His gaze and his mind fixated on her lips. He wanted very badly to kiss them.
“I’m tired,” she agreed and seemed to sway toward him. “And I’m not at my best.”
He cupped his other palm over her shoulder. “Jules.”
Her blue eyes clouded, and her lips parted. She seemed unfocused as she gazed up at him. “Yes.”
His voice was husky to his own ears. “Do you want me to kiss you?”
“Yes.” Then she seemed to realize what she’d revealed. “I mean—”
If she was about to change her answer, she was too late. She’d said yes. He’d heard it loud and clear.
Their kiss was better than he remembered, even better than his imagination. Her lips were tender and hot. She tasted sweet. And when he probed with his tongue, she answered in kind, tipping her head and leaning against him.
Her body was soft and warm, her curves smooth against his angles. He wrapped his arms around her, enveloping her while the kiss went on. Arousal throbbed deep and hard within him, and his mind galloped ahead to an image of a soft bed, with her naked body entwined around his.
Why couldn’t it always be like this? Why did they have to fight? She was smart and sassy, and probably the most interesting woman he’d ever met. She was certainly the most exciting.
And then reality slammed into him.
They did have to fight. And no amount of wishing would change that.
His interests were diametrically opposed to hers. He probably had to hurt her. He had no choice. And if he was going to hurt her, he shouldn’t be kissing her. He absolutely couldn’t sleep with her—not with the secret he was keeping right now.
He pulled back, breaking the kiss.
She all but staggered in shock. “What—”
“I’m sorry,” he said, reluctantly letting his arms drop away from her. “That was out of line.”
She still seemed to be getting her bearings. “Uh, okay.”
“It’s late. You’re tired,” he repeated the words, forcing himself to keep talking. “This wasn’t a date, and I shouldn’t be so presumptuous.”
“You did ask permission,” she pointed out.
He couldn’t believe she was arguing his side. “And you were about to change your answer. I knew that. I could tell.”
“I was weighing the pros and cons.”
“There are a lot of cons.” That at least was the truth.
Her gaze was opaque and welcoming. “There are a lot of pros.”
“Don’t do that, Jules.”
“Don’t do what?”
“Don’t give me permission.”
“But—”
“Tomorrow we’ll be fighting again. I can guarantee it.”
She offered a small smile. “We’re not fighting now.”
Caleb gritted his teeth. If he didn’t walk away right now, he wouldn’t walk away at all.
“Good night, Jules.” He told his feet to move.
She took a staggering step back. “Wow. Talk about hot and cold.”
His brain echoed her tone of incredulity. He couldn’t explain it to her, but he felt like he’d been doused with ice water. “I’ll set it up with the doctor. Let me know if there’s anything else Melissa needs.”
Jules didn’t respond. She just blinked in obvious confusion.
He finally forced his feet to move, turning away from temptation before he did something they’d both massively regret.
* * *
The next day, Jules struggled to keep Caleb’s kiss from her mind. She’d picked Melissa up from the hospital and tried to convince her to rest at home. But Melissa insisted on coming with Jules to the Crab Shack.
As they walked in the door, Noah took in her bandaged hand. His gaze went immediately to where they had discarded the nail gun before swinging back to zero in on Melissa’s face.
“What did I tell you?” he asked her pointedly.
“Not to touch—”
“What did you do?” He advanced on her.
“I was only—”
“Only what? Only what?” Noah’s shoulders were squared, his voice harsher than normal.
“She was showing me how it worked,” Jules put in, surprised by Noah’s strong reaction. He was normally easygoing and totally restrained.
Noah turned his head to give Jules a look of disbelief. “Can I speak with your sister alone?”
“Not if you’re going to yell at her.”
“I’m not yelling.”
“He’s not yelling,” Melissa said, resignation in her tone.
“She was at the hospital last night,” Jules told Noah. “They had to do surgery.”
Noah’s expression immediately turned to concern. He flipped his attention back to Melissa. “Are you all right? No permanent damage, right?”