that caught him off guard even as it settled deep within him like it belonged there.
Like one of his high school students with his first girlfriend, he wanted to put his arm around her and parade her through the cafeteria so everyone could see that she was his. Of course she wasn’t his—not his girlfriend. Not even a friend. She was a stranger. A victim of circumstance, stuck in this god-awful place just like he was.
But he’d seen her watching him—he’d seen her because he couldn’t seem to stop watching her. As strange as their meeting was, as bizarre as the unfolding night had become, it somehow felt right—intended. And when he’d touched her, held her, kissed her….
He wanted to know everything about her. He wanted to talk about who she was and what she wanted.
No, in truth, he didn't want to talk at all. He wanted her in his arms again, pressed tightly against his body.
“What are you thinking?” she asked softly and her voice had a husky tremor in it that sparked along his nerves.
He blinked, feeling heat creep up his neck. “I’m thinking about this storm.”
She tilted her head to the side and he had the uncanny sense that she knew he’d meant the storm inside him, not the one trapping them in this house.
“It feels a little…prearranged, doesn’t it? You and me, stuck here because of it. It seemed to just come out of nowhere, didn’t it?”
“Like a bolt of lightning,” he said, caught in the swirling sparkle of her eyes. She was like a bolt of lightning. Blindingly bright, breathtakingly unexpected. He felt like he’d been struck. No—not struck. Flattened like his truck outside.
He didn’t understand why Carly had that effect on him, but he couldn’t pretend she hadn’t shaken him up. More than the hero syndrome his brother accused him of having sparked his interest in Carly. He’d have noticed her anywhere. His brother was a psychologist, but he didn’t have a clue about how a relationship between one man and one woman should be. He’d never believed in the kind of feelings that…that struck like lightning. For him it was all about lust. JD would be lying if he didn’t admit a good deal of lust was at work within him, but there was more to it than that.
Bill had a great wife and kids, but he jumped into bed with every woman who ever batted her eyes at him. Now he was paying for his wrong decisions. His life was in shambles, his wife was going to leave him. The university had talked of suspension. All that kept him from getting fired were the investments he managed to convince others to give to the university. He seemed to have a knack for bringing in money.
Grant money. Carly said Jillian had sent an article about a professor who’d won a big grant. His gut told him it had to be about Bill. His suspicions that Jillian was the girl Bill had planned to meet that afternoon had grown to certainty. He pushed the thoughts away to analyze later and went back to studying Carly.
Unlike his brother, JD was much more careful about who he became involved with and when he decided to do it. And here, in this house of horrors with Carly—and her fantastic story about finding her friend’s car by luck—was not the place to change his ways…was it?
He gazed into her eyes and wished he knew what she was thinking. Did she feel it too, this pull between them?
“What’s going on behind those baby blues, Carly?” he asked.
Carly shook her head, catching her bottom lip between her teeth as she looked up at him. Despite his best intentions, JD found himself staring at her mouth.
“Why are you here, JD?” she said at last. “I mean, really? What brought you out in this storm tonight? And don’t tell me you were just driving around looking for someone to rescue.”
“No,” he said. “I wasn’t. I told you, I was supposed to meet my brother at his office. Why?”
She looked down again, pretending a
Like one of his high school students with his first girlfriend, he wanted to put his arm around her and parade her through the cafeteria so everyone could see that she was his. Of course she wasn’t his—not his girlfriend. Not even a friend. She was a stranger. A victim of circumstance, stuck in this god-awful place just like he was.
But he’d seen her watching him—he’d seen her because he couldn’t seem to stop watching her. As strange as their meeting was, as bizarre as the unfolding night had become, it somehow felt right—intended. And when he’d touched her, held her, kissed her….
He wanted to know everything about her. He wanted to talk about who she was and what she wanted.
No, in truth, he didn't want to talk at all. He wanted her in his arms again, pressed tightly against his body.
“What are you thinking?” she asked softly and her voice had a husky tremor in it that sparked along his nerves.
He blinked, feeling heat creep up his neck. “I’m thinking about this storm.”
She tilted her head to the side and he had the uncanny sense that she knew he’d meant the storm inside him, not the one trapping them in this house.
“It feels a little…prearranged, doesn’t it? You and me, stuck here because of it. It seemed to just come out of nowhere, didn’t it?”
“Like a bolt of lightning,” he said, caught in the swirling sparkle of her eyes. She was like a bolt of lightning. Blindingly bright, breathtakingly unexpected. He felt like he’d been struck. No—not struck. Flattened like his truck outside.
He didn’t understand why Carly had that effect on him, but he couldn’t pretend she hadn’t shaken him up. More than the hero syndrome his brother accused him of having sparked his interest in Carly. He’d have noticed her anywhere. His brother was a psychologist, but he didn’t have a clue about how a relationship between one man and one woman should be. He’d never believed in the kind of feelings that…that struck like lightning. For him it was all about lust. JD would be lying if he didn’t admit a good deal of lust was at work within him, but there was more to it than that.
Bill had a great wife and kids, but he jumped into bed with every woman who ever batted her eyes at him. Now he was paying for his wrong decisions. His life was in shambles, his wife was going to leave him. The university had talked of suspension. All that kept him from getting fired were the investments he managed to convince others to give to the university. He seemed to have a knack for bringing in money.
Grant money. Carly said Jillian had sent an article about a professor who’d won a big grant. His gut told him it had to be about Bill. His suspicions that Jillian was the girl Bill had planned to meet that afternoon had grown to certainty. He pushed the thoughts away to analyze later and went back to studying Carly.
Unlike his brother, JD was much more careful about who he became involved with and when he decided to do it. And here, in this house of horrors with Carly—and her fantastic story about finding her friend’s car by luck—was not the place to change his ways…was it?
He gazed into her eyes and wished he knew what she was thinking. Did she feel it too, this pull between them?
“What’s going on behind those baby blues, Carly?” he asked.
Carly shook her head, catching her bottom lip between her teeth as she looked up at him. Despite his best intentions, JD found himself staring at her mouth.
“Why are you here, JD?” she said at last. “I mean, really? What brought you out in this storm tonight? And don’t tell me you were just driving around looking for someone to rescue.”
“No,” he said. “I wasn’t. I told you, I was supposed to meet my brother at his office. Why?”
She looked down again, pretending a
Similar Books
