Free Not the Marrying Kind (Destiny Bay Romances - Forever Yours) by Helen Conrad

matter.   He didn’t care for that picture much.  
    And anyway, didn’t she realize that he’d done her a favor by not pursuing a relationship with her?   He’d been tempted.   And he’d done the honorable thing—hadn’t he?
    “It’s my job,” he said shortly.   “That’s the way it works.”
    “It’s your choice,” she shot back.   “Nobody’s forcing you.”
    A lot she knew about it.   He pushed his half-eaten burger aside and reached for his wallet, pulling out a large bill and dropping it on the counter before he slid off his stool and glared at her.  
    “Have a nice life, Shelley Carrington.   Enjoy your family and your nice little beach town.   I’ve got work to do.”
    “Good bye, Michael,” she said softly.   “And be…be careful.”   Her voice trembled and she winced.  
    He stared at her.   He had an overpowering need to kiss her beautiful mouth, kiss it hard and make her feel what he was feeling.   But if he had talent for anything it was self-control and he exerted it now.   Turning on his heel, he made his way out of the café, almost running into a tall, casually dressed man on his way in.    
    “Sorry,” he muttered, and walked on, stifling the urge to want to hit something.  
    Back in the café, Shelley slid onto the stool he’d left behind, fighting back tears.  
    “Hey Shelley,” said the young man Michael had almost bumped into.   He leaned forward and studied her eyes.   “You okay?”
    Shelley looked up and smiled shakily.   “Hey Tag,” she said to her cousin.   “I just…”   She shrugged.
    Tag looked out through the window at the man who’d just left and thought he had some idea of what might have happened.   Instead of going to the back of the café to join the other Carringtons, he dropped onto the stool beside her and reached over to give her a hug.  
    “What’s going on, Shelley?” he asked her quietly.   “Anything I can help you with?”
    She shook her head, smiling at him gratefully.     “No.   I’m supposed to be a professional at this emotional stuff.   You’d think I could have it under better control.”
    He nodded and smiled, touching her hand with his in a quick gesture of support.  
    “So what’s the deal?” he said, taking her cue to move the conversation on.   “You getting to be a certified psychiatrist or something?”
    “No, just a psychologist.   You have to have a medical degree to be a psychiatrist.”
    By now, Tag was gazing at her speculatively.   “Do you think you could help Missy?” he asked, talking about his reclusive younger sister.  
    “Help her?”
    He nodded.   “She’s such a great girl but she’s so…shy I guess you’d say.   I just think her life should be so much more than what she lets herself have right now.   You know what I mean?”
    Shelley knew Missy had problems.   Her first reaction was to explain why it was impossible to see her.   Missy was a relative and she really wasn’t supposed to treat relatives.   Maybe she could get Jeff to have a session or two with her.  
    But she knew that wouldn’t work.   She could already imagine how impatient he would be with her and that would only make her problem worse.   Still—what could she do?  
    “I guess you know about how our mother ran away from our father and took me and Missy along when we were young,” he said, leaning close and talking softly.  
    Shelley nodded.   He was talking about old family history.   She’d heard Tag’s mother referred to as “that crazy hippy” so many times, she had a feeling she knew what he’d gone through.   She’d broken Uncle Michael’s heart, they said.   There had been whisperings about boyfriends and partying and situations a mother had no business putting a young child through.  
    “I was just a kid,” Tag was saying, staring at the wall.   “Sometimes I didn’t protect Missy like I should have.”   He turned to pin her with his beautiful gray eyes.