A Dangerous Love

She followed him to the front door and looked up at him inquisitively. He leaned forward, as if to say something in her ear. She leaned forward and he quickly kissed her on the mouth.

"Happy birthday and have a nice day." He grinned and winked.

It wasn't the kiss that bothered her so much. It was the deception. He had become far too familiar and apparently assumed a relationship that didn't exist. On the other hand, hadn't she put that idea into his head last night? She spoke her mind.

"Last night shouldn't have happened. I'm sorry I acted that way."

His gaze searched her eyes, but for once apparently found no answer.

"Well I'm not sorry, and I don't know why you should be. Why shouldn't it have happened?"

She took a step back from him. "Because it was unprofessional. Because we barely know each other. For a lot of reasons."

He sighed and rubbed his head as though the whole idea gave him a headache. "I don't want things to be professional - not for you here and not between us. This isn't an office. It's our home and you're more than a sitter or maid to all of us. You must know that."

Actually, she didn't know that. It was a romantic idea, but she hadn't been there long enough to mean that much to either Tammy or Sarah. The only person who didn't view her as a sitter or maid was Yancey, and his viewpoint was as a lover.

"I know I'm mostly to blame for last night, but I'm not here to entertain you."

His somber gaze was alluring - probably because he was unaware of how attractive it was. For a moment she wanted to retract the part about being entertainment, but when he spoke she realized it might have been exactly what she needed to say.

He tipped his head to the side. "I never meant to make you feel that way. I'm sorry if I offended you."

She met his sober gaze. "I'm not offended. It's just that I got derailed and I need to get on track."

Her own words bounced off the wall and came back as a flash of memory and imagination. Her expression must have looked stricken, because he reached for her.

"It's alright to grieve," he said, pulling her into his arms.

There was nothing sexual about his embrace this time. It was pure consolation. She snuggled into his arms and felt safe for the first time since the accident. Tears filled her eyes, but she forced the water fight at her car into her mind to push out the other. It worked. Finally she pulled away.