What Might Have Been: Daniels Brother #4 (Daniels Brothers) by Sherri Hayes Page A

don’t.”
    At least he hadn’t denied it. “Why?”
    He looked out at the water, and then at her. “I know you said you’re just friends, but it’s hard to wrap my head around.”
    “What? You don’t have any female friends?” she asked.
    “Not really. I mean I guess you could say Trinity and I are friends, but we don’t have much interaction outside of work.”
    Abby remembered the feeling of unease she’d gotten when he’d taken that call from Trinity. She wondered if he was experiencing something similar when it came to her interactions with Max.
    “He seemed rather possessive when I delivered the proposal last Friday,” Trent said, pulling her out of her thoughts.
    She shrugged. Abby didn’t want to get into the reasons why Max was so protective of her, but she knew Trent deserved some sort of answer. “It’s not you. Some things happened back in college and he was there for me. I’m sure if you had a sister, you’d be the same way with her.”
    Trent raised both eyebrows. “So you’re saying he thinks of you as a little sister.”
    “Yeah.”
    “Is he gay?”
    She would have laughed if he hadn’t asked with such a straight face. “No. Max is most certainly not gay.”
    “Are you sure?”
    “Pretty sure. I walked in on him once when I forgot a file at the office. Lucky for me they were still covered from the waist down.”
    Trent mulled that over. “I don’t get it.”
    “What don’t you get?”
    He put his fork down and scooted closer to her. She could smell his cologne as he took her hand and brought it to his lips, waiting until she met his gaze. “You’re gorgeous, Abby. I have a hard time believing that a red-blooded heterosexual male wouldn’t be trying to get in your pants.”
    “And is that what you’re trying to do, Trent Daniels?” she asked.
    He turned her hand over and ran his lips along the inside of her wrist. “Most definitely.”
    There was a twinkle in his eye as he lowered her hand to her lap and went back to his food.
    She rolled her eyes. “Nice.”
    “Just being honest,” he said. “I wouldn’t want you to mistake my intentions.”
    “And your intention is to sleep with me.” She really couldn’t believe they were having this conversation amid a boat full of people.
    “Among other things.” Where they were didn’t seem to be having any effect on him.
    “What other things?”
    He wiped his mouth and leaned forward in his chair. His eyes were sparkling. She could see flecks of gold mixed in the soulful brown depths. “You’ll have to wait and see.”
    “Trent—”
    Before she could finish that sentence, he stood and held out his hand. “Dance with me?”
    She glanced down at the food on her plate.
    “The buffet’s open until nine. I promise I won’t let you starve.”
    When she looked up at him again, heat pooled in the pit of her stomach. Without stopping to think, she placed her hand in his and let him lead her onto the small dance floor. Trent circled his arms around her waist and held her close.
    As they swayed back and forth to the gentle island music, Abby realized this was the first time in years she’d been so relaxed on a date. Most of the time she ended up being bored out of her mind or things became awkward. This didn’t feel like either of those. Trent held her just right. She felt safe, protected, and loved.
    That last part brought her up short.
    “What’s wrong?” he whispered in her ear as he twirled them around.
    Abby thought about denying it, but when she felt his arms tighten around her, she knew she couldn’t. “Where is this going, Trent?”
    “Well, since we’re on a boat, probably not far. Not unless you’re in the mood for a swim.”
    That made her laugh. “You know what I mean.”
    “I do.”
    He continued to dance, so she waited. Abby needed to know what he expected to come from this.
    However, he surprised her by asking a question of his own. “Where do you want it to go?”
    That was a loaded question. If