Protective Custody by Debra Webb

Author:Debra Webb [Webb, Debra]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2001-12-22T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

By late afternoon on Sunday, Nicole felt ready to explode. Furious with herself as much as with Ian for feeling so helpless, she reached for the hand towel on the kitchen counter at the same time as he did. They glanced at each other briefly, but not briefly enough. Electricity zinged between them. Ian acquiesced with a barely perceptible nod, abandoning the towel to Nicole then turning his attention to the salad he was preparing. His long fingers poised on the tomato as he diced it with the skill of a master chef. Nicole dutifully dried the just-washed utensils, undeniably aware of Ian’s every move. Disgusted, she tossed the towel aside and glanced at the battery-operated clock on the wall. Nicole quickly performed her second mental calculation of the day. Forty-three hours, twenty-seven minutes together, alone, in this growing-smaller-by-the-moment cabin. She bit back the urge to scream or break something.

The tension in the cubicle-sized kitchen was thick enough to cut with the knife Ian was currently using to chop the bell pepper. Taking a deep breath, Nicole decided to check on the pasta and sauce. Ian had insisted that, this being a holiday weekend, they should have some sort of celebratory meal. Nicole started toward the stove, Ian turned in the direction of the sink and she barreled smack into his mile-wide chest.

“Sorry,” he murmured.

Nicole jumped back, holding her palms out to ward off any further apology or moves in her direction. “It’s fine.”

While he watched contritely, Nicole stepped around him, maintaining a safe distance between their bodies. She stirred the pasta, then the sauce, staring into the thick, red concoction as if it held the answers to all her problems.

“Almost done, don’t you think?”

Startled, Nicole jerked away from the sound of Ian’s silky voice. Standing entirely too close to her for comfort, he regarded her for a long moment. Nicole’s heart flip-flopped hard beneath her sternum. He hadn’t bothered to shave this morning, and the day’s beard growth only intensified his sexy aura. He looked dark and dangerous and absolutely delicious.

“Why are you so jumpy, Nicole?”

Nicole set the wooden spoon aside and placed the lid on the sauce. Ian didn’t move, he hovered over her as if she needed his full attention. She pushed her suddenly damp palms over her jean-clad hips and lifted her chin defiantly. She glared at Ian to produce the full effect.

“I’m not jumpy,” she snapped. “I’m just tired of bumping into you that’s all.” She folded her arms over her middle and retreated a step. “You’re crowding me, Ian. Every time I turn around you’re there.”

He shrugged vaguely, his gaze carefully controlled. “It’s difficult to stay out of each other’s way in such close quarters,” he said so calmly, so reasonably she wanted to slap him to see if his expression would change.

Irritation, desperation and a dozen other emotions whirled inside her. She had to get out of here. No one was coming as long as Ian shadowed her every move like this. Nicole had to find a way to ditch him.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.