"No. Don't."I stopped and looked back at her. I was on a knee, ready to stand and she was sitting on the floor holding my hand to her chest. The fear ...n her eyes was plain to see. I turned to her and stroked her cheek. "I'm only going to look. To see if I can fix what happened."She shook her head. "You can't. Not this."Her fear was becoming contagious. I was beginning to wonder what she had done."No matter how bad it is, or how bad you think it is, I'm not going to let anything like this happen. ” I flirted. “I like the way you talk.” Gina said excitedly. “Well, do you think you might need me to help you with any heavy lifting? or you get into a tight spot and need me to help you spread it out? If you want to get yourself tied up with a big project I know the ropes. Don’t worry about my working this weekend. If you need me, we can work it in.” I flirted more. Gina said “TIED UP- I think- . Gotta go!” I heard Dan’s voice grow louder in the background. She was bored with her husband and. "My family is away. This holiday I'll spend alone." Mariah's voice trembled just slightly. Nikolas Snow knew that her fiancé had been lost in the war four years ago, and that she never discussed it."And why haven't you found yourself another man? You know that you can't replace him, but surely Jason would want you to be happy." Please stop, Nik. I care greatly for you, but I can't handle this conversation right now." She took a long drink of her water and exhaled slowly. "Being alone on. ’ he whispered into my ear and I swallowed. It was getting harder and harder to keep up my distance when his tenderness slowly found its way into my heart. ‘Hey, you okay?’ he whispered and his dark voice was soothing. I nodded slowly, not trusting my voice. After a few minutes I got up, smiling at him slowly and leaving the tub. His eyes followed me, I felt them like a touch on my wet skin. I turned to look at him and saw the water glistening on his broad chest, his face relaxed and a soft.