Free 2. Come Be My Love by Annette Broadrick Page A

very profound, I'm afraid." Brandi was uncomfortable talking about herself, and she searched for something to say that would effectively turn the subject away from her. Without thinking about Greg's possible reaction, she said, "I'm so glad I've had this chance to meet you, Greg. Tim's right. You're a very special person."
    His eyes narrowed slightly. "What sort of tales has Tim been spreading about me?"
    Brandi shook her head. "Nothing that you need to feel ashamed of, I'm sure."
    He frowned slightly, staring into the fire. "I should have known better than to leave him alone with you."
    "He says you're a very private man."
    Greg gave her comment some thought. "I suppose lam."
    "And yet you've been very open with me," she pointed out.
    "You have that effect on me. I don't understand it, nor can I explain it."
    "I'm glad, Greg," she said softly. Leaning toward him, she kissed him softly on the cheek.
    He turned and pulled her into his lap. Leaning back against the sofa, he looked down at her. "This is a dangerous situation, you know," he said slowly. "One of us needs to hang on to his sanity."
    She smiled and stroked his cheek. "What a sensible idea. Should we draw straws and see who wins?"
    He lowered his head slightly and touched his lips to hers. Raising his head a few inches, he asked, "And the winner hangs on to his sanity?"
    She touched her lips to his for a brief instant and said, "No. The loser." Her arms circled his neck and she sighed, her mouth settling once more against his.
    Brandi felt as though she had suffered through agonizing hours waiting to be kissed by Greg once again. She didn't understand the effect he had on her. She couldn't have begun to describe what was happening to her. All she knew was that she would be content to spend the rest of her life right where she was at this moment.
    Greg felt as though he'd been fighting against the inexorable pull Brandi had on him ever since he'd awakened to find her presence a part of his vacation package. With her response, Brandi had inadvertently broken through all the barricades and restraints he'd placed between them.
    A moan that was only barely audible registered Greg's capitulation to forces no longer in his control. The attraction he felt toward Brandi overrode every other consideration—of trust, of friendship, of the future. He knew that he would make love to her that night, regardless of what the morning would bring in the way of consequences.
    Brandi sensed the change in his kiss. She felt possessed ... claimed... branded—and never gave a thought to putting up a struggle. How could she, when this was what she wanted?
    Greg eased her down onto the plush rug in front of the flickering flames. Pulling away slightly, he eased her sweater over her head, then removed the turtle-neck shirt she wore for added warmth.
    Her soft skin glowed with a rosy tint from the warmth and color of the fire. Brandi smiled, never taking her eyes off of Greg's face, not even when he unfastened her bra and carefully pulled it from her shoulders.
    "I've never wanted to make love to anyone the way I want you," he whispered, planting tiny kisses at the base of her neck.
    Brandi's hands came up, and she ran her fingers through the silkiness of his hair. "I know the feeling," she admitted.
    "This is crazy," he muttered, unerringly finding the tip of her breast with his lips.
    His hands lightly stroked across her back and down her spine, pressing her closer to him. Brandi slid her hands beneath his sweater and luxuriated in the feel of the taut muscles in his shoulders and arms.
    His hand slid to the snap of her pants, and he hesitated. Raising his head, he listened for the sound he thought he had heard, a sound that did not blend with the others coming from outside.
    Brandi slowly opened her eyes and gazed up at his flushed face. His profile was turned to her as he stared toward the front of the cabin. Gone was the lover. In his place was the instinctive animal, guarding its