What an arrogant jerk!

He calmly returned my gaze. “I’m a bit tired of waiting and I’m definitely tired of your man parade.” His voice was slightly edgy and a little scary. “Fortunately, you’ve presented me with this golden opportunity.”

He could damn well wait until hell froze over.

He wasn’t going to keep me at arm’s length for ages and then just reel me in when he felt like it.

“Well, I’m not done avoiding you!” I said.

As he was talking, he’d moved slightly back.

He came in close again.

“Nope. No more waiting, no more games, no more avoiding and no more other guys. You want this and I want this and it’s going to happen.”

“I don’t want this,” I lied, self-protection and all that. He was an arrogant jerk. He was scary as hell. He was trying to force me to sleep with him and using my friend to do it. He was bad news. I wanted no part in Lee Nightingale.

And that was that.

He laughed softly. “Bullshit.”

He thought I was funny.

I saw red.

“Of all the –”

He kissed me again and this time, Joe Perry was a fleeting memory.

I gave into the kiss immediately.

What could I say? It was Lee.

It was getting good, his mouth was open and so was mine, his tongue was in my mouth and then mine was in his. My legs opened further and he got closer. His arms tightened and my br**sts flattened against his chest. My arms went around his neck and I pressed against him.

Then his lips tore away from mine as his head shot up and twisted around, his entire body tensed, coiled, waiting.

Then Kitty Sue and Ally turned the corner from the entryway into the kitchen.

Kitty Sue’s hand went to her throat, her eyes widened and then, I swear, they filled with tears.

Ally started laughing.

I looked to the ceiling.

Shit.

Chapter Four

Do I Need to Kiss You Again?

My reaction was immediate.

“I’m gonna kill you,” I told Ally.

She walked in and dropped an overnight bag on the floor, chuckling.

She set me up. She knew Lee was coming home last night. Crazy bitch.

“What’s going on here?” Kitty Sue asked hopefully, rooted to the spot and staring at us, not with disapproval at our carnal clinch, but with eyes filled with hopeful bliss.

Lee got his eyes from Kitty Sue, and all the kids got their long, lean body from her. Kitty Sue was always a bundle of energy, the kind of Mom who held down a full-time job, made dinner every night, had home-baked cookies in the cookie jar and, every year, sewed all her kids’ Halloween costumes from scratch.

Lee moved to the side then jumped up and sat on the counter beside me.

I hastily closed my legs.

“Anyone want coffee?” Lee asked courteously.

I jumped down and took a step forward, escape on my mind. It was pretty clear to me that I’d slid through a tear between the worlds and I had to find my way back to my home world pretty damn quick.

Further, now that the Lee of this world was no longer kissing me, I had to get away from him or I was going to wrap my hands around his neck and squeeze.

Lee leaned forward, caught me by the waistband of my jeans and hauled me back between his legs.

“What’s going on here?” Kitty Sue repeated, her eyes taking in the cozy scene.

Far too cozy. Far too fast. Far too weird.

Shit.

I opened my mouth to speak but Lee beat me to it.

“Indy and I are together now.”

My entire body froze in disbelief, my mouth still open.

“Oh my God. Oh my God,” Kitty Sue chanted.

“Righteous!” Ally exclaimed.

I twisted around and glared at Lee. “You said one night of sex!”

Lee’s eyes held mine. “I didn’t say one night. We’ve been waitin’ a long time, one night won’t do it.” Then he paused and said, “But, if you want, we can try.”

My br**sts swelled at the idea of trying to fit years of sex into one night with Lee.

I ignored my br**sts and paid attention to my temper.

I figured it would be bad form to smack Lee in front of his mother.

And definitely strangulation was out.

Kitty Sue was in her little slice of heaven, so much so, she missed my “one night of sex” comment and Lee’s response.

“I can’t wait to tell your father,” she told me, “and your father,” she told Lee.

“I wouldn’t do that,” I said, beginning to panic.

“Of course, we all shouldn’t get too excited. This is happening fast, though not that fast, if-you-know-what-I-mean,” Kitty Sue went on.

Fast? This wasn’t fast. This was warp speed

Kitty Sue was staring dreamily ahead, not focused on a thing and we’d all melted into the atmosphere. She was picking wedding colors, she was deciding china patterns, she was mentally knitting baby booties, she was planning her visit to my mother’s grave to impart the blissful news.

Shit.

I twisted back to Lee.

“Asshole,” I mouthed.

He was unfazed at my word though he seemed somewhat fascinated with watching my mouth form it.

“I brought you a change of clothes and some of your stuff,” Ally said, reaching behind us and grabbing the coffeepot. “Looks like I should have brought more.”

I moved my glare to her.

She was just as good at ignoring it as Lee, better, she’d had more practice.

“I’ll take some of that. Indy already has a cup,” Lee murmured.

“Not surprising,” Ally said, pouring coffee into three mugs.

They were acting like it was business as usual at Lee’s condo, just like it was any other day and I decided I was most definitely in an alternate universe because this was all just plain old nuts.

“Listen people!” I cried, trying to get everyone’s attention. “This is not what it seems.”

Ally looked at me.

Kitty Sue’s happily dazed eyes focused on me.

Lee’s hard thighs tightened on my sides and his forearm wrapped around my chest and neck. His chin dipped to the curve of my shoulder, his lips at my ear.

“Don’t spoil Mom’s moment,” he murmured there.

“What is it, then?” Kitty Sue asked.

Lee’s fingers dug into my shoulder and I could feel the muscles flexing in his forearm at my neck. I took one look in Kitty Sue’s eyes.

Damn it all to hell.

“We’re taking it slow,” I said for lack of anything else to say, like, the truth.

Wouldn’t sound so good to say, Your son is trying to extort sex from me. News at eleven.