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otherwise.”
    “Depends,” he said, as his gaze raked over her, from her head to her bare toes and with every inch of his look, her blood hummed, “on what I’m sharing. And why wouldn’t I qualify?”
    Was she really having this conversation at--she glanced at the clock by her bed--half past four in the morning with a virtual stranger?
    “I’m waiting.” He had a voice that could coax angels to sin.
    “You’re not my type.” She planted a hand on her hip and pointed towards the door. “If you don’t mind, I need to get dressed.”
    “Dressed?” He frowned. “Aren’t you going to bed?”
    And he wanted to know why? “No.”
    He shook his head, and turned and walked from the room. At the doorway, he turned.
    “You want the door open or shut?”
    “I’m about to change and don’t care to do a strip tease in front of you. Shut.”

    24
    A grin, lightning fast and just as lethal, flashed, showing her his straight white teeth and a dimple in his right cheek. “Aww, but I have my own fantasies.”
    He shut the door. For a full minute, Jesslyn stared at it, at loss as to how she was supposed to process that remark. Probably the way he processed hers earlier.
    Then a knock thumped.
    “What?” she snapped.
    “I was wondering where my apology was.”
    She could hear the amusement in his voice.
    “I already apologized.” Jesslyn walked to the door and swung it open. He had a hand against the doorframe, his dark blue button down pulled and stretched with his upraised arm.
    “Yeah, but I was the one arrested. It was not a good experience.”
    “You’re whining and you were hardly arrested. Snitting again.”
    “Men don’t snit.”
    She just stared at him.
    He crossed his arms. “Have you ever been accosted by the police, felt like you were going to be on Cops ?”
    “Have a problem with cuffs?”
    His eyes narrowed fractionally. “Depends.”
    “Your ego is entirely too large.”
    That dimple winked in his right cheek. “That’s usually not what the women refer to.”
    He stood there. She started to shut the door.
    “If you do, I’ll just knock again.”
    “Fine. I’m sorry your pride was bruised.”
    His chuckle was rough, yet soft, reminding her of crushed velvet. “Did that hurt?”
    Ass. “More than you know.”
    She shut the door in his face, but still heard his laughter as he walked down the hall. At her bed, she realized she was smiling.
    Not what the women usually refer to ? She’d bet not. Confusion slithered through her and she looked at the door, wondering what his point had really been. At least he’d gotten her mind off Maddy for a moment. Guilt shifted through her even as images, blurred and hazy sharpened to bloody points.
    God, Maddy.
    Jesslyn swallowed and closed her eyes, willing the truth, the darkness away.
    She couldn’t deal with this right now. Not right now.
    Coffee. She’d just get some coffee and go write. At least in the worlds she created, she could control what happened, leaving nothing to shock or soul-shredding pain.

     
    * * * *
     
    Aiden walked down the hall, his smile sliding away. That was one complex woman. Her smart-ass attitude seemed like a front. He had no idea why he thought that, but he did. He got the same feeling as he did when a floundering company he took an interest in tried to convince him they were fine, that there were no problems. One of his brothers called it his bullshit detector.Then again, maybe he was wrong about Black. Sleep deprivation was a terrible thing. In the kitchen, Tim poured mugs of coffee. He turned as Aiden entered. “Have fun?”
    Though his friend smiled, there was an edge to it.

    25
    “You have a problem with that?” he asked.
    Tim had assured him earlier that he and Jesslyn were just friends, but who knew.
    Those gray eyes Aiden knew so well, leveled at him. “Don’t screw around with Jesslyn.”
    “Last time I checked, we were both adults.”
    Tim grumbled something. “She’s not Brice.”
    “Thank,