And Then He Kissed Me by Teresa Southwick Page B

hand through his hair. “Sorry, Joe. Rough morning.”
    â€œI thought you were in meetings.”
    â€œI cancelled them. Just got a call from Ma. Grandma is in the hospital having tests.”
    â€œYeah, your secretary gave me the message.” Worry creased his brother’s forehead. “Does Dad know? He was supposed to play golf today.”
    â€œHe’s there with them. So is Luke.” He looked at
Abby. “That’s why you couldn’t find him. Alex is out of town, but I left a message with his secretary.”
    â€œWhat’s wrong with your grandmother?” Abby asked, obviously concerned.
    â€œChest pain,” Nick answered.
    â€œI’m so sorry,” Abby said. “Is there anything I can do?”
    â€œThanks, but no. Actually I was on my way there when I saw you,” Joe said.
    â€œWhy didn’t you tell me?” she cried. “This could have waited. Don’t let me stop you. Go.” Abby linked her arm through Joe’s and tugged him forward.
    For Nick, that playful, familiar touch was like a hot wind over glowing sparks. White-hot flames licked through him. He was beginning to see a pattern here. But something else bothered him more. Even if it was Luke she wanted to see, she’d deliberately dropped by on a day he, Nick, had told her he was unavailable. Why?
    The obvious answer was that she was avoiding him. Something had changed between them, and Nick didn’t like it. He wanted back the comfortable camaraderie. Which made him glad his mother had given him a mission.
    â€œI’m on my way,” Joe said, heading for the door.
    Nick decided turnabout was fair play. If Joe planned to dish it out, he’d best be prepared to take it. “Last time I checked the hospital, obstetrics and cardiology were nowhere near each other.”
    â€œWhat’s that supposed to mean?” Joe asked goodnaturedly.
    That was Nick’s least favorite thing about his brother. Joe was annoyingly cheerful most of the time. Getting to him was a challenge. “You’re surprisingly
eager to go to the hospital. You wouldn’t by any chance be planning to stop by the O.B. department and harass that nurse you met when Rosie had her baby?”
    Joe folded his arms over his chest and grinned. “Absolutely not.”
    Nick shook his head. “Go see what’s up with the family.”
    Joe gave him a mock salute. “I hear and obey, fearless leader. Do you want me to wait for you?”
    Nick shook his head. “I need my car. I’ll be a couple minutes behind you.”
    â€œOkay,” Joe said. He looked at Abby. “I like your ideas. In fact, you deserve a bonus. But I’m in charge of personnel, not number-crunching.” He winked at her and angled his head toward Nick. “Talk to Mr. Congeniality about the dough.”
    Abby figured this was a bad time to talk about a raise when Nick looked like a volcano about to erupt. In all the years she’d known him, she’d seen him happy and carefree. She’d seen him angry and upset. But she had never seen him look the way he had after she’d hugged his brother. Next to Nick, Joe Marchetti was the closest thing she had to her own big brother.
    Which was why she’d decided to approach Luke when she knew Nick was occupied. A good decision, since it was awfully difficult to keep her mind on her work when he stood there looking like a model. He was wearing charcoal pants and a crisp, long-sleeved white shirt. The sleeves were rolled up, indicating that he’d been working. The corded muscles in his forearms were dusted with dark hair and so powerful, he could as easily have been a construction worker as a business executive.
    His tie was slightly loosened, just enough so that he
was comfortable, but he could quickly have it back in place if necessary. The pattern on the silk was like an Impressionist painting in blue, green, mauve and a whole lot of other