Mia thought she’d make herself a healthy vegetable soup to make up for all the chocolate indulgence she’d had with Claire last night.

Today was a good day. She’d had her interview at The Body Cove, the clinic in town that she had her eyes on. She’d truly impressed Sasha, the owner, who gave her the job straightaway after her test run. Mia had to do a manicure, pedicure and a deep tissue massage on one of their regular clients.

Mia would start next week, which was fab. It made her feel a little better, as if she was taking a step in the right direction. Mostly it would be good to have money coming in that was hers, and not from some crazy job like stripping.

She couldn’t believe that she even considered that. But Glenn had made her feel so bad that day that she just wanted to fix the problem however she could.

He came into the kitchen just as she added the rest of the vegetables into the pot. He was dressed like he was going back to work even though it was six o’clock in the evening. He had a travel case with him.

Glenn stopped by the counter and stared at her. “I have to go to L.A. for a few days.”

Wow, that was the first time he’d spoken to her like she was a human being in more than two weeks.

“Big case?” she asked.

“Kind of. My clients are there and I have to go through documents and meet with a few people.”

“Cool, your job always sounds so interesting. I guess that’s why you love it so much.” She wished she could have said that with more enthusiasm, but she couldn’t.

“It has its perks. Are you going to be okay here?”

“Yep, and don’t worry, I’ll be out of your hair soon. I got a job in town. I’ll move out sometime next week.” She already knew where she would look for an apartment. She’d get something small and nice, just to get by on until she had enough money.

She’d get a car, too.

He looked at her for a few seconds, holding her gaze. “You can stay here for as long as you want, Mia. This is your house, too.”

“Glenn, thank you, but I would rather go and fend for myself. It’s been awful here. You have been awful to me. I know I messed up, but if the situation was reversed I wouldn’t have treated you the way you treated me.” She’d never spoken up for herself before to him, and he seemed a little surprised.

But he nodded. “I know. You’re right. I was out of line for a lot of what I said to you and I’m sorry.”

She pressed her lips together and looked him over, wanting to feel happy that they were talking and he was apologizing, but somehow she couldn’t. She couldn’t get what he’d said to her out of her head. Especially that last argument when he told her she always disappointed him. That was horrible.

“I’m sorry, Mia,” he said again.

“Okay.”

“We’ll talk properly when I get back. You can tell me more about the job.” He offered a small smile.

“When will you be back?”

“Hopefully in the next two to three days,” Glenn answered.

Nick came into the kitchen just as she was about to say something else. He was smiling; she smiled back at him, remembering last night.

Glenn turned to face him and looked a little uneasy. “Hey, we’ve hardly seen you around here.”

To Mia’s surprise Nick gave him a sort of off-key look that bordered on sarcasm.

“I’ve been working hard. I got good news,” Nick replied.

“What is it?” Mia asked eager to hear. She was praying that it was a lead of some sorts to the paintings, the money, or both.

Maybe more so the paintings because of the priceless value.

“I found the paintings. They are being returned to the storage facility as we speak.”

“Oh my God!” Mia cried, rushing over to him. She threw herself into his arms and hugged him hard. When he put his arms around her it felt like coming home. “Thank you so much, Nick.”

“You’re welcome,” he said into her ear, then he released her.

“Thanks, man,” Glenn said.

When Mia looked over to him she noticed that uneasy look again, but now something in the way of guilt filled his eyes.

“It’s what I do. Got to have something that sets me apart from the lowlifes, right?”

Mia looked up at him wondering why he would say such a thing.

“Nick, you’re so silly.” She smacked him playfully in his chest.

“I’m just saying. Anyhow, I think I deserve at least a cookie, because Sawyer and I also managed to seize a million dollars, which we tracked to an account in Switzerland. You’ll have that back by next week. The rest we’re still working on, but it’s unlikely that we’ll be able to get all of it back.”

Mia’s hands flew up to her cheeks. She couldn’t believe what she was hearing, and that he could say it so casually. She screamed and hugged him again.

“Nick you’re amazing. I’ll bake you a whole batch of cookies,” she laughed. This time she didn’t let go of him.

“I’ll hold you to that.” He smiled, gazing down at her.

“You can. Thank you for everything.” She let go of him, then looked across to Glenn. “Give it all to Glenn.”

Glenn looked surprised to hear that. “No, we’ll split it,” Glenn replied.

“No. I don’t want to. That will be like me running to your rescue again. I’ll find a way. Thanks, though, it means a lot that you offered.” She simply had to decline. There was no question in it, even with his offer.

The other day she thought that Glenn had changed a lot, but now she was thinking that he’d always acted the way he had in the last few weeks. But this time was perhaps when she needed him the most and he’d shunned her, blamed her, made her feel stupid and worthless, and like she was a nuisance to him.

“We’ll talk when I get back,” Glenn said again.

“Where you going?” Nick asked Glenn.

“L.A. for a few days for the Smith and Co. case. You can join me if you want.”

There was something about the way Glenn was looking at Nick when he said that that seemed kind of off.

What was worse was the cold vibe that came from Nick. She’d seen these two have plenty of arguments, but they never really dragged anything out. They could argue in the morning and by lunchtime everything would be all rosy again. This tenseness in the space between them, between the five steps from where they stood to the counter where Glenn was, felt different, and quite unlike what you’d expect between best friends. Especially considering Nick worked so hard to get the money and the paintings back for them.

Had they had some kind of disagreement?

Given the chaos that had reigned over the last few weeks, she wouldn’t have been surprised. Glenn had been a complete asshole.

“No,” came Nick’s simple reply. “I’m busy with police stuff.” Nick stared at Glenn, keeping a sharp eye on him.

“Cool. Um, thanks for all that you’ve done. I’m impressed.” Glenn offered a smile but the tense atmosphere was still there and Nick still took on that rigid form.

Mia decided that she didn’t care if they’d had an argument. She was just glad she didn’t have to walk around the house anymore feeling like a leper. The weeks that had passed here had been the worst in her life, and the only compensation she had was seeing Nick, and yes, having the few connective moments she had with him.

Things were going to change now and she decided she’d start with him.

No more of this uncertainty and undercover flirting. Surely everyone would agree that they were both getting too old for that.

“Well I better get going. Call me if you need me,” Glenn said.

“See you in a few days,” Mia offered while Nick just tipped his head for a polite nod.

When Glenn left them she turned back to Nick excitedly, loving that it was just them, now, and it would be just them in the house for the next few days.

That by itself was exciting.

She squealed and hugged him again, giggling when he put his arms around her.

“I won’t even ask what’s with you two. I don’t care,” she said, pressing her face against the hard wall of his chest. “Thank you so much, Nick.”

She lifted her head to gaze up at those amazing eyes of his and was happy to see that the rigid vibe he gave Glenn was gone. Warmth filled his eyes, and there was a glow deep within them that warmed her heart.

“You’re welcome, Mia. You know you really should take Glenn up on his offer and take half of the money. You could rebuild your business in Florida with that.”

She shook her head. “I’m not going back to Florida. The memories are too painful, and there’s nothing for me there.”

The more she’d thought of it over the last few days, the more confident she felt that Florida was no longer an option for her. When she left to go there it was during a time when her goal was to prove herself to her family. She worked hard to do that and no one could say that she didn’t do well. Her idea to have the spa retreat was still on, but not for Florida.

She’d used her trust fund money to set the day spa up. This time she’d save from scratch from what she earned at her new job.

“It’s Florida. You sounded excited to be there,” he pointed out with a smile.

“It was exciting, but I’m done there. I got a job today.”

His smile widened. “Did you? That’s great. Wait, what kind of job is this?” A look of worry filled his face and she instantly remembered the whole mad stripping idea.

“It’s not stripping.” She assured him and laughed when she saw the relived look on his face. “It’s beauty therapy. I’ll be working at the beauty clinic in town. They’re a little similar to what I had set up in Florida. It’ll do for now. I know having a half a million would be wonderful to rebuild myself, but I want Glenn to have it. I don’t owe him anything now. And I don’t have to feel like the damn princess who needs to be rescued by my family. I’ll work hard and save to do what I want. I’ll set up my business somewhere else and do it with hard work to get the funds.”

He looked really proud of her as she spoke.

She pulled in a slow thoughtful breath when she considered all that had happened over the last few weeks.

“I came here because I thought I’d get the comfort and support I needed at the time.” She stated as a wave of sadness swept through her. It was a hard thing to accept that the one person who she thought would always be there for her wasn’t. “But Glenn kicked me out. Nick, I called a strip joint to try and get a job. Me.”

Glenn had made the situation a hundred times worse. It luck that Nick was here. Luck that he happened to be a private investigator and a damn good one who’d helped her in a massive way.

When she thought about it all, it was all quite terrible.

He pulled her closer and she rested her cheek on his chest again, now enjoying the steady rhythm of his heart.

“I’m sorry you had to go through that.”

“Thank you for being there for me; I was so scared.”

He pulled back slowly and cupped her face. “You don’t ever have to be scared when I’m around. I’ll always take care of you, Mia.”

That was a promise she would always cherish and felt truly lucky to have. “Thank you, that means everything to me.”

He ran his fingers across the edge of her jaw and gazed into her eyes. He looked down at her lips and immediately her stomach tightened as she wondered if he was going to kiss her.

God, what would it feel like for him to kiss her? To feel his lips on hers, and feel the magic she felt just from his presence, but so much more.

Any thought of a kiss, however, left her mind as he released her and took a step back.

She couldn’t lie and say that she didn’t feel a little disappointed and started that whole process of wondering again. But she decided to stick with her new plan.

“We should go out and celebrate.” She smiled brightly at him.

“Out?” He inclined his head to the side.

“Yes, like dancing. Let’s go out and have fun.”

He laughed. “Mia, I’m getting to be an old man, now. By the end of the year I’ll probably be in bed by seven after I’ve had a TV dinner and watched the six o’clock news.”

Mia burst out laughing. “Nick, that is ridiculous.”

“It’s not, Mia. I can’t be out dancing and having fun, anymore, with you young whippersnappers.”

“That’s crazy. Nick, you’re thirty-eight, and I’m thirty. You aren’t an old man and I’m not a young whippersnapper. That is such a lame excuse for not going out with me.” She chuckled.

“Babe, you know how busy I am.”

“Nick, you’re about to get busier with me. I’m calling in our hangout session now, and don’t even bother to say no.” She moved around him heading to the door. “We’re going to club Chique, go get dressed,” she called back over her shoulder.

* * *

Nick dithered between emotions.

While Glenn was here, he’d had to keep his anger under control, and everything Glenn said infuriated him further.

Everything, from offering to split the money with Mia, to his casual attempts to get him out of the house.

Sure, he’d gone on business trips with Glenn many times, but this offer was such an obvious attempt to get him out of the house and away from Mia. Nick had been tempted to say something rude like assure him he’d keep his dick under control, but Mia’s presence stopped him.

Her presence stopped him for two reasons: he didn’t talk like that when she was around, and also it was perhaps a promise he couldn’t make or keep.

His talk with Sawyer earlier stood out in his mind. He was trying to think of Mia, and his desire to know what she wanted got the better of him in the moment.

As did his loyalty to Glenn.

He was trying to reinforce that loyalty when he tried to back out of going out. He really was, and probably should have insisted more if he was going to try to hold that loyalty at the forefront of his mind.

However, anything that resembled loyalty disappeared when Mia came down the stairs in a sexy, low-cut mini-dress that criss-crossed around her perfect body, enveloping her and showing off her sculpted curves and voluptuous, fully rounded breasts. The necklace was on display in full force, sparkling against the deep hollow between her breasts. All that silky blonde hair spilled down her back in loose waves and had that alluring sweet smell he loved. And the sparkly heels she wore made her golden legs look longer and sexy as hell.

Glenn would have died if he saw her, and knowing she was going out looking like that with Nick would have given him an instant heart attack. She looked like temptation wrapped in that little dress, waiting for him to unwrap and devour her.

God help him. Anything that resembled loyalty to Glenn was struggling against the mix of emotions that brewed within him. It was the reason why they sat down around one of the tables in the seating area of the club instead of dancing like everyone else. There was that and the fact that he hadn’t been able to keep his cock from going hard every time he looked at her.

They’d been here for over an hour now and it had been hell for him.

“Nick, are we ever going to dance? Or are we going to just sit here all night?” She looked at him sternly with those green eyes of hers, enhanced by the smoky shades of her make up.

“I’m just waiting for the right song,” he lied. “And the music’s too low. Got to feel the right vibe and beat.”

It was eight o’clock. While the club was heaving with people it was still quite early by clubbing standards, and the music was loud enough to enjoy it and dance, but at the same time low enough to hold a conversation.

He’d been here several times and knew that the later it got the louder they turned up the music. The people running this place knew how to entertain their guests by the hour.

She shook her head at him and tossed her hair to the side. The slight movement gave him a little more view of the plump swell of her right breast and he wondered if she was wearing a bra.

“What song is that, Nick?”

“I don’t remember the name. But when I hear it I’ll know.”

“Why can’t we just dance like everyone else?” she pouted.

Because he wasn’t thinking about dancing. “Trust me, it’s a good song.”

“What if they don’t play the song?”

He got the feeling she knew he was trying to avoid dancing altogether. “Everywhere plays this song, babe.”

“But you can’t remember the name of it?” She smiled slyly.

“No, babe.”

She held his gaze, then looked out to the dance floor where it just looked like a mass of bodies smashed together in a wild, heated frenzy.

“Hi,” said a dark-haired guy who approached them at the table. The guy looked like a body builder, with his mass of muscles purposely on display in his tight-fitted t-shirt.

“Hi.” Mia smiled. The guy was looking at her as if she were some kind of exotic meal, which Nick couldn’t blame him for. She did look smoking hot and he felt like a fool sitting here not doing anything because Glenn told him not to give his sister the wrong idea.

“I couldn’t help but notice you two not dancing, so I hoped you weren’t together together,” the guy said in a complete macho way, now ignoring Nick.

Asshole. Nick could have him on the floor within seconds. That muscle image didn’t do shit. Besides, he looked like one of those steroid junkies that just bulked up for the look.

“We’re together, but just not dancing,” Mia said, looking at Nick and raising her brows.

“Well how about a dance until your boy comes to his senses?” The guy smiled and glanced over at Nick.

Nick was about to tell him to fuck off, but stopped mid-sentence when he heard Mia’s voice say, “Sure, but that may take forever.”

“I would be very happy to dance with you forever,” the guy said, putting out his hand to take hers, which she gladly accepted.

Nick opened his mouth to protest but didn’t know what to say. Stupidly, he watched the idiot take her hand, leading his girl away from him to dance with her.

He kept his gaze peeled to them, not wanting to let her out of his sight for a second. The music playing was upbeat but sexy.

It was a psychedelic club mix of Sarah McLachlan’s Possession. That made everyone go even wilder in their dancing and drove them closer.

The guy was behind Mia with his arm around her waist and her pressed up against him, grinding with her.

But her eyes were on him, on Nick.

Nick froze as he watched her little hips circle, her eyes on him as she ran her hands down her body slowly from the top of her head, over her shoulders and her breasts, and down the toned length of her abs to her waist.

That was when all loyalty to Glenn dissipated from his mind and it became very clear that Mia wanted him just as much as he wanted her.

Nick all but forgot who Glenn was when he rose from his chair and marched over to them and took hold of Mia’s arm, pulling her away from the guy.

“Hey man, we’re not done,” the guy complained. “We haven’t even had a whole song.”

“Don’t be stupid and start on me, man, it won’t end well for you.” Nick smiled at the guy in the cool, calm manner he used when he used to be a Marine.

The guy swore and had the good sense to move away. Nick was slightly taller and had real muscles you could only get from serious, hardcore, military training. The guy must have sized him up and knew better than to mess with him.

Nick looked at Mia who was giving him a curious look, her pretty mouth set and lips agape. He pulled her closer so that she was facing him. She pressed her hands on his chest and he slipped his arms around her. He leaned down so that he was right next to her ear.

“You were teasing me,” he spoke against the soft lobe of her ear.

“Eureka, finally after a lifetime you notice me,” she replied firmly, brushing the side of her face against his.

“It didn’t take a lifetime for me to notice you.” It felt like something had broken down the walls between them. The walls that kept him from being like this with her.

“It felt that way to me,” she breathed softly.

“Dance with me,” he whispered, sounding desperate. “Do what you did just now, but with me.”

He wanted her so badly he ached for her. The years of suppressing his need had caught up with him in the worst way and hurt like a bitch.

“Only if you touch me,” she cooed seductively, her soft breath like a gentle caress against his skin.

To answer her request he turned her around so that her back was to him, then he set his hands on her hips.

“Is this good, baby?” He leaned down again and asked, rubbing his hands over her. She felt so good. It felt good to touch her like this, and he knew this was just the start of his exploration of her body. His mind was no longer with him. His every move was guided now by sexual desire and passion.

“Perfect.”

The music changed. It was louder, much louder and sexier. It was one of those upbeat club mixtures that you could feel right through you, and called out to your inner most primal needs, like his for her.

She moved her hips in that little circle to the beat, slowly at first, and he moved with her, touching her like she requested. She drove him crazy with her moves to the point where he’d stopped and allowed her to wiggle and twist against him. She pressed her fine ass into the hard length of his cock and his knees almost buckled from the contact.

She shocked him and no longer resembled the sweet girl he used to know. What he held was a sexy-as-hell woman who was trying to show him how much she wanted him.

It was time for him to show her, too. He pulled her closer so she could feel him more and ran his hands down her shoulders to her arms.

“Touch me, Nick,” she said as he lowered to her ear.

She took his hands and smoothed them up to her breasts, then let go, wanting him to do the rest. And God, he did.

He smoothed his hands over those soft globes, wanting to squeeze her and suck her but restraining himself because they were in public. A soft moan of pleasure escaped her lips and he released her before he exploded right here on the dance floor.

Shit, she’d driven him mad with need for her.

He turned her back to face him, looked at the heated look she gave him, and pressed his lips to hers.