The Naughty List Bundle - Kylie Adams [108]
“It’s also obvious,” he said very softly, “that Honey loves you to death. Nothing will change that.”
Oh, how could he make her feel like this when she was rightfully angry? “I know my sister loves me, Morgan. But telling her wasn’t your decision to make.”
“Maybe, but it was the right decision. You were just being stubborn, admit it.”
“No, never.”
He laughed. “At least this way you’re with family, and I’m talking about all of us. We are family now, Malone, whether you like it or not. You don’t have a job, you don’t even have a place to stay.”
Alarmed, she finally managed to dodge his soothing hands and move out of reach. She tried for a credible laugh, but it sounded more like a weak snicker. “Don’t be ridiculous.”
His eyes narrowed. “It’s no good, Malone. I know you too well.”
“You hardly know me at all!”
“But we’re getting there.” Then in a softer tone, “Just where the hell did you think you were going to go?”
The best she could come up with was a shrug.
“That’s what I figured. So why not stay here?”
Misty felt like screaming in frustration. “For crying out loud, Morgan, you told me to leave!”
He shook his head. “Damn it, that was before.”
“Oh, I see. A pregnant woman isn’t so risky. You’re no longer worried that I’ll seduce your brothers? After all, I thought that was your overriding concern.”
Morgan leaned against the wall by the fireplace and crossed his arms over his chest. Misty recognized that stance and the accompanying expression all too well.
“No, my overriding concern was the chemistry between us. And your pregnancy doesn’t change that much. You’re still too damn sexy, and only a dead man wouldn’t be tempted.”
She wished she hadn’t brought it up. “That’s ridiculous.”
He very slowly shook his head. “It’s true. You have to know how gorgeous you are, how you make a man feel. But I have an idea on how to handle that.”
The words, along with the way he’d looked at her as he spoke, made her skin flush and her belly tingle.
She didn’t want to be attracted to him! He was arrogant and stubborn, but he was also very dedicated to his family, protective and so incredibly good-looking she imagined women had been chasing him for most of his life.
She mustered up a bored look to hide her reaction to him and asked, “So what’s it going to be? Bundle me up in burlap? Paint a big red A on my forehead to ward off the innocent? What?”
“Nothing so drastic as that.” He paused for a long moment, as if measuring his words, then he met her gaze and his eyes were hard…determined. “I’ll just tell everyone that we’re involved, so you’re off-limits.”
“What?”
He smiled at her reaction. “Believe me, Malone, that’ll be enough to keep all other men away, which is what you wanted, right?”
5
MORGAN WAITED until Misty looked at him, then snagged her gaze and refused to let her look away. There was a soft blush to her cheeks that about drove him crazy. He had a gut feeling that blush was a combination of anger, embarrassment and excitement.
He understood the anger and wished for some way to spare her the embarrassment. The excitement he relished.
“It’s a good plan, Malone.”
“For me to pretend to…to be your…” Her stammering ceased, and she stared at him blankly.
“My woman. Yeah, that’s the plan.” He wanted to walk closer to her, to touch her again, but he didn’t dare. She looked skittish enough to jump out of her skin if he even breathed deeply. “Here’s how I see it,” he said, trying to sound reasonable. “You do need a job, but it won’t be easy to find one without employers knowing you were convicted of stealing from the last place you worked. And once they know that, they’ll be reluctant to hire you, right?”
“Maybe.”
“And you’re still on probation?”
She nodded hesitantly. “For a few more months.”
“That’s what I figured.”
She gulped, and her hands fisted. In shame? In regret? He just didn’t know, but he hated to see her feel either emotion. He intended to do what he could about her conviction as soon as possible. But for now, he had other