Free Seducing Steve by Maggie Wells Page B

the order to shut his mouth, but he was pretty damn sure his yap was still hanging wide open. Neurons fired, his fingers clenched into a fist, and he snapped his jaw shut. Sara stared up at him, her gaze clear, direct, and breathtakingly cool.
    A white-hot flash of purely irrational jealousy rushed through him, but when he spoke, his tone was icy. “Maybe we’re not. Maybe I’m not the only muse you have.”
    “Well, Sharon Stone hasn’t been around, if that’s what you’re wondering…”
    Her flip answer set his teeth on edge. “Exactly how many guys are participating in your little focus group?”
    “Not funny,” she snarled.
    “No, it’s not, considering we haven’t exactly been investing in latex!”
    She launched herself from the sofa. “Fuck you!”
    He crossed his arms over his chest. “Oh, you have, darlin’ ,” he drawled. “Every night this week.”
    “Not tonight,” she shot back.
    He closed the distance between them in one long stride. “You workin’ the others in during the day?”
    The crack of her palm hitting his cheek jolted them both back to their senses. Sara stared down at her open hand, blinking in bewilderment at the deep pink staining her skin.
    Steve rubbed his fingers over his stubbled jaw and spit out the only words that came to mind. “I’m sorry.”
    “I’ve never hit anyone before. Not even Adam,” she murmured, her attention absorbed by the reddened palm of her hand. “I didn’t like him as much as I like you.” Sara raised her head, a thin sheen of tears filming her eyes as she met his gaze.
    Steve cringed. Blue flames of defiance blazed in her eyes. “Sara, I—”
    “There’s no one else.”
    “I know that.”
    Her eyebrows shot up to her hairline. “You do? How do you know? I could be—”
    “I know you.” He sighed and ran his hand through his hair once again. “I do, and I’m sorry. I was a million miles out of line.”
    “Not every day your best friend calls you a whore,” she mumbled. Steve hung his head. “Of course, you didn’t say I was getting paid for it, so I guess that makes me a slut, not a whore.”
    Steve closed his eyes, letting the air seep from his lungs and pushing it out through his nose. “What are we doing here?” His voice cracked, but at that moment he was beyond caring.
    He opened his eyes to find Sara staring at him, her eyes wide. “We’re, uh...”
    When she trailed off, he shook his head. “Yeah, I don’t know, either.”
    “Steve.”
    “I should go home.”
    “But... No! Don’t go! Don’t go, it’s just a...This is stupid,” she said. Sara’s hands splayed. Her tone was imploring, but her eyes were wary.
    “Maybe we’ve spent too much time together.”
    “I like spending time with you.” She took a hasty step forward then drew up just short of touching him. “That’s my point. We’ve been spending a lot of time together, but it’s not the same kind of time we used to spend.”
    Her blunt assessment made him chuckle. Steve ran his palm over the back of his neck, his fingers kneading the tense muscles there. “Here I was feeling pretty good about not having to fight the urge to stick my tongue down your throat.”
    Her laugh came sharp and brittle. “Oh, so you think you can stick your tongue down my throat whenever you want?”
    He worked his smile into a leer. “Yes, ma’am.”
    A shaft of pain lanced his heart. Drawing a deep breath he let his head fall forward. He pressed his lips together and gave voice to his deepest fear. “That’s the thing…It can’t be the same, Sara.”
    “Why not? I mean, we’re still friends, right? I care about you, you care about me…Why can’t we just have this little bit more?”
    “It complicates things.”
    Sara turned away, her jaw tensing as she glared at the television screen. “It doesn’t have to complicate things,” she whispered at last. When she faced him again, her aqua eyes shimmered with unshed tears. “I promise I won’t let anything