You want to get married and put me out of my misery?
God, he was an ass!
A too tempting ass as he leaned up on one hand, his powerful biceps bunching as he moved, his wide chest the perfect foil for the toddler snuggled up against him. He bent his dark head to Redmond’s, nuzzling his fine baby hair and making him giggle with helpless delight.
That was just unfair, she thought, forcing her gaze back to the pool. He was unfair. Why did he have to come back to Sydney and turn her life upside down? Why did he have to kiss her? Touch her? Make love to her?
Miller’s gentle prodding that she wanted Ruby to be happy played back inside her head. She was happy. Very happy. Or she had been until Sam had blown back into her life! And, while Miller saw Sam as one of the ‘good’ ones, that was only because she was married to his brother. She was blinkered. Ruby had already experienced Sam walking away from her once without a backward glance. She didn’t want that to happen again. Something inside her warned her that she wouldn’t cope as well as she had the first time.
Suddenly realising that Sam was watching her, she let out a slow breath and attempted to marshal her chaotic emotions. Seeing her still crouched by the pool, the puppy cocked his head, his floppy ear bouncing as he scampered towards her.
‘Watch the pool,’ she cautioned as he bounded along the edge on unstable baby legs. He lapped at her face and she wiped her cheek with the back of her hand. ‘You have to stop doing that,’ she laughed.
Having followed, Sam offered her a hand up, his other wrapped around Redmond’s chubby legs, balancing the toddler high on his hip like a natural.
Ignoring his hand as politely as possible, Ruby stumbled to her feet. ‘I didn’t know you were going to be here this weekend,’ she said on a breathless note, somehow needing him to know that she hadn’t planned this. That she wasn’t chasing him.
‘And wished that I wasn’t,’ he concluded. ‘Am I right?’
Ruby shot him a quick glance, unsure how to respond to that in a way that wouldn’t ratchet the tension between them even higher.
‘Jesus, Ruby,’ he growled under his breath. ‘I’m not going to jump you. Not without an invitation anyway.’
‘All evidence to the contrary,’ she retorted, miffed at his arrogance and the fact that if he was to touch her right now she’d probably dissolve into a puddle of lustful cravings. She hadn’t slept properly since he’d crashed back into her life, and her defences were clearly suffering as a result.
‘That’s a low blow.’ His bedroom brown eyes locked with hers. ‘You wanted that kiss in the cab last night as much as I did.’
‘I’m not going to argue with you, Sam. It’s pointless.’
‘So is pretending that we don’t want each other,’ he said softly.
‘No, it’s not,’ she denied. ‘It makes everything a lot less complicated.’
He threw her a shrewd look. ‘Less complicated or more?’
‘Less,’ she said vigorously. ‘Definitely less.’
‘I don’t know, angel. It’s not less complicated for me. In fact, it’s downright difficult.’
Sam’s hooded gaze travelled down over her throat and breasts that felt heavy and achy, and farther to her bare legs and feet before slowly making its way back to her eyes, heating her up in the process and leaving her in no doubt as to exactly how he found it difficult.
‘That’s just sex, Sam,’ she said, glad Red was too young to understand a word they were saying. ‘You can get that from anyone.’
‘You’re wrong, it wasn’t just sex.’ He let the squirming toddler down beside a beach ball he was trying to reach. ‘It was incredible and I want it again.’ His voice grew rough. ‘I want you again.’
Ruby’s heart thundered inside her chest, her whole body leaning towards his even though she hadn’t moved. ‘What happened to your credo of not mixing business with pleasure?’ she asked huskily.
A sparkle entered his eyes. ‘For you I’m willing to make an exception.’
Red made a sound of frustration and Sam bent to scoop the toddler into his arms once more before sauntering back towards the house, the puppy on his heels.