Excerpt:

She
did a little quick step, swinging her hips in a sexy swaying motion. His mouth
gaped, and he blinked double-time.

     She closed in.

     He backed up.

     “I guess. I didn’t know you could dance.
In fact you told me you couldn’t. Okay, I get it. Who are you? And what have
you done with my pal Annie?” It was a corny old line, but one that made her
laugh.

     When he smiled back in his distinctive
way, another tide of flutters began in her chest and made breathing all but
impossible. Her breathy giggle, totally unlike her, had his eyes narrowing.
“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

     “Try me.”

     She inhaled and slowly released the air.
When her pink lips formed a kissing kind of contortion, she watched his gaze
zeroed in on her mouth.

     “ Lipstick?” The word slipped out,
and she wondered if he was even aware of saying it.        

     She looked down. Her hands angled out in
front as if holding an open book. “I’ve decided my life needs a total overhaul.
I haven’t talked about it much, but I’ve been unhappy with myself for years.”

     “Uhh, honey, you talk about it
frequently.”

     “Do I? Sorry.” A frown formed. She bit
down on her bottom lip, a childhood habit she couldn’t seem to break.  She swallowed, and brought her eyes back to
his face where only concern registered.

     “No problem. Go on.” His one-sider mocked her.

     “You have to agree, it’s more than time
for me to make some life changes. This morning I made up my mind.” She gulped
and leapt, no turning back. “I’m quitting the day-care. And if the Human
Resource Manager’s position is still available with Lou Montaro’s company, then
I’m going to take it. Remember how I told you he’s been after me for weeks?
I’ve thought it through very carefully, went over all my options, and I’ve
decided. I want it. Running his Personnel Department is an upper management
position. If his bribes are anything to go by, the wages will be generous.”

     Tyler sank down on the nearest red bar
stool, and stared at her. He shook his head as if to clear it. “You’re doing
what?” The loudness of his voice hinted at his confusion. “You never took his
offer seriously? You love your job, and you care about those kids. How can you
leave them?”

     For a split second she wrung her hands
and chewed at her lip gloss. When a mystical strengthening in her back reminded
her of her earlier pledge, she stopped that nonsense and squared her shoulders.

     “Tyler I have to do this. I’m
twenty-nine, and I’ve lived like a nun. I have no close friends except for you,
my computer, and my TV. I never go anywhere other than to visit the folks twice
a year, and that’s about as stimulating as—as my job’s been lately.” She
started to pace.

     “Hold it. We go out together lots. What
about our dinners, and movie nights, and all the fun mornings we’ve spent
garage-sale-ing.” The last reference was a dig at her love of bargains to fix
up her place. He grabbed her arms to hold her in front of him. His hurt,
reproachful look squeezed Annie’s soft heart, but she wouldn’t soften. “We’ve
renovated our apartments together….” She made her eyes harden, and the total
lack of expression on her face probably stopped him from continuing.

      “Good times, yes, but not too exciting.”

     “Oh, Annie, I—“

     “Tyler!” Her hand shot out and pushed in
his direction. “Listen, don’t talk, or I’ll never be able to explain.”

     “I’m listening.” His voice lowered,
sounding like a groan.

     “I want to get out more and have some
fun—go to parties, and have occasionally dates, maybe even find a boyfriend
who’ll….”

     The look on Tyler’s face made her
reconsider this line and try another.

     “Okay, look! Other than my job, our
friendship, and periodically helping you out with the runaways, my life is
empty. I need to grow up and do something different. I want to meet new people,
have new experiences. I want…more.”     

     Wailing the final word, Annie plunked
down on the red-cushioned barstool next to Tyler’s.

     He stared at her, his expression grim,
but other than shaking his head back and forth, he said nothing. She sensed that
words trembled on his lips, but he bit them back, and she relaxed. If he tried
to talk her out of her plans, she didn’t know if she had the strength to fight
him.

     “Tell me you understand. Please, Tyler, I
need for you to help me do this.” Grabbing his hand in both of hers, she held
on tight. Concentrating all her energy, she willed him to see her new
needs. 

     He shot up. All six feet two inches of
buff maleness paced up and down the small space. Jeans, worn snug and low,
showed off his lankiness, his great buns, and his muscular legs. He moved with
a hip-swaying motion that was eye-catching, sexy, and very much Tyler. A black
golf shirt clung to his well-stocked upper frame, and set off his tan. Her
hungry eyes trailed his movements, never shifting. The light caught the tiny
diamond stud in his ear that some of the teens had gotten together to buy for
his last birthday. Being Tyler, he hadn’t the heart to refuse to wear it, and
it had taken him months to get used to the trinket. She loved it, because she
knew the kids bought it to represent their admiration for a man who’d support
them through anything.

    His hands fiddled with the jean pockets as
he slid them in and out. Finally, he hovered in front of her and leaned in.