The Right Choice(17)
Author: Carly Phillips

“Oh. Yes. Of course.” She answered without meeting his gaze, a sure indication that his gut instincts were on target.

Since those same instincts had saved his behind many times, he hadn’t really been in doubt.

She turned her attention from the cloudless sky, fingering her bangs with trembling hands.

“You do that a lot.”

“What?” she asked.

“This.” With a slow but steady hand, he ran his fingers through her bangs. She swallowed, and his eyes were drawn to the slender column of her neck. In silence, she glanced up at him from beneath thick lashes before lowering her eyes. He had no doubt she hoped to hide the feelings he’d seen reflected there. She’d been unsuccessful.

He tried to speak but words wouldn’t come. Instead, as the silky strands of hair grazed his hands, he ached with the intensity of his feelings for this woman he’d known such a short time.

He trailed one finger down the side of her face until his hand rested beneath her chin. He tilted her head upward. Acting on impulse and not common sense, he lowered his head until his lips brushed hers. Whisper soft and brief, but that light touch stirred his body to life.

She sucked in a deep breath but didn’t attempt to break the tenuous connection between them. Mike did, drawing himself back with extreme difficulty.

Looking at her flushed face and full lips, he knew, without a doubt, she had never felt this way about his brother. Not in the past, not now and especially not in the future. He was certain, not because of conceit or arrogance, but because he’d never experienced anything like the magic of being with Carly. Something that powerful could not be one-sided.

He pushed aside the guilt that continued to plague him at the thought of Peter. His brother didn’t care about this woman, not the way an engaged man ought to care about his fiancée.

And Mike couldn’t offer her much better. But that didn’t mean he could remain silent much longer. He cared about her too much to watch her throw her life away. “We need to talk,” he said.

Her lower lip trembled and she shook her head.

“It can’t wait, Carly. You’ve been so busy planning that you haven’t dealt with… things. I don’t want to see you or Peter hurt.”

She turned wet, shadowed eyes toward him. “I would never hurt your brother.”

At that moment the mechanism on the Ferris wheel kicked into gear and they began their descent. “Damn,” he muttered. “That wasn’t what I meant. You and I…”

“Forget it.” Eyes wide, she spoke with something akin to fear in her voice.

“No. We’re getting off this ride and sitting down someplace to talk.”

She backed into the corner of the small car. “No. We’re getting off this ride, collecting my animals and going home. We’ll listen to the radio and talk about comfortable things but nothing remotely personal.” Without looking in his direction, she scrambled to gather her prizes.

They reached the bottom. The ride’s operator waited for Mike to exit before extending his hand and helping Carly from the car. He patted Mike on the back. “Enough time for you and your lady to enjoy?” he asked with a chuckle.

“Not nearly,” he muttered. He had to sprint to keep up with Carly, who appeared to be running for her life.

* * *

Mike reached out and turned off the car radio. Carly felt his steady gaze. She clenched her jaw and flipped the stereo back on. Easy-listening music filled her ears but wasn’t nearly loud or distracting enough. She fiddled with the dial until she found hard rock. His hand reached out and stilled her frantic movements.

“What’s bothering you?” he asked.

“Nothing. We had a great time.”

“Am I wrong in thinking there’s a connection between us?”

She didn’t want to hear this. She had kissed him while engaged to another man. Kissed him while engaged to his brother, she amended. Worse, she had enjoyed it. Apparently her father’s blood flowed through her veins after all. “Don’t you love carnivals?” she asked, changing the subject.

“Carly, do you trust me?”

“Of course. That’s a stupid question. How did you fit that bear in the backseat anyway?” She fidgeted uncomfortably, hoping he would take her not-too-subtle hint and drop the idea of discussing them.

“I stuffed it in headfirst.” He muttered a curse and slammed his hand against the steering wheel.

Ignoring his agitation, she turned the radio louder. She replayed their first meeting and today’s brief kiss in her mind. Her traitorous body responded to the mere thought of his lips on hers. Two men at the same time. Two brothers, no less. And she thought her father should be tarred and feathered? With a groan she laid her head against the car window.

He made a few more attempts to draw her into any kind of conversation, which she childishly ignored, pretending instead to be asleep. Finally he lapsed into blessed silence. She knew her behavior was infantile, but she couldn’t help feeling relieved nevertheless.

Anything he might have said would only reinforce the fact that each time she let her guard down around Mike, she lost a little more self-control.

She and Mike were an explosion waiting to happen and Carly knew one thing for certain. Explosions, once they occurred, were impossible to control.

* * *

This afternoon Mike had visited heaven. Now he prepared himself for hell. Sure, Pete had asked him to watch out for Carly and help with last-minute wedding details. But he hadn’t asked Mike to take his fiancée out for the day, nor had he asked him to kiss her… or enjoy the experience quite so much. Pete also hadn’t asked Mike to push her into questioning her upcoming marriage.

Mike muttered a curse. He approached Pete’s apartment with as much excitement as a man facing a firing squad. Turning the key in the lock, he silently prayed for the strength to do the right thing for everyone involved. Damned if he knew what that was.

He stepped into the dimly lit apartment. “Hey, Pete, you back yet?” Silence greeted him, granting him a temporary reprieve. He tossed the keys on a shelf near the door and walked inside unprepared for what he saw.

Pete and a young woman sat on the floor of the living room poring over files and legal briefs. They didn’t glance up, obviously too engrossed in work to have heard him come in. Nothing unusual or untoward about that, Mike thought.

Unless you knew Peter. The last time Mike had seen Pete casually dressed, they’d been teenagers… and he’d asked Mike for pointers on how to dress to impress the opposite sex. Looking at his brother now, Mike suppressed a groan.