“Or what?” Lucas drawled. “I don’t see where Miranda’s personal life, or mine, is any of your damned business. Unless you have a more personal interest in her. In which case, I’d say get over it.”
A muscle in Cole’s jaw jumped and his shoulders tensed. “I assure you, Miranda is no more than a colleague to me, at best a sister. So you’re damned right that I care about what happens to her. I don’t trust you, Wainright. And I don’t want to see her hurt.”
“You’ve been listening to Seamus too much. I’m here to do my job, that’s all. Anything between Miranda and me is completely separate and personal. I appreciate you looking out for her, but I’m telling you to butt out. Got it?”
Lucas slapped the other hand on Cole’s shoulder and pushed past him, suddenly done with socializing and having his motives questioned. Miranda must have seen his scowl because she excused herself from the people she was chatting with and came across the field.
“Is everything okay? Did you and Cole have an argument?”
Lucas willed his muscles to relax but, suddenly, all he wanted to do was sweep her up in his arms and finish what they started so many hours earlier. “I think I’m ready for my payment.”
She flushed, and bit her lower lip, looking around her nervously. “I can’t leave yet. The party is still going strong.”
He gritted his teeth. Now that he could smell her sweet perfume, his body wanted nothing more than to bury itself deep inside her until she was wrung out. He leaned down to whisper in her ear.
“You have two hours. I’ll come to your condo then. Be naked.”
She shivered but nodded. He strode off the field, unable to be social any longer. Two hours. He only had to wait two hours. Damn, it would be the longest one hundred and twenty minutes of his life.