Beyond Temptation (Forged of Steele #3)

From her position in the backseat Lena watched Morgan. Although he kept his eyes focused on the road, he was still attuned to what her mother was saying and would make occasional comments. Lena finally decided to tune out the conversation and focus on him.

The man had a very sexy mouth. That was one of the first things she had noticed about him the first night they met, which was probably the reason she kept having those fantasies of kissing it. Then there were his hands, the ones that were now gripping the steering wheel. She could just imagine him gripping her thighs in just the same way, while his fingers inched upward toward that heated place and—

“Isn’t that wonderful, Lena?”

She blinked, realizing her mother had spoken to her, had asked her a question. “Excuse me, Mom, what did you say? My thoughts were elsewhere.”

“I said, isn’t it wonderful that Morgan is coming to dinner on Sunday?”

“What!” Lena said, switching her gaze to Morgan and meeting his in the rearview mirror in wild confusion. What was her mother talking about? Morgan was not coming to dinner on Sunday.

“Did I miss something?” she asked, trying to ignore the intensity in the dark eyes staring back at her in the mirror.

“Your mother asked when the last time was that I had homemade chicken and dumplings, and I told her it’s been a while. She was kind enough to invite me over on Sunday since she’ll be cooking some then.”

Lena snatched her gaze from Morgan to stare at the back of her mother’s head. “When did you decide to cook?” She couldn’t recall the last time her mother had been motivated to go into the kitchen to prepare dinner. Usually Lena did the cooking.

“When Morgan said it’s been a while since he’d had chicken and dumplings. I think he should get a taste of mine at least once.”

“That’s kind of you, Mom, and I’m certain Morgan appreciates the invitation, but I’m sure he has other things to do on Sunday.”

“No, I don’t.”

A surprised brow lifted as Lena met Morgan’s gaze in the rearview mirror again. She’d been trying to help him out of what she thought was a situation he hadn’t really wanted to be in. “You don’t?”

He chuckled. “No, I don’t.”

“Then it’s all settled,” Odessa Spears was saying with a smile in her voice. “And I think I’m going to bake a peach cobbler as well. Do you like peach cobbler, Morgan?”

“Yes, ma’am.”

“Good.”

Kylie Steele smiled, seeing the look of grief on the face of the woman who’d been her best friend since high school. They were having their weekly lunch session at their favorite restaurant. “Come on, Lena. Morgan having dinner at your place can’t be that bad.”

Lena frowned. “That’s what you think. You know that he asked me out a few times and I turned him down, and I had worked so hard making sure he understood there could never be anything between us but friendship. And with him being a client, I’ve been trying to keep things strictly business between us, and now thanks to Mom he might get the wrong idea and I don’t want that.”

Kylie took a sip of her apple juice, her eyes meeting Lena’s over the rim of her glass. Once she set the glass down on the table she asked, “Okay, Lena. Tell me. What’s going on here? What is it that you really want?”

Lena shrugged. “I don’t know what you mean.”

“No, I think that you do. This is Kylie, remember, the one person who knows you like a book. Pregnancy didn’t destroy any of my brain cells. I know the reason you turned Morgan down all those times. You’re convinced he’s no different than the Derek Petersons of the world.”

Lena shook her head. “I never said he was anything like Derek. But then, I have to be fair and objective in dealing with men, Kylie. Taking care of an elderly parent is a huge undertaking, but I do it with pleasure and love because it’s my mom. I don’t see it just as a responsibility, I see it as a way to gladly give back all those things she’s given to me over the years.”

She took a sip of her wine before continuing. “But I can’t expect others to see it that way. Mom is seventy-one and not in the best of health. Morgan’s parents are in their late fifties, still alive, and are able to do things together. I’m all Mom has and that’s okay. I don’t have time to devote to a serious relationship. Being with her takes up most of my time.”

“But it doesn’t have to be that way, Lena. Your mom is in good health so it’s not like she needs a sitter around the clock and—”