Deanne peered at her intently. "This wouldn't have anything to do with the fact that I mentioned Hank and Sean might come by, would it?"

"Why would that matter to me?" Ruby asked, studying her cereal as if she'd never seen a bran flake before.

"That's what I'd like to know," Deanna said.

"Leave it alone," Ruby said, pushing away from the table and dumping her cereal down the garbage disposal. "I've got to get to work."

Since Ruby's job was only part-time a.s.sistant in the same neighborhood law firm where Deanna worked days as a receptionist, something was off here. Deanna could have let it alone, but it wasn't in her nature. She might not pry into Ruby's social life, but she did pay attention when her friend was behaving weirdly.

"We never leave the house before seven-thirty," she pointed out. "We're not due at the office till eight. It takes us five minutes to walk to work. What's the sudden rush? Are you trying to avoid talking to me?"

Ruby evaded Deanna's direct gaze. "I'm filling in for Ca.s.sandra this week, remember?"

"So?"

"I've got a lot of typing piled up. I'm not as fast as she is, and I still need to get out so I can be home when Kevin gets here after school."

Deanna's gaze narrowed at the mention of her son. "Is baby-sitting Kevin getting to be a problem?"

"Of course not!" Ruby said, staring at her indignantly. "Don't you dare think that. You know I love that kid as if he were my own. Heck, I've been around since the day he was born."

"Well, something's going on here," Deanna said, studying Ruby thoughtfully. She decided to go for broke and throw her suspicions on the table. "You haven't been yourself for days now, not since the night you got together with Hank at the fire station."

"One thing has nothing to do with the other," Ruby insisted, her jaw set stubbornly.

Deanna wasn't buying it, but she couldn't very well drag the truth out of Ruby if she wasn't willing to share it. "Okay," she said at last. "I'll drop it for now, on one condition."

"Anything that will get you to back off," Ruby agreed.

"Have dinner at Joey's tonight."

"Dee!" Ruby protested.

Deanna held firm. "That's it. That's my condition. Otherwise, you'll never be able to convince me that Hank's not at the bottom of your weird mood."

Something that might have been a tiny flicker of relief pa.s.sed across Ruby's face, then gave way to an air of resignation. "Okay, okay. Geez, you are such a nag."

Deanna grinned at her. "I should be. I learned from the best."

Ruby shook her head. "Obviously I should have kept that lesson to myself."

Sean and five other firefighters in uniform piled into Joey's Italian Diner around six o'clock. Deanna was just coming out of the kitchen with an order when they arrived. She heard her son's whoop of delight, but missed the fact that he was racing straight across the restaurant toward Sean. He b.u.mped into her at full throttle, knocking her off-balance and sending the tray of spaghetti dinners tilting toward disaster.

"Whoa!" Sean said, rescuing the tray in midair and managing to keep Deanna upright at the same time. He stared down into her eyes. "Are you okay?"

Deanna gazed up into blue eyes bright with amus.e.m.e.nt and felt her knees go weak again. "Having you come to my rescue is getting to be a habit," she told Sean, then turned to her son and scolded, "Kevin, you know you're supposed to watch where you're going in here."

"Sorry, Mom!" Kevin said. "I didn't see you. I was excited to see Sean."

Deanna could relate to the feeling. A part of her hadn't expected him to actually show up, not because he was likely to change his mind but because of the unpredictability of his job. "There should be a table for six opening up in a minute," she told him as she reached for the tray. "Let me serve these dinners, and as soon as it's clear, I'll get it ready for you."

Sean held tight to the tray. "Where do you want this? It weighs a ton."

"I'm used to it," she protested.

His stubborn gaze clashed with hers. "Where?"

She shrugged and gestured toward a stand across the room. "Over there, by that table in the corner. Kevin, go on back to your table, before someone else gets tripped up."

Kevin regarded her with disappointment. "But, Mom..."

"I'll see you before I go," Sean promised him. "If your mom says it's okay, you can come have dessert with me and the guys."

Kevin's eyes lit up. "Really? And you'll tell me all about fighting fires? I want to be a fireman when I grow up, so I need to start learning stuff."

This wasn't the first Deanna had heard about her son's career plans, but she wondered how Sean was going to respond to Kevin's blatant hero worship. Glancing at him, she realized she needn't have worried. He grinned and a.s.sured Kevin he could ask all the questions he wanted. The last traces of Kevin's scowl promptly faded. Deanna had to admit, Sean had a definite way with her son. Still balancing the heavy tray on one hand, he ruffled Kevin's hair with his other hand.

"Do what your mom said," he urged Kevin. "I need to take this tray where she wants it, before she docks my pay."

Kevin giggled. "You don't work here."

"Not usually," Sean agreed. "But it's always good for a man to help out a lady, even when she doesn't think she needs any help."

Deanna caught the subtle message about her independent streak. She didn't say another word as Sean carried the tray across the room. She noted that several fascinated gazes followed his progress. Well aware of how the elderly regulars liked to take an interest in her social life, she knew she'd be hearing about the incident for days to come.

"I can take it from here," she told him when he'd set the tray down.

Sean glanced at the tray, which held only specials. He winked at the elderly woman closest to him. "I imagine this is yours," he said, then leaned down to whisper. "She doesn't think I know what I'm doing, so help me out here okay?"

Mrs. Wiley beamed at him. "Crazy girl," she said with a tsk tsk for Deanna's benefit. "I can't imagine what she's thinking, turning down the help of a big, strong firefighter. You put that plate right here, young man." for Deanna's benefit. "I can't imagine what she's thinking, turning down the help of a big, strong firefighter. You put that plate right here, young man."

Deanna stood back while he served all four women, who were giggling at his teasing as if they were thirty years younger. When all the dinners were on the table, he stood back and surveyed the results with evident pride.

"Not such a bad job, if I do say so myself," he said. "I didn't spill a drop."

"Only one problem," Deanna noted mildly, barely containing a grin. "These dinners were destined for that table over there."

She gestured toward two couples who were watching the scene from the next table. Three of the four looked amused, but the fourth looked as if he were about to burst a blood vessel.

Mrs. Wiley patted Sean's hand. "Oh, don't mind them, young man. You did a fine job. We'll send over a bottle of Joey's house wine and they won't complain."

Sean looked chagrined. "I'll buy the wine," he said, turning to the other group. "Sorry. I was trying to be helpful."

Amazingly, Mr. Horner, who usually complained about everything, simply shrugged, his anger defused. "Long as you don't expect a big tip, I imagine we can wait."

Sean winced and turned to Deanna. "Sorry."

She was tempted to make him squirm, but he looked so miserable, she relented. "He's a lousy tipper, anyway," she whispered. "By the way, I see that Joey has cleared that table for you. It might be a good idea if you went over there now before I lose all my tips for the night."

Sean retreated to the table where the other firefighters had been seated. Deanna had deliberately sent them to a table that was not part of her station, so she could escape Sean's watchful gaze. Let Adele cope with them. There hadn't been a customer born who could fl.u.s.ter her.

The tactic was only partially successful. Deanna still felt Sean's gaze following her as she worked her way between tables, joking with the customers, carrying orders from the frantic kitchen and helping to clear tables for the line of customers waiting to be seated.

It was so busy for a couple of hours that she was only dimly aware that the firefighters didn't seem to be in any big rush to leave. Hank had slipped away from his table and joined Ruby, trading places with Kevin, who was basking in the undivided attention of Sean and the other firefighters, all of whom were being incredibly patient with his endless barrage of questions.

By eight, the crowd finally started to thin out. Those remaining were lingering over coffee and Joey's chocolate cannoli. Satisfied that things in the dining room were under control for the moment, Deanna slipped onto a stool in the kitchen and kicked off her shoes with a sigh of pleasure.

"It's about time you had a break," Sean said, appearing beside her with a frown on his face. "Have you eaten?"

"I grabbed something earlier," she told him.

"Earlier when?" he asked, his skepticism plain. "Lunchtime?"

"Actually I had some salad not more than twenty minutes ago."

"Meaning she grabbed a carrot on her way through the kitchen," the cook chimed in helpfully.

Deanna scowled at Victor, who was ogling Sean with frank appreciation. "Traitor," she accused him.

Victor grinned. "Given a choice between you and your gorgeous friend, whose side did you think I'd be on?"

Deanna chuckled as Sean regarded Victor uneasily. "Don't panic," she advised Sean. "He's almost as harmless as Ruby. He's also been in a long-term relationship with the same man for years now."

"Good to know," Sean said. "Now let's get back to you. You need to eat. Victor, can you fix something for her?"

Deanna bristled at his commanding tone. "If I wanted something to eat, which I don't, I could fix it myself. Victor doesn't have to wait on me." I wanted something to eat, which I don't, I could fix it myself. Victor doesn't have to wait on me."

Sean frowned at her. "Don't be stubborn. You have to be starving."

"Sean, I've been taking care of myself and my son for a long time now. Neither one of us is malnourished. Doesn't that tell you something?"

Victor looked from Sean's set jaw to Deanna's equally set expression and immediately headed for the door. "Think I'll go ask Joey to fix me a cappuccino. You two decide you want anything, help yourselves."

"We won't," Deanna said tightly.

As soon as they were alone, she whirled on Sean. "What do you think you're doing coming into a place I work and bossing me around?"

He looked bemused by her reaction. "All I did was suggest you should have something to eat."

"Suggest? That's not how I heard it. You practically ordered me to eat. I don't get it. Why are my eating habits any of your business?" That's not how I heard it. You practically ordered me to eat. I don't get it. Why are my eating habits any of your business?"

He jammed his hands in his pockets and backed off a step. "Okay, you're right. They're not."

"Then what's going on?"

"Someone needs to look out for you."

"Someone does, does," she retorted. "Me. That's how it's been for a long time now."

"Well, pardon me for caring," he snapped defensively.

Deanna was taken aback by his choice of words and by the expression on his face. He looked as if he hated how he was acting almost as much as she did.

She bit back her irritation and managed to keep her voice level as she asked, "Sean, what's really going on here?"

"I wish to h.e.l.l I knew," he muttered. "You obviously don't want me interfering in your life. I really don't want to be in your life, yet here I am."

"I didn't ask you to come here tonight," she reminded him. "It was your idea."

He scowled. "Don't you think I know that?"

"Then I'm afraid I don't get it." She looked into his eyes and saw evidence of the internal struggle he was waging with himself. She softened her voice. "Sean?"

He kept his gaze locked with hers for what seemed to be an eternity. She could hear the tick of the clock on the kitchen wall, the sighing of the refrigerators switching on, the clink of ice in the automated ice maker.

"Oh, what the h.e.l.l?" he murmured, reaching for her and slanting his mouth over hers.

He caught her by surprise. The kiss was the absolute last thing she expected when he was so clearly exasperated with her and annoyed with himself. He claimed her lips with a heady combination of heat and urgency that had her breath snagging in her throat and her senses spinning wildly.

Then, almost as quickly as it had started, it was over. Sean raked a hand impatiently through his hair and regarded her with regret.

"I'm sorry," he said, turning on his heels and leaving before Deanna could gather her wits to reply.

She stared after him, wondering what the apology was for...their argument or the kiss.

Please don't let it be for the kiss, she thought wildly, touching a shaky finger to her lips. It had been a very long time since any man had kissed her like that, and she'd been perfectly content to let it stay that way.

Until now. With one kiss Sean Devaney had unwittingly awakened a sleeping need in her. She might not want him telling her what to do or fretting over her eating habits, but, heaven help her, she definitely wanted him to kiss her again. Soon.

Chapter Five.

Kissing Deanna had to qualify as one of the ten dumbest things he'd ever done in his life, Sean concluded on the ride back to the station. He hadn't meant to kiss her. He hadn't wanted to kiss her.

The shouts of liar liar that echoed in his head at that claim were way too loud to be ignored. Okay then, he had that echoed in his head at that claim were way too loud to be ignored. Okay then, he had wanted wanted to kiss her from the very first instant when he'd had to steady her and that tray after her near run-in with her son. Two seconds of contact with all those soft, yielding curves and he'd wanted even more than a kiss. He'd wanted to drag her into his arms and discover every single secret of her delectable body. It had been a long time since he'd felt that kind of instantaneous rush of pure l.u.s.t. to kiss her from the very first instant when he'd had to steady her and that tray after her near run-in with her son. Two seconds of contact with all those soft, yielding curves and he'd wanted even more than a kiss. He'd wanted to drag her into his arms and discover every single secret of her delectable body. It had been a long time since he'd felt that kind of instantaneous rush of pure l.u.s.t.

But he'd dealt with that impulsive, totally male response during dinner. He'd lectured himself on the sheer folly of any intimate contact with her. He'd joined in the speculative jokes his buddies were making about Hank and Ruby. He'd focused intently on Kevin's apparently endless barrage of questions. He'd teased their waitress, pleaded for Joey's surprisingly incredible recipe for spaghetti sauce. He'd done everything he could think of to get his mind completely off Deanna.

He'd done all that, but he hadn't been able to keep his eyes off her. She was always at the periphery of his vision. The sound of her laughter was always teasing him, drawing his focus away from his friends. h.e.l.l, he could almost swear he could even pick out the scent of her perfume when she was two aisles away. How pathetic was that?