The Defender. Cara Summers

him. And this woman was too tall to be his sister. Besides, Philly would have walked right in. She and Bob were old friends.

      The figure had moved back toward the front of the cabin. Her knock was louder this time. Theo thought of calling out to her, but didn’t. Instead, moving quietly, he swam toward shore and, once he got his feet beneath him, he walked slowly out of the water. He was still twenty yards away when he saw her open the screened door and walk in. He had to give her points for courage. Bob might be a pushover, but he did have that size thing going for him. To his surprise, he saw her crouch down and speak to the dog, but the sound of the waves behind him muffled her words. Okay, so she had guts and she liked big dogs. She was still in a place she had no business being. Technically, she was breaking and entering.

      She’d already gone into the cabin by the time he reached it. Carefully, he opened the porch door and turned sideways to slip in before the hinge creaked. She’d left the inner door to the cabin open. In the darkness of the kitchen, he could only make out her silhouette as she stood peering out the window in the direction of the lake.

      Annoyance streamed through him again. Bold as brass, he thought. Not only had she followed him out here to a place that he’d always considered a refuge, but she’d walked right in. It didn’t help his mood one bit that Bob was sitting at her feet, beating his tail against the floor, evidently pleased as punch at the new visitor. At the very least, Theo figured he owed her a good scare.

      He flipped on the light. “What the hell do you think—”

      She whirled and her scream blocked the rest of his sentence.

      “Sadie?” His first thought was that he’d conjured her up. His second was that in another moment she was going to slip right to the floor. Cursing himself, he strode to her. She’d gone pale as the moonlight on the water. “Are you all right?” Stupid question when he could see that she was anything but. Taking her arm, he eased her into one of the chairs at the table. Then he moved to the refrigerator, retrieved the bottle of wine he’d opened earlier and filled a glass. She was still trembling when he set it in front of her, so he took the chair next to hers and covered her hand with his to help her lift the glass.

      She took a sip and swallowed. Then their eyes met and held over the rim of the glass. He was touching only her hand and yet there was that intensity, that same connection he’d felt when he’d clasped her hand in the courtroom. Suddenly, Theo knew. Not merely that their paths would cross again, but that she was the one, the one woman for him.

      No. Panic shot up his spine and nerves knotted in his abdomen. He wasn’t ready. He forced himself to take a deep breath as he reminded himself that he still had a choice. The Fates only presented choices.

      But as Sadie lifted the glass for another sip, he didn’t remove his hand from hers and he couldn’t seem to take his eyes off of her. Her lips were parted and moist from the wine. He very badly wanted to taste that mouth. Even as lust curled into a tight, hot fist in his stomach, he let his hand drop and eased back in his chair. He had to get away before…

      Rising, he strode toward the adjoining hallway. “Drink the wine while I change. Then you can tell me why you’re here.”

      5

      SADIE LET OUT THE breath she hadn’t even been aware she was holding and barely kept the wineglass from slipping out of her hand. Very carefully, she set it on the table. Her head was still foggy, still spinning. And it wasn’t merely because he’d scared her. It was because he’d touched her again. All he’d meant to do was to help her steady the wineglass, just as all he’d done in that courtroom was shake her hand.

      How was it that each time he put a hand on her, even in the most casual of ways, it was as if he’d touched her all over?

      She pressed her fingers to her temples, willing her mind to clear and her thoughts to settle. When she’d whirled to see him standing in the doorway, he hadn’t looked like the Theo Angelis she’d seen in court. He’d looked larger than life, like some god from the sea—his dark hair slicked back, his darker eyes with that dangerous gleam. And all that damp, tanned skin. Even now she was astonished at just how much she’d wanted to touch him, wanted to taste him. No, more than that—she’d wanted to devour him.

      No man had ever affected her this way. With hands that were still trembling, Sadie reached for her wine and took another swallow.

      She was overreacting. There were too many emotions pounding at her—Roman, Juliana, the walk through the woods. She had to get a grip. She’d come here to ask Kit Angelis to help her. She couldn’t afford to fall apart.

      “I’m sorry I gave you a scare.”

      Startled, she whirled in her chair to watch Theo pour himself a glass of wine. Then he reached into the refrigerator and pulled out a plate of cheese. He was wearing old jeans that had faded at the seams and hem and an equally ancient T-shirt. She could barely make out the word Stanford across his chest. The casualness and general rattiness of the clothes surprised her. Theo had always been so impeccably and fashionably dressed in his court appearances.

      “These are my lucky fishing clothes.”

      Sadie’s gaze flew to his face and she saw a gleam of humor there. Could the man read her mind? Was she that transparent to him?

      His lips curved as he moved to the table and set the plate of cheese between them. Then he sank into his chair. “I’m not the best fisherman in the family, but I’ve been wearing this outfit ever since I was in college and I never fail to catch the biggest fish on these weekends with my brothers. Nik has his special pole and Kit has a lucky hat, but neither has ever beaten this outfit. My brothers are hoping that one day soon the cloth will just disintegrate and fall off of me.”

      In her mind, she pictured them doing just that—first the T-shirt, then the jeans. Was he wearing any briefs beneath them? As heat pooled in her center, Sadie ruthlessly focused her attention back to what had brought her here. She was not going to get anywhere if she continued to imagine him naked.

      What in the world was wrong with her? She had to get away from him. Rising, she said, “I have to find Kit. Where is he?”

      Theo took a sip of his wine while he met her gaze steadily. “Are you dating my brother?”

      “What?”

      “It’s a pretty straightforward question, counselor. Are you dating my brother Kit? Is that why you’re here?”

      “No.” Puzzled, she narrowed her eyes on him. “Why would you think that? I’ve only met him a few times. And why are you asking?”

      “Curiosity. You came all the way out here in the middle of the night and you want to know where he is.”

      “I need his help. It’s about Roman.”

      “Roman?” Theo straightened. “What is it?”

      “I have to find Kit.”

      “Why don’t you sit back down tell me what’s wrong?”

      “Roman told me to go to Kit.”

      His brows rose. “There’s an expression that sailors use—any port in a storm. You said it was urgent and since Kit isn’t here and I am, why don’t you tell me what made you drive up here at this time of night?”

      He was right. She was letting his effect on her and the difficulty she had handling it interfere with what she needed to do to help Roman and Juliana. She had to tell someone what had happened and figure out what to do next.

      In spite of Roman’s advice to trust no one but Kit, she trusted Theo Angelis. Sadie sat back down at the table and told him everything she knew.

      WHEN SHE WAS FINISHED, Theo leaned back in his chair and studied her for a moment. She was bearing up very well considering the kind of day she’d put in. No wonder she’d nearly slid to the floor in a dead faint when he’d scared her. He was still kicking himself for that. He’d promised himself while he was changing out of his bathing suit that he wasn’t going to upset