For a second she was tempted to tell him to leave her alone. Not a goodidea, she thought. She didn't dare let him know he bothered her.
"Sorry if I frightened you."
"You didn't," she lied.
The tension between them suddenly seemed palpable.
"What's going on?" he asked.
She studied him, realizing that he wasn't as "in charge" as she hadfirst thought. He seemed as uncomfortable around her as she was aroundhim, which was in her favor. That meant they would avoid each other,another thing in her favor.
Yet she couldn't stop her eyes from soaking up everything about him,from his dark hair and heavy-lidded blue eyes down to his silk shirt andcausal slacks. Three buttons at the neck of that shirt were unbuttoned,allowing her to see the black hair nestled at his throat.
She swallowed, stopping her gaze from traveling lower, to the zipper of his jeans and the power she knew was hidden there.
Feeling her face burn, Cassie turned away to collect herself. After clearing her throat, she looked back at him and said, "I'm working."
He pushed himself away from the door and walked closer to the desk.
She smelled his cologne, which further tantalized her senses, making her
angry at herself.
"That's not necessary, you know," he said, easing down on the edge of the desk.
"I wish you wouldn't do that."
"What?" "Sit there," she said tersely.
He shrugged, then moved to a nearby tapestry chair. "So how's Wilma
feeling?"
"Why don't you stop beating around the bush and ask what I'm doing here in Mother's office?"
"I thought I already had when I asked "What's going on?"
" Mother's dying, Austin, or at least that's what the doctors have told
her. Did you know that?"
Austin vaulted to his feet.
"Hell no."
"I thought Daddy would've told you."
"Well, he damn sure didn't." Austin turned away and rubbed the back of
his neck.
"It's her heart, right?"
Cassie nodded, her throat too full to speak. She hadn't as yet come to
grips with the ramifications of her mother's bombshell. It was difficultto talk about, especially with Austin. But because of the hotelsituation, she had no choice.
"I'm sorry," he finally said, an awkwardness in his tone.
"For all of us."
"Well, she's not dead yet. And I'm holding out hope that the doctors are
wrong."
"I'm with you on that."
Cassie took a deep breath.
"So, to get back to your earlier question, I'm taking her place here at
the hotel." There, she'd said it; she'd dropped her own grenade.
From the stunned look he gave her, it had definitely exploded. He'd had no idea, but then, how could he?
"You mean you're staying in town?"
"For now, yes."
His gaze pinned her, centered more on her breasts than on her eyes.
He did that on purpose, she knew, trying to disconcert her.
A telltale flush invaded her cheeks, but she still didn't give an inch,
even when he continued to challenge her.
"Do you think that's a good idea?"
"Whether it is or not isn't your call."
"I can handle this hotel. Hell, I've been doing it since Wilma got
sick."
"I know, but she doesn't think that's fair."
"Fair?" He laughed an ugly laugh.
"When the hell has anything in this life been fair?"
Before she could answer, he pressed his hands on her desk and leaned
toward her, so quickly and so closely that the bottom dropped out of her
stomach while her eyes widened. She could see every line, every angle,
of his face.
For a moment their eyes locked, and she held her breath.
"Dammit," he muttered harshly before rising and turning his back on her.
Cassie finally breathed into the tense silence.
"Look, I know how you feel about me."
He swung around.
"You don't know the first thing about me."
"I know you blame yourself for what happened that evening," she lashed
back, then wanted to cut her tongue out.
He sucked in his breath.
"I see you haven't lost your razor-sharp mouth."
"Sorry, Austin," she responded in a weary voice.
"I didn't mean for that to slip out."
If only she had known how hard it would be to carry on a civil
conversation with him, she would have had second thoughts about confronting him.
"This isn't going to work, you know."
"I say it is."
"Maybe it would be best if you left town again."
Cassie gasped, but she still didn't flinch.
"That's not going to happen. Look, what happened between us on that
beach has remained our dirty little secret all these years.
There's no reason why that has to change now."
A smirk touched his lips.
"Besides," she added, "we're both grown adults now who should be able to
control our emotions."