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“That wouldn’t have happened”
“No?”
“No All I did was burn some bread, and—”
“All you did was set the toaster on fire! As for the bread—” Cade swung away and yanked open the refrigerator door “What bread are we talking about? You can’t ht!”
Angelica took a step toward hi “Don’t you dare yell at me, Cade Landon!”
“If you’re going to act like a da down here in the first place? You’re supposed to be upstairs, in your bed”
“Says who?”
Cade’s lips twisted “Theyou, atched you collapse, who knooozy you were last night, that’s who!”
“I was flying on those pills last night Besides, none of that gives you the right to—to bully me!”
He reached out and caught her by the shoulders There was a dangerous glint in his eyes as he hauled her toward him
“You know so a bully and I’m just liable to show you what a real bully is”
“Don’t threaten me,” she said furiously “I don’t like it”
“Then listen to reason! Trying to pretend you’re fine when you’re not isn’t very bright, and neither is traipsing around in a blanket when you’re not steady on your feet”
“Oh, for God’s sake!” Angelica twisted away froet my robe on, but—”
“But you couldn’t” Her silence was all the answer he needed “Darowled, “why didn’t you ask me for help?”
“Because—because…” Because I don’t need your help, she thought, because I resent being dependent on you—because I remember all too vividly how it felt to be undressed and in your arms…
“Well? Why didn’t you call me?”
Angelica moistened her lips “You’re just ticked off because I didn’t tell you I was going to come downstairs”
“Tell me?”
“That’s right, tell you that I was going downstairs to make my own breakfast in my own house!” She blew a stray curl off her forehead “That’s what this is all about and you know it You just can’t deal with a woman who can do for herself”
“What I can’t deal with is a woman who’s determined to behave like a damned fool”
She looked at hihed
“Look, I’rateful—for your assistance yesterday”
Cade laughed “The word sticks in your throat, doesn’t it?”
“Between the shock of the scorpion sting,” she said, ignoring the interruption, “and the effect of those pills, I wasn’tBut now—”
“But now,” he said, “it’s tiot out of your way”
“Cade, please I’ to be polite, but—”
“Polite? You? Hell, you don’t know theof the word!”
Angelica’s head caht,” she snapped “But it’s hard to be polite to a ht in your bedroom and then won’t tell you why”
“Try this on for size, sugar I called Emily, found out she was sick with the flu, went up to tell that to you—and found you sound asleep I sat down, tried to decide what to do next—and the next thing I knew, it wasa cattle prod to show me just how pleased you were to see me”
“Daht “Oh”
“Oh? That’s it? Just, ‘oh’? No apologies for being nasty or for the fact that spending the night in that chair left ?” The oh had not been meant as a coelica” He clasped her shoulders and eased her into a chair “What is it?”
“I—I hit ainst the table,” she said Her s Really, I’m fine”
“Sure you are,” he said gri and check out that hand of yours”
“It’s fine”
“Let e of that”
“Cade, really-”
It was useless to protest He was alreadyit aside and reaching for her hand His fingers closed around her bandaged flesh with surprising gentleness Frowning, he bent his head and began to unwind the gauze
“Easy,” he said softly “I’ to hurt you I just want to see how the wound looks this ”
His voice droned on, soft and reassuring and yet firelica looked down at the top of his head His hair was uncoold as thesun kissed it
She felt her throat constrict Wouldn’t it be nice if she could press a kiss there, too? She could touch her nose to his hair, her lips to his neck…