Bethany started to say something, no doubt something mean and nasty, and Marci beat her to it. "Come to my place to sleep."

Tucking in his chin and quickly dropping his arm, Lucius stared at her. "Come again?"

"You really do look exhausted. I'll get my stuff and shower here so you can go to my bedroom and sleep."

"Ah, no." He glanced at Bethany, but she only glared back. No help from her. "I wouldn't feel right." That is, he'd be randy as a goat and it was tough to sleep with a b.o.n.e.r.

"Don't be silly."

Bethany was right-her sister was oblivious to the s.e.xuality of her suggestion.

But h.e.l.l, Marci smelled enough like Bethany to put a spin on his libido. Lying on those scented sheets would put him right over the edge. "I'll wait."

Marci rolled her eyes. "Bethany, take him for me."

Color flooded Bethany's face, making her blue eyes brighter by contrast. That soft brown hair he'd touched a million times in his dreams whipped around her face as she shook her head. "No way."

"Bethany." Marci put a hand on her hip.

"But, but..." she sputtered, "I can't-"

"Take me?" Lucius offered.

She rounded on him, her face on fire. "Don't-"

"For Marci?" he coerced, and even as he prodded her, he thought he really should shut up. It wasn't that he liked to be tortured, but now he wanted to go to Marci's apartment.

Just because Bethany didn't want him there.

Marci huffed out a long breath. "Will you two quit acting like b.u.mbling high-schoolers and just go? Bethany, after all your upset last night-"

"What upset?" Lucius asked, but both women soundly ignored him.

"-you need more sleep, too. You know, on second thought, you can take my bed, and Luscious can-"

"His name isLucius ."

"-take the couch, and I'll take Hero to the vet." Content with the arrangement, Marci smiled. "There. Everyone should be happy." She turned and strolled away. The hem of the T-shirt bunched up on her rounded rump, putting her panties, and a very fine a.s.s, on display. Lucius stared.

Until Bethany popped him one on the shoulder.

"Ow. d.a.m.n." He gave up the view of Marci leaving his apartment to glare at Bethany.

Seething, she said, "You are such a perv."

"I'm a perv? Your sister is the one sashaying around in her undies." Giving me an idea of what you'd look like in your undies.

Arms crossed tight beneath her b.r.e.a.s.t.s, bare foot tapping, Bethany stared off at nothing in particular. Finally, she muttered, "You're a hypocrite, too."

"Oh, really?"

"You ridicule Marci's abilities, then come running the second you think she can help you."

"I don't ridicule her. I tease her. There's a difference."

"Whatever you call it, you've always discounted her ability."

What was he supposed to do? Should he say, Great, you're a pet physic. Just what we need in the complex? Lucius didn't like being put on the spot.

"Admit it," Bethany pressed.

He argued the point instead. "You're telling me that if a woman came to you to rent a room, and she claimed to be a pet psychic who needed a place to hide out to avoid the media and unscrupulous scam artists hoping to use their pets for fame, you wouldn't bat an eye?"

"Not if it was my sister."

Lucius threw up his hands. "Nowthat makes a lot of sense," he said, with complete and utter facetiousness. "But news flash, honey. Marci isn't my sister."

"That shouldn't matter. What I meant was that Marci comes across as genuine."

"Genuinely loony." Never had Lucius known a woman more flighty, more p.r.o.ne to melodrama, more...ethereal. The twins might look alike, but they were night and day in disposition.

Marci floated through life.

Bethany stomped.

"She's also honest," Bethany insisted.

"You've got me there." Marci might be strange enough to chat with every squirrel in the trees, but she never caused trouble, and she paid her rent on time. Lucius could trust her. Hadn't he just agreed to trust her with his dog?

"And caring. About everyone and everything."

"No argument." What the h.e.l.l were they talking about, anyway? With Bethany standing there, full of fire, he could barely think, much less chatter. How could a woman look so good first thing in the morning? Ratty hair and sleep creases around the eyes had never turned him on before.

Now they had him close to a full-blown l.u.s.t-fest.

"So you know she's honest and caring." Bethany looked ready to rest her case.

"Sure." Lucius smiled to himself. "But she's still a dingbat-and before you take aim on my poor arm again, I say that with affection."

"You can jam your affection where the sun don't shine, Sergeant."

"Doesn't shine," he corrected, and watched her eyes burn like blue flames. He tsked. "And you call yourself a school secretary. The fate of our young people is not in good hands."

She growled better than Hero. Spinning away from him, she started to stomp off, and Lucius caught the back of her shirt. Her legs almost came out from under her.

Fists raised, she reared around and he quickly backed up.

"Uncle, uncle. Don't batter me. I just wanted to apologize."

Suspicion kept her guarded. "For what?"

"For deliberately razzing you. Obviously, you're not a morning person. But the truth is, I like your sister. Always have."

If anything, his confession made her angrier. "Great," she said through her teeth. "Just great. Glad to hear it. So you two are cozy? Never mind. It's...great. News, that is. What a relief."

He couldn't hold back his grin. "Now Bethany, don't get jealous."

Her gasp nearly parted his hair.

"I like Marci as a friend," he soothed. "Granted, a female friend. But I'm not hot for her or anything."

She wore an expression of clear disbelief.

"It's true. As a rule, I avoid getting romantically involved with the women I rent to." He closed the s.p.a.ce between them. "Which, come to think of it, is a d.a.m.n good reason not to rent to you."

Bethany's mouth opened twice before anything came out. "You..."

He noticed that she didn't move away. "Yes?"

"Conceited..."

She seemed to flounder after that, so Lucius tried to help out. "Handsome?"

"Obnoxious..."

"You mean confident, right?"

"Egomaniac..."

"Now that's just not nice."

"Jerk!"

His blood sang through his veins. "If I kissed you right now, would you slug me?"

To his surprise, she pokered up and glared and-seemed to think about it.

Not that he'd kiss her, Lucius a.s.sured himself. The fantasies alone nearly killed him. To get the real thing would do him in, especially if she kissed him and then sent him packing, which, given her past and present att.i.tude toward him, seemed a pretty good possibility.

Besides, she was the twin sister to a tenant. Too close for comfort if things went south. Bethany Churchill would be nothing but trouble. Tasty trouble, for sure. Just look at her mouth. So soft and damp...

"No."

"What's that?" The barely-there whisper sort of snuck by him while he'd considered licking her lips for her.

"I said no."

"I've forgotten my question." He needed clarification. He needed more oxygen. He needed her under him. "No, you don't want me to kiss you, or no, you wouldn't object?"

She blinked hard and fast. Somehow, that seemed like a come-on.

"Bethany?" He got so close, his feet touched hers-which meant her b.r.e.a.s.t.s brushed against him and he knew d.a.m.n good and well she didn't wear a bra. He bent to touch his nose to her hair, taking in her scent...

Her hands flattened on his chest and in a small voice, she whispered, "Please, don't."

Well, s.h.i.t. Disappointment cleared the fog. "Okay." But he didn't back off. He couldn't. Not just yet.

The dog started to snore, making Lucius smile. But Hero didn't count against their privacy. They were alone. In his bedroom. "Wanna tell me why?"

Her shuddering, indrawn breath moved her b.r.e.a.s.t.s against him, and he felt her stiffened nipples. He swallowed a groan. "Bethany?"

"I have...enough guy trouble already."

Those words landed like lead in his gut. "I see." He didn't want to hear about her with other guys. He knew she dated. How could she not? She was gorgeous, s.e.xy, funny, and smart. But the last he'd heard from Marci, she didn't have anything serious going on. "And you a.s.sume I'd be more trouble?"

"You're a bad boy, remember." She chanced a quick look up at him, and Lucius snagged her gaze.

Unable to stop himself, he slid one hand into her hair. "You telling me you don't like bad boys?"

Her smile trembled. "You're not really bad and you know it."

"Now, how'd you get that impression?"

"For one thing, you're a cop."

"Yeah." His thumb touched just below her ear. "I get to shoot at people."

She smiled, seeing through his humor. "For another, you help women."

His heart missed a beat. "Come again?"

"Lucius. You rent only to women, and those women were all in dire straits and in need of housing. You can't tell me that happened by accident."

"Sure, I can." But she might be onto something there.

She gestured at the bed. "You also rescue dogs."

Throwing her words back at her, he said, "It's an att.i.tude thing."

"What is?"

"Being bad. It's not what you do, but how you do it. When it comes to relationships, I'm as bad as can be."

"Oh, I have no trouble believing that. Any woman with a brain knows you'd be disastrous to her heart."

"I don't want your heart, Bethany." Liar, liar. His gaze slid over her. His voice dropped. "I want the rest of you, though."

Regret filled her eyes-and she took that fatal step away. "Sorry, Lucius. I'm off the market for a while. If the past week-the past month hadn't happened..." She dropped that train of thought with a shrug. "Right now, I'm just looking to relocate, not get involved."