A Family Kind of Guy by Lisa Jackson

far too late for apologies or explanations. “Listen, I shouldn’t have asked.”
    â€œBut you did.”
    â€œNever mind, I really don’t need to know,” she said, starting for the door.
    â€œI should have called you. Shouldn’t have been bullied into… Oh, hell, what does it matter?”
    She swallowed hard and turned to face him again. Maybe this was the time to sort things out. “When…when I got out of the hospital ten years ago, you were already gone,” she said and saw a shadow of pain pass behind his eyes. “Dad said you’d had some surgery yourself, then eloped to Reno.”
    A muscle worked in his jaw. “That’s not exactly what happened.”
    â€œNo?” She stood straight and met his gaze with her own. “The way I see it, you were two-timing me.”
    â€œNever.”
    Oh, God, how she wanted to believe him, to trust the honesty reflected in his eyes; to think, even for a minute, that he’d cared about her. But she couldn’t. He’d been a liar then and was a liar now. She was shaking inside and realized that the conversation was getting too personal. Way too personal, and Mason, blast his sorry good-looking hide, didn’t seem afraid to open doors that had been locked for a decade. “I think you should back off with Dad.”
    â€œI thought we were talking about us.”
    â€œThere is no ‘us,’ Mason. You took care of that. Remember?” She caught the door handle with one finger.
    â€œIt might be a good idea for me to explain.”
    â€œAnd I think it might be a good idea for you to go straight to hell, but I told you that already, didn’t I? Ten years ago. If not, then consider the request retroactive.”
    â€œDamn it, Bliss, don’t you think I’ve been there?”
    She arched a cool brow. “I don’t really care.”
    â€œLiar!” This time he reached forward so quickly she gasped. Strong fingers surrounded her arm.
    â€œObviously we need to talk a little more,” he said, pressing his face so close to hers she noticed the furious dilation of his pupils, felt the warmth of his breath on her already-hot skin. Determination glinted in his eyes.
    â€œI don’t think so.”
    â€œThere are things you don’t know.”
    She tried to hold on to her rapidly disintegrating composure and yank her arm away, but his steely grip only tightened. Her heart began to thump so wildly she could scarcely breathe. “I’m sure there are, but I’m not interested in ancient history, Mason.”
    â€œThen let’s talk about now.”
    â€œWhat about now?”
    His gaze lowered to her lips and her breath stilled. A dozen memories, erotic and forbidden, waltzed slowly and provocatively through her mind. Her pulse ran rampant. Swallowing against a suddenly tight throat, she said, “Let me go.”
    â€œI made that mistake once before.”
    She yanked hard on her arms, but his hand only gripped tighter, his eyes glinting with sheer male persistence. “As I said, I think we should talk about us.”
    Her laugh was brittle. “Us. Now? You and me? You can’t be serious.”
    â€œI’ve never been more serious about anything in my life,” he said, though there were doubts in his eyes, as if he, too, remembered the pain and the lies. He pulled her closer to him and she knew in an instant that he was going to kiss her.
    â€œThis—this is a mistake.”
    â€œA big one,” he agreed, his breath whispering across her face before his lips found hers in a kiss that questioned and demanded, that was fragile yet firm. A kiss that stole the very breath from her lungs and caused her heart to trip-hammer madly.
    Every instinct told her to stop this madness, to pull away; but another part of her, that silly, romantic, feminine part of her, wanted more. Her lips parted and his tongue slid quickly between her teeth, touching