Free Wicked Obsessions by Marilyn Campbell

or answer, he walked over to her and pushed the door closed again. "You don't have to do this, Teri."
    She cocked her head at him. "You're not hungry?"
    "I'm not talking about lunch. I mean the smiles and little jokes. It's okay to be scared."
    "It is?" she asked, letting her smile slip away. His eyes held a promise of secrecy concerning her weakness.
    "Yes, it is. I'm an expert on the subject. Even knights in shining armor can be afraid of nonexistent things. But in your case, the danger is very real. So don't hesitate to accept a little protection."
    With that, he opened his arms and she stepped into them without thinking. As he gave her the safe comfort of his embrace, she sighed. "I could get used to this, you know," she whispered. In response, he tightened his hold for a brief moment and rested his chin on the top of her head.
    Beneath her cheek she felt the steady beating of his heart and wondered why it seemed so right when everything else about this was wrong. Her husband was missing, possibly even dead. Some maniac could arrive any minute to burn down her house or worse. And a virtual stranger was holding her in his arms for the second time that day.
    Like she belonged there.
    Only when she detected an increase in his heartbeat did she realize that his reaction to their embrace might be very different from her own. At her slightest movement, however, he stepped back.
    "Are you gonna be okay?" he asked, lifting her chin with his finger and searching her face.
    "Yes. Thank you again. I'm certainly fortunate to have crossed your path just when I needed a few good hugs."
    He gave her a slow smile. "There's plenty more where they came from."
    She smiled back but his words only compounded her concern that he might eventually be expecting to share more than a friendly hug. He was acting out of consideration now, but he was still a man. Not only was it extremely inappropriate to think about such a thing at the moment, she never intended to have another relationship built on lust.
    "Oh, jeez!" Teri blurted out. "I forgot to check voice mail." A moment later she played back the one message left while they were gone. "Teri. It's Selena. Please call me as soon as you listen to this message. You know, you really ought to plug in your studio phone when you're alone. What if something important happened and someone was trying to reach you? Call me. 'Bye."
    When she turned back to Drew, he was investigating the inside of her refrigerator. "It was only Selena," she said, nudging him out of the way.
    "I thought she was supposed to be here today."
    "I told her not to come up." She pulled out the sandwich fixings and again asked his preference.
    "Turkey's fine. And I'll take some of that lettuce and tomato, on whole wheat bread. Have you got any thousand island dressing?" Again he dipped his head inside the fridge.
    "Yes. Now please sit down and let me do something for you. Or are you one of those people who consider the contents of refrigerators vastly intriguing?"
    He laughed aloud. "Guilty as charged." He sat quietly, appearing completely relaxed, while she turned a quick bite into a work of luncheon art with the aid of olives, pickles, and chips.
    "Did Selena need something?" Drew said between mouthfuls.
    "I doubt it. I'll call her back later. She's the poster girl for high maintenance . Needs to talk to me every day. Oh, that didn't sound very nice. I don't mean it in a bad way. Truly. She's just, well, in many ways she's like a lost little girl. She has more or less attached herself to me."
    "I noticed. She's a one-woman Teri Carmichael fan club, from what I've seen so far."
    Teri nodded. "I know. I'm not sure what I ever did to deserve such blind devotion, but my ego appreciates it. There are times though, when... oh, never mind."
    "What?"
    "Nothing. It's petty."
    "Good. Say somethin' petty and mean. If only to assure me you're not a total saint and Selena has a flaw beneath that way-too-perfect exterior."
    Teri was oddly pleased