Dark and Deadly 00 - Secrets Exposed Read Free Page B

could damage the firm if handled wrong.”
      “Yes.” He sighed. “Look Lindsey, you were good enough then, and you are good enough now.” Then he added, “Paxton does have a few decent attorneys, but not for this type of case.”
    “Don’t you understand, I don’t want to do it?” Then through clenched teeth, “Not—this—case.”
    Somehow, she felt he would understand. He walked towards her, closing the distance between them. Similarities in their histories alone made him know her in ways some never could. He stopped in front of her. Close. Attraction, warm and unnerving, danced between them like a flare gun ready to launch. Lindsey tried to crush this crazy rush she felt from his nearness. Yet . . . she knew he wanted to kiss her, and she wasn’t sure if he tried, she would stop him.
    Where was the woman who said no so easily and never showed her emotions?
    * * * * *
    Something about this woman got under his skin. Such a tough exterior, yet so much pain underneath. It made him want to touch her, to hold her. She looked into his eyes: emotions glistening in the form of unshed tears.
    And somehow he knew he had been given a unique glimpse beneath her exterior. One very few ever saw.
    He reached out and tipped her chin up, knowing he shouldn’t touch her, but unable to stop himself. “I bet those green eyes can slice air in the courtroom.” His gaze dropped and lingered on her lush lips. So soft, so full, so in need of being kissed. He couldn’t remember ever getting his business senses blurred by a woman. Yet here he was, thinking about kissing Lindsey Paxton, daughter of his ex-partner.
    A woman who was way too connected to a world he had no intention of ever revisiting.
    “That was a long time ago,” she said, yet her eyes held a distant look, as if she was remembering.
    Mark reached out and playfully tugged at a long blond curl, wrapping it around his finger. Lindsey sucked in a breath, as if shocked. He suspected she wasn’t. They both felt this strange tension between them. It begged to be acted on.
    He offered her a soft smile, trying to convince himself to leave her alone. “You are very hard-headed. Maybe you do resemble your father in some ways.”
    Her eyes narrowed, and her response came quickly. “If that’s the case, then you resemble him as well.”
    Mark couldn’t hold back his laughter. “You are more interesting than your father ever was.”
    She took him off guard by offering a desperate plea. “Will you help me, Mark?”
    He hesitated. For some crazy reason, he wanted to help her. He didn’t have the time nor did he have the inclination to be involved with Paxton, but to be involved with Lindsey had appeal. He shoved aside the irrational thought. “I have commitments.”
    She reached out and touched his arm. He felt the desperation in her action. “Mark, I can’t take this case. I can’t. I know you don’t know me and have no obligation to help me, but I really, desperately need you.”
    He couldn’t help it. He liked the way that sounded. How many men had she ever said she needed? He would bet none. It fired up the wholly male part of him, and made him want to rise to the challenge. He tried to keep the heat raging inside in check. But his finger moved lightly down her cheek, as if on its own accord. She shut her eyes, and he knew she absorbed his touch, rather than fought it.
    He leaned forward, near her ear. “You need me, do you?” he teased.
    Lindsey opened her eyes. They stared at each other for long, intense moments packed with a potent undertone. Moments that had nothing to do with business and everything to do with attraction. “Yes, I do,” she whispered. “I need you.”
    A seductive half-smile filled his face. Her lashes fluttered to her cheeks as if she was trying to hide whatever she felt. “I must admit, you’re tempting me,” he murmured, and his words had nothing to do with Paxton. He wanted to kiss her so damn bad it was killing him. But he