Feeling The Heat Page 10

  Though she knew perfectly well what he was talking about, Georgia quirked a brow and played the innocent. “Help what?”

  “Putting every duck in a row. Making sure there’s no ‘downtime.’ Being in charge.”

  “Well, in this case time is of the essence, right? Every minute Carter is on the street is one more minute my mother’s ring is at risk.”

  “We’ll find him, Georgia,” Linc told her, suddenly serious.

  She couldn’t help but notice that he didn’t assure her they’d find the ring. Of course, if she’d learned one thing about Linc Stone over the past few days—aside from the fact that he could kiss her lips off and incinerate her good sense—she’d learned that he wasn’t a liar. You might not like what he had to say, but he wasn’t the type of guy to let a little thing like that keep him from telling the truth.

  “Tell you what. Why don’t we run this mysterious errand of yours first, then we’ll head over to my place for a few minutes?” His expression darkened. “I need to bounty-hunter-up a little more for this picture with Cecil.”

  Georgia sent him a sidelong glance. “Bounty-hunter-up?”

  “Cecil wants us decked out in black, in full-on catch-the-bad-guys mode. I need to change jeans.”

  “Won’t you need to let Cade know?”

  Linc grinned. “Cade’s always in full bounty-hunter regalia.”

  Smiling, Georgia inclined her head. “Okay.”

  It sounded like a good plan to her. Very efficient. Furthermore, getting another peek into Linc’s lair was intensely appealing. The last time she’d been too aware of him and his bare chest to properly take a look around. She’d seen enough to know that she’d misjudged his character, but what other secrets were there? Georgia wondered. If she looked close enough, what else would she discover? No doubt only things that would make him that much more appealing. She sighed.

  And the last thing she needed was another reason to like Linc Stone. Lusting after him was bad enough.

  “YOU’VE GOT TO BE kidding me,” Linc said, staring through the plate-glass window of the store Georgia—Little Miss Friggin’ Efficient—had directed him to. Linc read the sign emblazoned on the pink-and-green striped awning and inwardly shuddered with dread.

  The Honeymoon, specializing in bridal lingerie since 1969.

  Georgia merely chuckled. “You’re welcome to wait in the car,” she said, implying, of course, that she knew he thought his balls would shrivel up and fall off if he went inside. Talk about galling. A stabbing pain developed behind his right eye.

  Linc released a sigh and passed a hand over his face. “Tell me again why we’re here.”

  “We’re here because I’ve had something special-ordered for one of my brides and I need to pick it up.”

  “What are you doing ordering lingerie for one of your brides? Why didn’t her fiancé order it for her? Isn’t that a bit creepy, Georgia? I mean, shouldn’t your job end with the reception, or do these fools need your help with the honeymoon, too?”

  Georgia arched a brow, a keen gleam entering her gaze. “Fools? What makes you think they’re fools?”

  Linc snorted. “They’re getting married, aren’t they?”

  She studied him thoughtfully for a moment, forcing him to resist the urge to squirm under that keen scrutiny. “Only fools get married?”

  “Only fools fall in love—complete idiots get married.”

  Though she didn’t so much as flinch, Linc could tell he’d just sent Georgia reeling. Her eyes widened with shock and a short burst of laughter erupted from her throat. Of course, he’d just insulted her profession, her beliefs, and every person—including her belated parents—who’d ever married.

  After a moment, she cleared her throat. “Have you shared these feelings with your sister, by any chance?”

  “Of course not,” Linc told her, regretting his outburst. She’d be psychoanalyzing the hell out of him now, trying to poke around in his brain and see why wasn’t interested in love and all it entailed. “But she knows that I never intend to fall in love and follow the natural progression down the aisle.”

  “So you think you can choose whether or not you fall in love? That it’s a voluntary emotion?”

  He thought it was time for this conversation to be over, that’s what he thought. “I think I’ve managed to do it thus far.” He climbed out of the truck, effectively changing the subject and leaving her no choice but to follow. “Come on. Let’s get this over with.”

  “I told you that you could stay here,” Georgia said.

  “Yes, well, since you only think you’re in charge, what you tell me is sort of moot, isn’t it?”

  “Why are you so pissy all of the sudden?” she snapped. “It’s a lingerie store. It’s not like we’re here to have you neutered. Though it’s damned tempting,” she muttered under her breath as he held the door open for her.

  “You’re not big enough, Trouble,” Linc said, chuckling despite himself.

  She shot him a look over her shoulder. “Trouble?”

  “Your new nickname. I thought you would prefer it to pain in the ass.”

  “I actually prefer Georgia,” she said, her voice an irritated combination of evil and sweet. “But since you’ve given me a nickname, I’ll be sure to come up with one for you.”

  “Knock yourself out, babe,” he said, pulling a shrug. “I don’t mind.”

  “Good. How does dickwad suit you?”

  Linc strangled on a laugh.

  “Morning, Ava,” Georgia called, hailing a clerk. “Betty said I could come by today and pick up the special order for Tina Scarpone.”

  Ava smiled. “If her mother finds out about this, she’ll ruin you, you know that, don’t you?”

  Georgia waited at the counter and smiled. “That’s why her mother isn’t going to find out. Besides, it’s not her mother’s honeymoon—it’s Tina’s. And Tina doesn’t want to wear twenty yards of ruffled cotton.” She chuckled. “She wants to knock David’s socks off, not smother him.”

  Intrigued, despite the fact that he was surrounded by oodles of miserably-ever-after white lingerie—most of it tame by his standards—Linc sidled closer to where Georgia stood. He arrived just in time to watch Ava lift the lid off a box, presumably the one they’d come to pick up.

  Georgia oohed appropriately and lifted the sheer, naughty nightie out of the package. It was more gauze and ribbon than actual fabric. White satin ribbon was shot through the sheer material and crisscrossed over the abdomen, then tied directly below and between the equally sheer cups. A tiny beribboned thong completed the outfit.

  That was it.

  Every ounce of moisture evaporated from his mouth, staring at the teeny white negligee. Frankly he’d always preferred black or red, but white had just moved to the top of his list.

  This was what Georgia had picked out for her bride? This measly scrap of guaranteed sex? What? No frilly robe to go over it? No cover-up of any sort? His gaze darted around the store, taking in all of the other froufrou outfits, but nothing even came close to the sinful little number she was currently putting back in the box.

  My God, he thought, stunned. He should have been used to her shocking the hell out of him by now, but for whatever reason, this new development trumped every other curve she’d thrown at him over the past couple of days. Naturally, he would have expected her to order something prim and pretty with lots of lacy fabric.

  The nightie she was currently deeming perfect was one of the most sinful things he’d ever laid eyes on. A flame of heat wound through his belly and settled in his loins, and his mouth watered, imagining her in it instead.

  “That’s beautiful,” Georgia was saying, clearly pleased. “What do you think?” she asked Ava. “Thigh-highs or no?”

  “Men love thigh-highs,” Linc heard himself say, his voice curiously thick and strangled even to his own ears.

  Georgia turned to him, a calculating gleam in her eye. “You know, you may end up being useful after all.”


  He frowned, trying to figure out the insult. “Useful after all?”

  She grabbed his arm and steered him toward the back of the store to a rack of shoes. “I mean, you can help me put this together.”

  Oh, hell no, Linc thought, backing up. “Forget it,” he said flatly. “Haven’t I already told you I thought this was creepy?”

  “What’s creepy is that Tina’s mother wants her to wear the same gown she did on her own honeymoon. That’s creepy.”

  Linc sure as hell couldn’t argue with that, but was still disinclined to offer an opinion. This was something that Tina and David should be doing together, or that Tina should be doing alone. Unless they were picking out something for her to wear for him, they needed to stay the hell out of it.

  She picked up two pairs of shoes. “I’m not asking you to try them on, dammit. I just want you to tell me—from a male point of view,” she emphasized, “which one’s are sexier.”

  “Georgia, I—”

  She kicked her boots off, removed her socks and slipped one of each of the shoes on her feet. “Which ones look better?”

  She had surprisingly small feet, Linc noted, suddenly distracted from their argument, her toes painted in a pretty pink shade. He caught a glimpse of something on the top of her foot and felt a line emerge between his brows. “What’s that?”

  “What’s what?”

  “That,” Linc said, bending down to slip the shoe off of her foot. “Well, I’ll be damned,” he breathed, looking at the small green frog tattoo sitting atop her dainty foot. A surprised grin curving his lips, he looked up at her and his impressed gaze met hers. “You’ve got a tattoo?”

  “I do. Let me guess? I’m not staying in the box again?”

  That was putting it lightly. One would think he would have learned by now not to be surprised by anything when it came to Georgia Hart, but clearly he hadn’t learned his lesson. Linc grinned at her. “Why a frog?”

  “It’s the nickname my dad gave me. I always slept with my legs drawn up—like a frog,” she explained.

  Though he knew it was insane, he was suddenly hit with the almost uncontrollable urge to kiss her instep, then make his way up the inside of her leg. He’d have to remove her pants first, but he wouldn’t let a little thing like clothes stand in the way of tasting her.

  Furthermore, if she’d been hiding a tattoo all this time, what other things about her were yet to be discovered? What other treasures could she be concealing? What other surprises were still in store?

  Still holding her foot, Linc traced the outline of her tattoo with his fingertip. So soft, he thought. And so incredibly sexy.

  “Linc?”

  He looked up. “Yeah?”

  She smiled down at him, those melting chocolate eyes distinctly sweet and sultry. “Which shoes?”

  “Neither,” Linc told her. “Barefoot is best. And forget the thigh-highs, too.”

  “But I thought you said men liked thigh-highs?”

  “They do.” He grinned at her. “But naked is always best.”

  “So you’re saying I should forget the negligee, as well?”

  “No. I like that.”

  Georgia chuckled. “It’s not for you, remember?”

  Oh, yeah. Shit. He was losing his damned mind. He cast a brooding look at Georgia, the current author of his insanity.

  And it was all her fault.

  If she was taking this much time and effort on one of her brides’ honeymoon attire, then he could only imagine that the same energy or more would be invested in hers, Linc decided.

  Once again a vision of Georgia in that gown in her store window materialized in his mind’s eye—the infernal faceless groom at her side—bringing the panic and irritation it always did. His belly clenched, his palms began to sweat and an urgency and desperation he couldn’t explain twisted his insides into a Celtic knot of dread.

  It was the groom that was getting to him, Linc decided, stunned. The lucky bastard.

  9

  “I SHOULD KICK YOUR ASS for this,” Cade Stone muttered from the corner of his smiling mouth to Linc. “And I’m not so sure that I won’t.”

  “Don’t blame me,” Linc said. He jerked his head in Georgia’s direction. “It was her idea.”

  Standing off to the side while Cade and Linc finished getting ready for their photo shoot with Cecil Meeks, Georgia just laughed. “Hey, don’t pass the buck this way, buddy. It’s not my fault you didn’t clear this with him first.”

  Cade shot her a dark glance. “That’s because he knew I would say no.”

  “No isn’t an option,” Linc replied. “Now flash those pearly whites so that we can get this over with.”

  The photographer who’d been testing the lighting grimaced. “There’s no point in flashing anything until Mr. Meeks arrives. He should be here shortly.”

  Georgia settled into a nearby chair and watched the Stone brothers bicker back and forth. Though you could definitely tell they were from the same gene pool, Cade seemed rougher around the edges. He was a bit taller—which was saying something because Linc was easily six and a half feet—a bit broader, and there was a guardedness about him that immediately tugged at her heartstrings. He’d known pain and, for whatever reason, she suspected Linc had known the same one, only it had affected him on a different level. Where this insight came from she had no idea, but she knew it all the same.

  Interesting, Georgia thought, watching the two of them. It was quite clear that Cade was the protector of the family and that Linc instinctively understood that. He accepted his role and seemed grateful to Cade for the support. Having her own overprotective brother, this was a sentiment Georgia understood fully.

  “Got any leads on Carter yet?” Cade asked Linc.

  Linc grimaced and shook his head. “Not yet, but we’re going to start pounding the pavement again as soon as we finish up here.”

  “You still think he’s in town?”

  Linc slid her a look—just to see how closely she was following the conversation, she imagined. “Yeah. That’s what I’m hoping, at any rate. His usual haunts have turned up empty, but we haven’t canvassed the hotels yet. Those are next on our agenda.”

  “Keep me posted. And let me know if you need any help bringing him in.” The significant way he delivered the line told Georgia it was merely code speak for “let me help you kick his ass.”

  Linc grinned. “I don’t think I’m going to need any help. Trouble over there is packing a stun gun.”

  Cade shot her a double take and his mouth hitched up in an impressed smile. “Trouble?”

  “It’s my nickname. Want to know what your brother’s is?” she asked sweetly.

  “Here’s Cecil,” Linc announced, looking relieved.

  Cade considered her for a minute, his gaze every bit as keen and insightful as his brother’s. “I’ll get back to you on that.”

  “You stay the hell away from her. The last thing she needs is encouragement. Or more ammunition,” he added darkly.

  “Gentlemen,” Cecil announced. “I see you’re ready.” While he launched into his good-old-boy spiel, Georgia took the opportunity to call and check in with Karen.

  “Weddings With Hart, this is Karen.”

  “Morning,” she said, leaning back against the chair. She picked at a loose seam on her pants. “What’s going on?”

  “You mean aside from the fact that your brother called me this morning and wanted the lowdown on Linc Stone?”

  A dart of panic landed in Georgia’s chest and she instinctively leaned forward once again. “You didn’t tell him anything, did you?”

  “Of course not,” Karen told her, seemingly exasperated that Georgia would even ask. “I merely corroborated what he’d already been told. I wish I would have known you were going to take the boyfriend angle, otherwise I wouldn’t have bumbled around like a secretive ass with your brother.”

  “I didn’t know we were going to take the boyfriend angle.” Her gaze slid to Linc who was prese
ntly smiling for the camera. Even knowing it was fake didn’t prevent it from packing a punch, Georgia thought. Mercy, that man was sex on two feet. “Suffice it to say there was too much testosterone in the room this morning and Linc decided to wing things.” She sighed. “Ultimately, it’s for the best. He’s going to be around a good bit until we find Carter and I don’t need Jack asking questions.” That was mild understatement. Though she knew he would love her no matter what, she couldn’t bear the thought of having to tell him what she’d done—that she’d lost their mother’s ring.

  “He said Linc made him nervous.”

  Georgia grinned. “That’s because they’re too much alike. One heartbreaker would recognize another, wouldn’t you think?”

  “Yeah, well, your heartbreaker brother has asked me to regularly update him on your status with Linc.”

  “He wants my own help to spy on me for him?” she asked, outraged. “He’d throttle me if I ever tried anything like that with him.”

  Karen chuckled. “That occurred to me, as well. Don’t worry. I’ll just feed him false reports. This will actually work to both our advantages.”

  Oh, Lord. She knew where this was going. “What do you mean?”

  “Well, I can tell him whatever you want me to tell him, and it gives me the opportunity to get to know him better. Win-win. See?” she asked brightly.

  “Karen,” Georgia said, pouring every ounce of caution and concern into her name.

  Her assistant’s sigh came over the line. “I know, Georgia. I know.” She paused. “I just can’t help myself. He makes me melt.”

  Unbidden, Georgia’s gaze slid to Linc and her thoughts raced back to this morning, when he’d kissed her and she’d melted. Almost all over him, not to mention the parts of her that had more than melted, but simmered. Namely that secret place between her legs she’d desperately wanted to put closer to him.

  She knew exactly what Karen was talking about because she was in lust with someone she shouldn’t be lusting after, too. But sweet mercy, when that sinfully carnal mouth had touched hers, and the taste of him had exploded on her tongue…

  Parts of Georgia had tingled she hadn’t been aware even had nerve endings. Every single cell in her body had brightened significantly, as though they’d been hit with a power surge.