Breaking Creed

48

“I don’t want to put you out of your bed for a second night,” Maggie told him.

Creed didn’t make the suggestion that he wanted to make. The bed was, after all, big enough for the two of them. Grace could sleep in the middle and supervise. Though it wouldn’t matter. He knew he’d never be able to get any sleep in that bed as long as Maggie O’Dell was anywhere in it. So he did the gentlemanly thing and prepared the sofa with a blanket and pillow for himself.

He realized Maggie probably wondered why Hannah didn’t offer for her to sleep at the main house. It was huge. Even from the outside there was no hiding the fact that it housed at least three or four bedrooms. But he couldn’t risk her running into Amanda. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust Maggie; he refused to get her involved. Also, she was an FBI agent and would probably want to do the right thing. Creed didn’t think they’d agree on what the “right thing” was right now.

They finished Hannah’s casserole and the salad Creed had made for them. Maggie insisted on doing the clean-up. Grace and Rufus offered their undivided help and attention, both of them following and then sitting within feet of Maggie.

She stopped to scratch behind their ears. “I miss my dogs.”

“They must be with somebody you trust.”

“Yes, they are.”

She met his eyes and then suddenly her eyes left his and darted around, as if she had been caught doing something she shouldn’t be doing. There was electricity between them. There was no denying that. Just now he could have heard the crackle if he’d listened hard enough. But he knew he shouldn’t. He knew he ought to let her go back to tooling around his kitchen without any more of an explanation. For some reason he couldn’t. Not after what they’d just been through. He needed to know.

“The guy who takes care of your dogs, does he also have your heart?”

When she turned back around to look at him, she looked surprised at first. Like she hadn’t really thought of it that way. Or was she just surprised that Creed would ask so blatantly?

Then something passed over her and he swore to God she looked sad. That was the only word that came quickly to mind. He hated like hell that his heart leaped and rejoiced in the seconds that followed.

“Ben and I are…” Her voice trailed off, as if she were trying to figure it out as she was telling him. “I’m not sure what we are. It’s complicated.”

Creed stood and took a step around the counter. It was more instinct than anything else. She took a step back and he stopped. But only for a few seconds. In the next steps he felt the jolts as much as a magnetic pull. He was kissing her before she had a chance to think, before she could retreat. There was nothing about her lips or hands on his chest or her hips pressed against him that told him this guy Ben had a hold of her heart. But when she pulled away, her eyes said otherwise. There was want and need, but also a hint of guilt.

“I can’t” was all she said, almost a whisper. Then a bit stronger, she added, “Maybe I shouldn’t stay here tonight.”

He brushed her hair from her face. He let his hand caress her cheek, and he heard her breath catch.

“It’s okay,” he told her. “I’m a big boy. Takes a lot more to hurt my feelings.”

Just when she looked like she might change her mind, and Creed knew he’d never be able to pull away a second time, he pointed at Grace and Rufus, who had been staring at them the whole time.

“Besides,” he said, “Grace would never forgive me if you left early.” And he made his way to his sofa, thinking it was going to be a hell of a long night.