Free Man Who Loved Pride and Prejudice by Abigail Reynolds Page B

far more experienced than any lover she had before. None of them had his opportunities to learn on as many women's bodies as he chose. How could she have let herself be one more? Why did she have to care?
       She took the heavy biology textbook off the shelf and let it bang on the lab bench. She knew better than to think this was real. It was nothing more than a physiological reaction. Orgasm in the female caused a release of oxytocin, the same hormone that made mothers feel bonded to their babies. She felt attached to him because of a biological imperative, not because of anything between them.
       She wouldn't allow herself to be led around by her body's urges. No, she had a good deal of experience at spotting dangerous connections and cutting them off, even when her heart was involved, and this wasn't that bad yet. She had to remember her goals. Emotional ties could keep her from achieving them after all the years she had poured into her work. In a disciplined manner, she reminded herself of the cost of failure, and by the time she was done, she knew she could manage Calder Westing.
       Erin didn't arrive at the lab until almost ten o'clock. Cassie, already exhausted, was hard put not to feel annoyed when she floated in, her mind clearly still on Penzance Point. But it wasn't Erin's fault Cassie had made an embarrassing mistake. Cassie returned to adding a chemical reagent to row of beakers, watching each drop carefully.
       She noticed Erin looking at her strangely as she finished. "Is something the matter?" It came out sounding too abrupt.
       "It didn't pass my notice that Calder wasn't home until this morning."
       Cassie's thumb slipped from the top of the pipette and the liquid ran into the beaker. She swore and poured the mixture down the sink. "And your point is?"
       "The two of you weren't exactly quiet last night at the beach, and I have to admit I was sort of surprised."
       "Why, don't you think I deserve a one-night stand with a rich man?" Cassie set down the empty pipette, jotted a note, and prepared a new beaker.
       Erin's face fell. "Oh, Cass, I'm sorry. Was he nasty about it?"
       "Oh, he didn't ditch me, more the other way around if anything. I just wish I hadn't done it. It's not my kind of thing."
       "No, I know it isn't. I'm sorry. I didn't realize it was a painful subject. But if you ever want to talk about it, I'm here."
       Talking about it was the last thing Cassie wanted. She was growing more anxious as the day wore on and had almost come to the conclusion that it would be better to have it out with Calder than live with the uncertainty of whether he would contact her. When the phone finally rang late in the afternoon, she jumped. Erin answered it before she could, a look of disappointment coming over her features as she realized it wasn't Scott.
       Erin held out the telephone to Cassie. "It's Calder."
       Cassie took a deep breath before putting it to her ear. "Hello," she said in a businesslike manner.
       "Cassie, it's Calder." Even the sound of his deep voice affected her somehow. "I was wondering if you'd like to have dinner this evening."
       "Thanks, but I'm afraid I can't. I have a lot of work to do here today and then there's a lecture I want to hear."
       "All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. And you need to eat anyway. Maybe I could bring something over to the lab, and we could eat there."
       "All play and no work gets Jill turned down for tenure. Thanks all the same."
    "Tomorrow, then?"
       He wasn't going to take the hint. "Look, Calder, I appreciate the effort, but you don't owe me anything for last night. It was a special moment, and it went places neither of us expected, but let's not try to make it something it's not."
       There was silence on the other end. Finally he said, "I'd still enjoy the chance to spend some time with you—no expectations."
       "I appreciate that you're trying to do the right thing