Forgotten (Shattered Sisters Book 2) by MAGGIE SHAYNE Page A

do you
do
that?"
    "Don't be silly. I saw it coming."
    "Then you must have eyes in the back of your head."
    She waggled her brows up and down. "Well hidden by my hair, aren't they?"
    His gaze changed just a little. He looked down into her face, into her eyes, and something stirred in his. Her arms around his neck held on tighter as he lowered his head. His lips found hers, nuzzled, then parted and possessed. She let her head fall backward and clung to him for dear life as her pulse rate skyrocketed.
    This wasn't fair. She wasn't supposed to feel this way toward him. It was an act...an act that was necessary to save his life, and Caroline's. And yet she had no defenses. As his wife, how could she refuse even to kiss him? She was lucky he hadn't charmed her into a lot more. She didn't need ESP to know he wanted her. And if she kept refusing, he was going to guess the truth, or at least wonder about it. Kissing him was another part of her cover.
    Right. Get honest, she told herself. She was kissing him because she
wanted
to kiss him. The feel of his mouth covering hers, the warm dampness at the back of his neck where she clung, the taste of him, all combined in an ardent assault on her senses. He was storming the gates she'd erected, and she had the insane urge to help him tear them down. Deep down inside, she knew she wanted more than his kiss. Much, much more.

    They stopped at a convenience store for deli meat and sub rolls on the way back. When they arrived at Joey's place, clothes still damp and hair in tangles, Caroline's car was in the driveway. Ash was craving a shower, and he figured he'd probably get first crack at one. Joey would want to speak in private with her sister.
    He sent her a reassuring glance as she shut off the motor and then they both got out and walked around the house. Brittany and Bethany were chasing each other around the back lawn, near the house. It looked like a spirited game of tag. Caroline sat in a lawn chair, watching them. Her hair, as always, was up in a ponytail. She wore sweats again. Ash took a moment to note how alike the two women were. If Caro would get some spunk and hold her head up a little higher, she'd be a knockout. He didn’t think he’d realized until that very moment what a difference confidence made in a woman’s appeal, at least to him.
    What was that? Was he just thinking Caroline ought to be a little more like Joey? That the dedicated soccer mom should be more like her hellion sister?
    Then he recalled the way Joey had let him kiss her on the sidewalk, the way she'd kissed him back, and he knew he hadn't yet succeeded in convincing himself she was all wrong for him. His mind knew it. But, God, he was having trouble proving that to the rest of him.
    Caroline rose and met Joey halfway. Her eyes were red and her cheeks showed tear tracks. She hugged her sister and a sob ripped through her. I’m...l-leaving him."
    Joey met Ash's eyes over Caroline's shaking shoulders. "It's all right. It's going to be all right, I promise. You're tough. You can get through this." She sent him an apologetic glance. "You and the girls can stay right here with Ash and me."
    He made a grimace, then remembered that they were planning to spend some time at his apartment anyway to help restore his memory. For someone who would be found out as a result, Joey certainly seemed eager for him to get his memory back.
    Joey released her sister and turned to unlock the back door as Bethany and Brittany came running toward her. Caroline averted her tearstained face while her daughters crowded inside.
    "You should have gone on in, Caro. You didn't need to wait for me."
    "I didn't want to intrude."
    "If I minded, I wouldn't have given you a key, silly."
    Ash stopped in the doorway, sensing the turmoil in Caroline and the pain it caused Joey. "I'll get the groceries," he said. "Leave you two alone."
    "No need." Caroline sniffed and seemed to stiffen her spine. "You're family now, Ash. And please don't worry