
    “Not interested.” He looked down at his textbook. “Can we study now?”
    “In a minute. First things first.” She sat in the chair beside his, inching it closer. “Just as an experiment, could we try something?”
    “Like what?” He shifted his body farther back in his chair.
    “I need to know that I’m in control. So …” She studied him. “I don’t want to be thinking about kissing you when I’m at work, so let’s do it once and get it out of our systems. Okay?”
    “No, not okay.” He shook his head. “Bad idea.”
    “You brought up the subject.” She leaned forward, moving within range.
    “Now I wish I hadn’t.”
    She noticed he was staring at her mouth.
    She eased even closer. “I’m sure it will be like kissing your sister or something. We’ll satisfy our curiosity and get over it.”
    His eyes met hers. “This is ridiculous. It’s child’s play, like spinning the bottle. Besides that, curiosity can kill the cat you know.” He ran a hand over his mouth. “And what if it’s not like kissing my sister, which I don’t have, by the way? What then?” He glanced away. “This is crazy. Playing with fire.”
    She grinned. “I have the fire station on speed dial.”
    “Your funeral.” He looked up and his hazel eyes warmed and softened, as they met hers. “I’m a really good kisser.”
    “Stop talking and do it.” She closed her eyes. “Once.”
    He cupped her face in his hands and guided her mouth to his. Her pulse raced, and she could barely breathe. Afraid she’d change her mind, she quickly closed the distance.
    The second their lips met, she unfolded like a neglected accordion that had sat in