Back in Black by Lori Foster Page A

knees to see her face. “Tell me you enjoyed the kiss, too.”
    Her voice lowered. “I did. Too much, probably.”
    “Great.” With heartfelt sincerity, Brett told her, “Feel free to attack me anytime you want.”
    She almost laughed. “Brett.” She did smack his shoulder, then left her hand there, caressing him—until she caught herself. “God, this is awkward.”
    Drawing her closer, he looped his hands at the small of her back. “Shouldn’t be.” He loved it that she wanted him. “Not with me.”
    “But that’s just it! I hardly know you. I definitely don’t know you well enough to . . . to get so intimate. I don’t know what’s wrong with me. Except, well, you obviously know how good-looking you are.”
    A compliment or an accusation? Again, Brett grinned. “I do, huh?”
    Realizing how that had sounded to him, she rushed to explain. “I didn’t mean you were conceited or anything. I just meant . . . well . . .” She lifted her shoulders. “How could you not know? I saw that woman trying to get your attention outside. Every woman in here keeps looking at you.”
    Brett resisted the urge to test her theory by glancing over his shoulder at the crowd. Right now, the only woman who mattered was her. “That’s an exaggeration.”
    “Not really.” She studied his face and then his upper body. “I haven’t been on a date in forever. Years, actually.”
    “That long, huh?” He didn’t have a single doubt that men had asked her out, so why wasn’t she dating?
    “I’ve been totally focused on work, and on organizing WAVS. But don’t get the wrong idea about our group. We’re not a bunch of wallflowers.”
    “Didn’t say you were.” But he found her defensive mode intriguing. It must be a touchy spot with her.
    “Two of the women are in serious relationships. One is divorced. And Millie . . .” Audrey flapped a hand and smiled with affection. “She dates all the time. She’s actually outgoing with men, just not in crowds. She’s more of a movie-and-quiet-dinner type.”
    He couldn’t have cared less about Millie’s social calendar. “So what’s the story with you? A woman as pretty and nice as you should have her pick of men every night.”
    The compliments flustered her; Brett could tell that she didn’t think of herself that way.
    “I just . . . haven’t been interested, I guess. But then suddenly you’re in the picture, and you really are nice and so incredibly good-looking and . . .”
    Brett bent down and kissed her again. “So you lost your head, huh?”
    She loosened up enough to laugh. “I told Millie this would happen.”
    Had she told Millie that she wanted him? Oh, to be a fly on the wall for that conversation . . . “Millie’s a worrier, isn’t she?”
    “Sometimes.” Audrey moved one hand to his chest, just laying her hand there, sort of testing things. “We’re close, and she feels protective.”
    Brett would have happily reciprocated, but he had a feeling that if he started pawing her chest, she’d run off.
    Her dark-eyed gaze went from his mouth up to look into his eyes. “I can’t really blame Millie for how she feels. Since this place caters to the SBC, she has good reason to mistrust what goes on here.” Audrey let out a breath. “And so do I.”

CHAPTER 5
    A UDREY felt a new tension in Brett and wondered at it. With her hand on his chest, she absorbed the hardness of him, the bulge of muscle and pure strength. She guessed him at over six feet, which meant he towered over her.
    Usually the disparity in their sizes would have intimidated her. With Brett, it was exciting. He was by far the boldest man she’d ever met, but he had a genuineness about him, a gentlemanly “down-home” air that made everyone feel comfortable with him. Even Millie had commented on what a nice guy he was, and Audrey valued her insights.
    Brett caught her hand and flattened it on his chest, keeping her still. “You have some kind of history with the SBC?”
    Memories