At least he was dressed. She doubted she could keep it together if Kye had still been nude.
He was sitting at her kitchen table with a cup of coffee in one hand and a mini laptop balanced on one knee. She wondered if he’d been in touch with Law but decided not to ask. If he had, there was nothing she could do about it now.
He had showered and wore jeans and a black hoodie with the Hawaiian Warriors’ crest stenciled on it. His dark hair was still spiky with dampness. His bronze cheeks had been shaved, glowing as smooth as his butt—no, not the image she needed in her head at the moment. Lily lay at his feet. She gave Yardley a questioning glance but didn’t raise her head. For some reason the toller didn’t like her.
Kye looked up. “Hi.” His gaze took in her black leggings and hoodie. “I’ve already walked the dogs. Fed them, too. I think Oleg and I have reached a truce.”
“Thanks.” Yardley folded her arms across her chest as she same through the doorway. She’d taken a long shower during which she’d decided how to handle the situation. All she needed to do was put it into action.
“I forgot to say thank you. Last night.” She saw his eyes darken. “I mean, you letting me blow off steam. I was pretty much a basket case before the boxing session.”
“No worries.” He grinned fully and her toes curled. “What about earlier this morning? Guess I should be thanking you.”
She shrugged a shoulder as she moved toward the coffeepot. “Not necessary.”
She saw his smile slip a notch just before she turned away to reach for a cup. He’d read her state of mind, just like that. And he wasn’t happy about it. She really wished he was a bit less attuned to her. It would make this easier.
When she had poured a cup and added milk she turned back to face what had become a strained silence.
He was standing now, the long solid strength of the man unfolded for her observation. He didn’t need a scowl to add force of personality. The reality of him, present, was enough to set her pulse thumping.
She could see him thinking about what to say next before he spoke. “Yard, don’t do this. I know what happened this morning. It’s scary. But let’s not run away from it. Maybe there’s something here we missed the first time.”
She shook her head and took a gulp of java before replying. “Don’t make this more than it is.” She lifted her gaze to his because it was impossible not to look at him. “It’s a good time.”
“That’s all?” His expression warned her but still the words stung. “The great Yardley I-must-be-in-charge-at-all-times Summers got laid so all’s right with the world?”
She looked away from his expression. She’d forgotten that because he played nice most of the time, he had a hard-ass streak. But it hurt to have him wield it against her now.
“What did you expect, flowers and chocolate? We got off together. It was good. Okay, great. But I don’t need or want anything from you.”
“That’s not what you said four hours ago.”
He was closer now, and moving closer than she was comfortable with. He stopped before her and lifted a hand slowly to shift a swatch of her damp hair back from her shoulder. His hand settled in a light caress on her shoulder. Uh-oh. She could handle hard-ass. Sexy seductive Kye was much harder to defend against.
He smiled again, and this time it had Yardley hearing the familiar intro to “Aloha ‘Oe” played on a lap steel guitar. “Last night you said you wanted everything.”
She certainly had. Now she’d had very physical proof of his everything, twice, and it still didn’t feel like enough. His fingers went wandering up the side of her neck in little light strokes, and she felt sparks of a desire that weren’t dwindling embers. They were ignition sparks.
She stepped back from that touch, feeling a little desperate. But he mustn’t know that. She had to be cool, keep-it-together tough. “I meant in bed.”
She took another sideways step and lifted her coffee cup, speaking to him over the rim. “Let me spell it out for you. I’m not interested in anything long-term. You’re safe. You can go home to whatever and whoever’s waiting for you.”
She saw his expression go funny and wondered, just for a second, what that was about.
His jaw hardened. “You want to hear about my love life?”
“No.” She didn’t. She really, really didn’t.
“Because I’m happy to share.”
“I said no.”
“You’ll enjoy it.” He folded heavy forearms across his chest. “She made a complete fucking idiot out of me.”
Yardley slanted him a glance behind her cup. “Then maybe I’m a teeny bit interested.”
“Let’s start with the key part. I was married. We divorced four years ago.”
She tried to harden her heart against the sadness edging his tone. “She threw you out?”
“I walked. She was preggers when I got back from my last tour of duty. It wasn’t mine. Heard enough?”