A Woman Without Lies Read Online Free PDF Page B

said, sighing. “Suit you, that is. Except I’ve never known a hawk with a sense of humor.”
    Derry smiled and settled back onto the pillow.
    “But you’ll never meet anyone less likely to fuss and fidget than Angie,” Derry added. “She’s the most serene person I know.”
    Hawk lifted one black eyebrow and looked at Angel as though he’d never seen her before.
    “Really?” Hawk asked softly.
    “Really,” Derry said. “She should be the one studying to be a surgeon, not me. Nothing, but nothing, flaps Angie anymore.”
    Angel tried to look serene under Hawk’s skeptical regard. It was hard. She knew that he was remembering her flush of response to him, her temper, and her fear for Derry .
    “I’m afraid I flapped but good when Hawk told me that you’d been hurt,” Angel said. “And then I took it out on Hawk.” She smiled slightly. “So much for serenity and angels.”
    Hawk’s dark gaze lingered over Angel’s lips, the grace of her neck rising out of black silk, and the soft tendrils of hair curling around her breasts.
    Angel felt her breath shorten in a combination of surprise and sensual response to Hawk’s look.
    I wish I’d never sensed the vulnerability beneath this man’s hard surface, Angel thought unhappily. I wish that Hawk were as unfeeling as he seems to be.
    Then I simply could ignore him, letting his hungry glances and touches slide off the serenity I’ve worked so hard to have.
    Yet Angel kept sensing flashes of warmth and gentleness in Hawk, like the simple straightening of the pillow beneath Derry ’s head. The contrasts and complexities that made up Hawk both fascinated and unnerved her, keeping her off-balance.
    Serene? Angel thought wryly. Hardly. Not so long as Hawk is in sight.
    Angel stepped around Hawk and smoothed back the curls from Derry ’s forehead.
    “Ready to sleep yet?” she asked. Derry shook his head, sighed, and silently asked to be stroked some more.
    “That feels good,” he said.
    Angel smiled and resumed stroking Derry ’s hair.
    Derry returned the smile, then looked up at the tall, dark man whose quick intelligence and blunt manner had drawn Derry from their first meeting several weeks ago.
    “You have a point, Hawk,” Derry said. “Some men just love to be babied.”
    “Shall I hire you a nanny?” Hawk asked.
    “Only if she’s young and pretty,” retorted Derry .
    “They don’t call them nannies if they’re young and pretty,” Hawk pointed out. “They call them—”
    “Never mind,” interrupted Derry quickly. “I couldn’t do much about it anyway, not until I’m out of these concrete overalls.”
    He shifted uneasily, trying to get comfortable.
    Hawk went to one of the cushioned patio chairs, took a pillow, and came back to the lounge. With a few swift, careful motions, he had the cushion tucked under Derry ’s cast, relieving the strain on his back.
    Derry sighed. “Thanks. Damn thing weighs as much as I do.”
    Angel glanced up at Hawk, surprised again by the contrast between his unsympathetic words and his caring actions.
    Hawk looked back at her coolly.
    “Go ahead and pet him,” Hawk said. “It will keep his mind off his ankle.”
    Derry laughed aloud, his blue eyes dark with pleasure.
    “That’s what I like about you,” Derry said. “Everyone else tiptoes around being nice and you don’t. As a doctor-to-be, I believe there’s a place in this world for astringents.”
    “Yes,” Angel agreed curtly. “In bottles. Tightly capped.”
    For an instant Derry looked shocked. Then he gave way to laughter again. Lines of strain melted away from his face, making him look barely eighteen instead of the twenty-one he was. He took Angel’s hand, squeezed it, and put it back on his forehead.
    “Pet me,” Derry said complacently. “You’re good for me. Both of you. I was feeling pretty sorry for myself before you came.”
    Angel’s irritation disappeared at Derry ’s words. She resumed stroking his forehead, smoothing away