Italian Knights Read Free

sigh. He was back to that again.
    “What if he’s a mugger?” Sal challenged, working up a head of steam just at the thought. “This guy could have a police record, for all you know. I can’t believe you’d actually agree to go out with a man you don’t know anything about!” He shook his head as if she’d suddenly taken leave of her senses.
    “Sal Giordiano,” Annie cried, losing what was left of her temper. “If that isn’t the pot calling the kettle black! How much do you know about the women you go out with? Generally not much more than the fact that their measurements are bigger than their IQs’.” Standing toe to toe, they glared at each other, neither willing to back down.
    “That’s different,” Sal barked, and Annie clenched her fists together.
    “And why is it different?” she cried, taking a threatening step closer to him. “And if you tell me it’s because you’re a man, Sal, I’ll—I’ll—” she searched for some appropriate action, “—I’ll bop you,” she threatened, shaking her fist at him.
    “Annie!” Sal said with a grin, grabbing her fist and holding on tight. “Are you threatening a police officer?”
    “Yes!” she confirmed, scowling at the sudden warmth that engulfed her from his touch.
    Sal cocked his head to look at her intently. He’d never met a woman like her. She was one of a kind, beautiful and gentle, yet she could hold her own with any man.
    His eyes suddenly fastened on the moistness of her mouth. His muscles tensed in response. A sudden, fierce urge to tug her close and cover her lips with his caused an unexpected stirring in his loins. What the hell was the matter with him? This was Tony’s widow, for God’s sake!
    Annie stared at him in confusion, watching a series of emotions play across Sal’s face. There was a fierce gleam in his dark eyes, a gleam she didn’t recognize and had never seen before. Bedroom eyes, Annie thought immediately, suddenly warmed by the image.
    Flustered at her response, Annie pulled her hand free and took a self-conscious step back. Sal was looking at her—no, studying her—the way a man looks at a woman…an attractive woman. Oh, Lord, Annie thought suddenly. She’d seen Sal look at other women that way, but never at her. Annie swallowed hard, feeling unaccountably flustered.
    Their eyes met and held, their faces suddenly only inches apart. Tension froze the air and Annie couldn’t seem to breathe. She didn’t dare. Something she didn’t quite understand was happening here. It had been a long time since she’d had a man’s…attention, but not so long that she didn’t recognize it or respond to it.
    Annie blinked, her thoughts frozen. Sal was close enough for her to feel his breath ruffle her hair. Why hadn’t she ever noticed the rugged maleness of his aftershave, the rippling width of his shoulders, the way one dark curl dipped rakishly across his forehead?
    Watch yourself, Annie , she cautioned herself, trying to ignore the increased tempo of her pulse. Sal was a friend—her best friend—and she shouldn’t be having these romantic feelings about him.
    “I…I have to put my groceries away,” she stammered, trying to sidestep around him. She felt like running—anything—just to get away from the errant thoughts and feelings storming through her.
    Sal dropped his hand and caught her arm the same way he’d done thousands of times. The gesture was achingly familiar, yet different somehow. The warmth of his skin enveloped hers and Annie self-consciously withdrew. Wide-eyed, she slowly raised her gaze to his, and her breath withered.
    What on earth was the matter with her? She was suddenly responding to him like an adolescent in the throes of her first crush. This was good ole Sal.
    But the look in his eyes wasn’t quite what she’d expected from good ole Sal. Somehow, when she wasn’t looking, good ole Sal had turned on the industrial-strength charm, and apparently she wasn’t any more immune to it than