Tempting Mr. Wrong (Wrong Man) by Kerri Carpenter

She held up a hand when he opened his mouth to say something. “It was just a kiss, Mr. Structure, Stability, and…whatever the other S was.”
    She smoothed down her shirt and started to walk back inside, her chin lifted, her fiery red hair streaming behind her. Then she stopped suddenly, turned back to face him.
    “Lance?”
    “Yeah?”
    “Remember Chris and Gretchen’s wedding?”
    He nodded and noticed she was twisting her hands together. It seemed as if she was struggling to find the right words.
    “We danced all night long. But at the end of the wedding, you…well, you didn’t go to my room.”
    Chris and Gretchen’s wedding. Christ, he thought about that night all the time. Walking away from her had really sucked. “I didn’t go to your room because you’re my best friend’s little sister. And you were a kid.”
    “I was twenty.”
    He nodded. “You are Chris’s sister.”
    “That will never change,” she said with a touch of sadness in her voice. Then she finished walking into the house.
    He took a second in the night air to collect himself. He wondered when the temperature would start to drop, although it would take a whole winter of cold temps to extinguish the flame that had started tonight in this backyard. Not even the lingering smell of their disgusting dinner was enough to cool off his libido.
    Shaken, he ran a hand over his face. Why in the hell was he feeling this way about the one woman who was off-limits to him? The way his pulse was racing and his breath was unsteady, he was acting like a thirteen-year-old who just had his first kiss.
    It’d been way too long since he’d been with a woman. That had to be it.
    Because the notion that Carly Quigley could infiltrate his well-guarded control like that was not an option.

Chapter Six
    A couple days later Carly sat at the counter that separated the kitchen from the family room and reread the papers spread out before her. She’d already gone through them dozens of times. Then she picked up her cell phone and double-checked that she had the right time and address.
    She couldn’t believe Anna had gotten her an interview with Young Heroes. More, she couldn’t fathom that the interview was today.
    Tapping her foot against the leg of the chair in a fast staccato rhythm, she went through each paper one more time. But Carly knew she was ready. She’d been following the work of Young Heroes since she’d been one of the young heroes that had benefited from the program. Still…
    This job meant so much to her. It would be more than a paycheck, more than a retirement and health plan. It would be an opportunity to give something back to an organization that had gotten her through some truly tough times.
    A male cough echoed through the room and she glanced up to see Lance shift on the couch. He was typing away on a laptop, and other than the sound of her foot beating against the chair and his fingers clacking over the keyboard, the house was silent. Mya being at preschool contributed to the quiet.
    She gave Lance a sideways glance and noticed he was studying the screen, lips pursed. Lips that had been on hers only a few days prior.
    They hadn’t talked about the kiss. Or the aftermath of the kiss. Usually Carly wasn’t one to shove things under the rug, and she’d been all set to bring it up—and maybe have a repeat performance if she could figure out a way to get Lance to see her as anyone but his best friend’s sister. But Anna had called her about the interview the next day, and that was all she’d been able to concentrate on since.
    There had been two brief breaks when Lance made good on his promise to help her cook. So far, they’d made a chicken stir-fry and pasta primavera together. Apparently, knives worked better when they were sharp, and she was supposed to time how long pasta boiled. Who knew?
    The food had been delicious. And the teacher? Yeah, he’d been pretty yummy, too. Lance, with his shirt sleeves rolled up, a towel around