The minute she'd stepped foot inside, he'd felt a frenetic energy buzzing around his living room. Just standing near her spiked his blood several degrees. When it came to women, Nico had it under control. She’d caught him off guard. Initial shock. He’d recover.
Kayla. Wow. He hadn’t thought about her for years. He’d liked her back in the day, would’ve probably hung out more often, had she not been one of Jesse’s sisters. Nobody messed with those girls.
Well, there’d been the one time when Kayla had snuck into their makeshift clubhouse. Jesse hadn’t been there. It had been a typical night, a bunch of teenagers sneaking beer and playing spin-the-bottle. He’d ended up in a hot make-out session with Kayla. The minute their lips had come apart, he’d known it had been a huge mistake. He’d have to answer to Jesse, who’d eventually find out. Luckily, he’d gotten away with a verbal lashing and a stern warning. Nico had always prided himself on being a smart kid. Besides, he’d wanted to see his seventeenth birthday. From that point forward, he’d gone out of his way to avoid her.
Now here she stood, watching him with those big brown eyes. Something told him to back off, stay away. Not because of Jesse. A grown man now, he could handle his friend. Nico liked things simple. Kayla would turn his orderly world inside out, complicate his uncomplicated existence. Nope. Not happening. Right now, he only cared about one thing: healing up so he could get his ass back to work.
“Let me grab a shirt,” he said, thinking with the right head. “You want something to drink?”
“I’m good. Need some help with your shirt?”
“Nah. I got it.” He moved swiftly across the floor and to the bedroom. With his good hand, he fished out a baby blue tee from the dresser. Nico looked at the shirt. Fucking cast turned a mindless act like dressing himself into a major ordeal. This time, he didn’t have his mommy. She’d done everything for him for weeks. What a wuss. Him. Not her.
First, he put his cast through the armhole and yanked the tee over it. Damn plaster smothered him from knuckles to two inches above his elbow. He’d kill to straighten his arm. Two more weeks of this shit. Thank God it wasn’t his dominant arm, which would’ve sucked even worse.
Dammit. His head got stuck. He fought to free himself, when all of a sudden, the shirt decided to cut him some slack and cooperate. It cleared his forehead, slid over his eyes, and when he opened them, Kayla’s white smile blinded him.
“Isn’t this easier?” She grabbed the sides of his shirt and pulled it down his frame.
He automatically winced when her hand came too close to his ribcage. It didn’t really hurt anymore; he’d just gotten used to grimacing, because for a while there, the pain had nearly done him in. He didn’t wish it on anyone.
Kayla made him forget about pain, forget his own name. Holy crap, she stood totally in his face, her lush body centimeters from his. He smelled her scented skin, the fruity shampoo. How the hell could he ignore it? Her hands grazed his skin. Jesus Christ. He didn’t want her warm slender fingers touching any part of him. “You didn’t have to do that,” he said, staring into her eyes, which twinkled.
“Yeah. I did. You nearly suffocated yourself. And to be honest, I had enough drama for one day.”
“Oh, so now you’re making fun of me.” He looked at the wall mirror and checked out his hair. Crap. He needed a haircut. A shave wouldn’t hurt either. After weeks of feeling sorry for himself, suddenly he cared about his appearance. He used his fingers to comb his hair.
“Guilty as charged,” Kayla said. Her gaze swept over his bed.
He watched her through the mirror. Good thing his mom had made the bed this morning. Not that he should’ve cared. Then again, the thought of Kayla in his… Stop. Not going there. “I’m not usually this helpless.” He inspected himself more critically. Dark circles under his eyes too? What the fuck?
“Are you usually this stubborn?”
Nico moved away from the mirror. He felt bad enough already. “Are you usually this pushy?”
Kayla gnawed her bottom lip. She reached out and straightened the hem of his shirt. “Stick around and maybe you’ll find out.”
Funny girl. “Considering this is my house, I don’t plan on going anywhere.”
“What if I stick around?” Kayla said, completely straight-faced. She tapped her shoe on the wood floor.
“Why, so you can abuse me?” He needed to get out of the bedroom, because his body had started to get all kinds of traitorous ideas. “What kind of a bedside manner is that?”
She folded her arms across her chest and sneered at him. “I’ve gotten zero complaints about my bedside manner, thank you very much.”
He noticed the swell in her shirt. Her loose-fitting top didn’t conceal the fact she’d blossomed over the years. Great. More torture. “Yeah, well, there’s a first time for everything.”
She smiled so wide he could see her back teeth. “There sure is.”
Nico laughed. He couldn’t help it. “I think I’m the one who needs a drink.” He left the bedroom and went to the kitchen.
Kayla followed him. “While Mr. Capable gets himself a drink, I’m going to change.”
“Into what? Not being a smartass?”
She laughed hard. “Be nice and maybe I’ll cook for you.”
Things were getting more interesting by the moment. “You cook?” His mom had left plenty of food to heat up. But did he really feel like leftovers?
“Baby, I do it all,” Kayla said over her shoulder. “Be right back. Don’t go anywhere.”
“Thought we already covered that.” He shook his head and smiled.
Come to think of it, he hadn’t smiled in weeks. He loved to have a good time. Hell, he’d always been the life of the party. He needed to get back a sense of humor, start acting like his old self again. His ego had taken a hit. So what? Shit happens. Get over it already. It had been an accident. A stupid accident he’d brought upon himself. Fortunately, he’d been the only one who’d gotten hurt. Live and learn, dude. He wasn’t as invincible as he’d thought.
Nico dared to admit Kayla had a rehabilitating effect. Maybe she could help him out of his funk. At least she distracted him. Good start. And it made him realize something. His body was on the mend. He felt better, stronger, even the ribs he protected so much. Once the cast came off, he’d be set. And once he returned to work, he’d feel useful again.
Kayla let herself back in the house. “Okay if I use your bathroom?”
He took in the duffel bag slung over her shoulder. “What do you got in there?”
“Girl stuff.”
He knew a thing or two about girl stuff. His mom had every gadget under the sun. Some of her beauty devices looked downright scary. She put a lot of effort into her appearance, and he had to say, she always looked great. Guys his age still checked out his mom, which of course he wasn’t too keen on. But Mom enjoyed it. “You always so prepared?” Kayla didn’t seem like the high-maintenance type.
“Now that I work at the hospital, I lug around a change of clothes just in case they let me off early or something.”
Seemed like a reasonable explanation. “Oh,” he said.
“Need help with your drink? Last chance. Take advantage.”
A different woman, and maybe he would’ve taken advantage… “You still here?”
Kayla laughed. “Stay out of trouble while I’m gone.” With that, she disappeared.
Kayla Martinez had trouble written all over her gorgeous face. Nico needed to watch out. And he would. He decided a drink would be too much trouble, so he went to the living room, plopped on the sofa and grabbed his controller. What could he say? He still loved to play video games. His mom nagged him about it on a regular basis. Grown men didn’t need to spend so much time playing Xbox. Yeah, yeah. Whatever. He wedged the controller between his knees and went at it. Amazing, how resourceful he could be when he set his mind to something. Step aside. The one-arm bandit had arrived.
Absorbed in the game, he kicked ass, annihi
lated his enemies. Feminine perfume wafted under his nose and disrupted his battle. His gaze left the television for two seconds, and just like that–game over!
He took Kayla in from head to toe. Whoa. What happened to the girl in the blue scrubs with the bun in her hair? The woman in his living room had lush loose curls reaching down to her waist. A tight spaghetti-strap top hugged nice round breasts. Dark skinny jeans accentuated dangerous curves. She wore no shoes, a touch of makeup and her mouth glistened with lip gloss.
“Did you miss me?” She came toward him and smiled. “What?” She held out her hands.
“Wow. You clean up good.” And unlike his mom, she’d done it in less than fifteen minutes.
Kayla pushed back her thick hair. “I feel like myself again.” She sat on the sofa beside him, leaned her back against the cushion. “Thank God it’s Friday.” Her gaze slid his way. “What do you normally do?”
He automatically stared at her chest. Guy thing. Oh, well. “Nothing special. Hang with the boys. Grab a beer. Don’t club much anymore. I’m over that scene.”
“Man, I don’t remember the last time I went dancing.” She lifted her foot and tucked it beneath her.
He liked her laid-back nature. And she seemed totally at ease with him, even though they hardly knew each other anymore. Nico felt comfortable too, and why wouldn’t he? They were childhood friends catching up, shooting the breeze. It registered fine in his brain, but his body… What a betrayal. “Come on. You went to college. Bet you were one of those girls gone wild.” He got a visual of an old DVD he had featuring scandalous coeds.
Kayla pressed her lips together. “I wish. Between school and my part-time job, I didn’t have the time or energy.” She closed her eyes and rested.
Nico studied her delicate features. Creamy olive-toned skin. Pretty nose. Sexy full lips. Her brows were dark and defined. The gold chain around her neck, with a pendant of a saint, glittered when the light hit it a certain way. She looked like the girl he remembered, just ten times hotter. “So what made you decide to become a nurse?”
“It’s what I’ve wanted to be ever since I can remember.” Her eyes stayed shut. “I love caring for people. And the money’s not too shabby either.”
He admired her. She’d known what she’d wanted, and she’d gone after it. “Especially if you have student loans to repay.”
Kayla’s eyes opened. “Actually, I earned a full scholarship.”
“No shit.” He should’ve known.
“I studied my butt off in high school. My parents couldn’t afford college. I needed a scholarship.”
“The Kayla I remember was pretty determined.”
She narrowed her eyes on him. “I never got you.”
Nico almost choked. He wouldn’t touch that one with a ten-foot pole. “It must’ve been hard moving to Gainesville. You were so close to your family.” A shocker, her domineering brother had let her out of his sight.
“Yeah, but you know what? I was ready for a change. I really needed my independence. Besides, it’s not like I left Florida. I was only four hours away.”
“Did you like it up there?”
Kayla nodded. “It was okay.”
“Did you have a boyfriend?” He had no business asking. Still, he wanted to know.
She played with the pendant, sliding it from side to side on the chain. “I had a few guy friends, but nothing serious.”
Why did that make him happy? “Let me guess, future doctors of America?” She probably had a thing for white-collar guys with high-earning potential. Nico didn’t have a college degree, but his skills earned him a decent living. And he did have plans to become a partner in Dylan’s company.
She made a face at him. “No, they were not.”
Damn itch. He tried to scratch inside his cast. God, he hated the thing. So freaking uncomfortable. “You could’ve worked at any hospital. Why’d you come back here?”
“Hey, I work in one of the finest hospitals in the state. Plus, I like it here. I missed the coast.”
True. The landscape and beaches were like a postcard. “Didn’t your parents move to Port St. Lucie?” Jesse had mentioned something about it. He’d even helped her parents with the move.
“Yeah, they bought a really cute place in a retirement community.” Kayla sat upright and stretched her neck from side to side. “I need to get up there and visit.”
Too bad he couldn’t offer to work the kinks out of her muscles. First, it required two good hands, and second, bad idea, touching Kayla in any way. “So where are you staying?”
“With Jesse and Rachel.” Kayla rolled her eyes. “But it’s just temporary. I’m going to start looking for an apartment.”
“So Rachel moved in with him. Brave girl.” Nico laughed.
“Yeah, I really like her. But Jesse’s a pain. He still keeps tabs on me.”
“Will he come looking for you?” Nico was in no condition to kick anyone’s ass. Not that he’d have to. He and Jesse were cool. And no worries. He wouldn’t cross the line with his boy’s little sister. He couldn’t promise pure thoughts, but it wouldn’t go past that.
“No. Rachel dragged him to Tampa for the weekend to see her family. I get two glorious days of peace. No work. No Jesse.” She stretched her arms in the air.
Nico laughed. Again. The most he’d laughed in weeks. And guess what? This time he didn’t even go for his ribs. Thank you, Kayla, for giving him something else to think about. Like the way her happy smile reached her eyes. Incredible. “So what are you gonna do with all your free time?”
“For starters, cook you some dinner.”
Chapter 3
Kayla felt a million times better. Scrubs were comfy but sooo not sexy. And right now she needed sexy.
She felt at ease in jeans and a tank top, unfussy hair–just laid-back and relaxed. Comfort translated to confidence. Confidence translated to sexy. Sexy translated to less work in getting her way with Nico.
Okay, so she’d lied about the change of clothes. Her duffel bag had been packed for weeks, hidden away in the backseat of her car. Sure, she kept casual garb in her locker at the hospital, although she hadn’t really needed it. For the last month, her life had been from home to work and vice versa. Besides, the locker didn’t contain racy items like thongs, lace and other seductress goodies. Those had been stashed in the duffel bag. Good thing she’d planned ahead.
The opportunity had presented itself. Not just for one night, either. Nope. Things had fallen into place better than she had anticipated. Oh yeah. She planned to spend the whole weekend with Nico, infiltrate his space.
She rose from the couch and his gaze followed her. She felt the attraction, the magnetic pull when two people were drawn to each other. Maybe she wouldn’t have to work too hard. If she did, she’d come prepared.
Her mother had always preached that the way to a man’s heart was through his stomach. She’d had a couple of other ideas… Yet she’d paid close attention to her mother’s culinary skills. The woman cooked up a storm, could turn a simple plantain into a gourmet appetizer. Kayla had loved helping out in the kitchen. She’d mastered her mother’s recipes.
The way she’d been raised, kids learned to do for themselves. Chores had been a normal activity, with no allowance. Her hard-working folks had been strict. No talking back in their house. One look from her father, and they’d known what not to do.
Growing up with those rules had shaped her life. She thrived on hard work. The discipline had prepared her for school, a career. She took nothing for granted and every time she achieved a goal, she felt thankful to her parents for setting the foundation.
Her family also knew how to party. She had a ton of aunts, uncles and cousins. Get-togethers were out of control. Kayla loved to socialize, kick up her heels on the dance floor. She’d missed that the most when she’d gone off to college.
“So what do you have in the fridge?” she asked. A shredded body like his definitely required a healthy diet.
“Mostl
y microwave stuff.” Nico laughed. “And some leftovers from the meals my mom cooked during the week.”
Kayla ambled to the kitchen. She opened the refrigerator and perused it. Not bad. He had a few things she could work with. “What do you normally eat?”
“Grilled chicken, brown rice and broccoli,” he said without missing a beat.
Kayla laughed at his bland regimen. “I had a feeling.”
“Well, I try to take care of my body.”
“So I see.” Her gaze skittered over his physique. Whatever he did worked magically delicious.
“Although lately, I’ve been pigging out like a fat kid,” he said, with a disgusted look. “That’s what happens when you’re bored to death.”
She had a cure for his restlessness. The thought made her thighs go up in flames. Kayla shoved her head inside the cool refrigerator and peered into several plastic containers. “Some of this looks good.” She could’ve taken the easy way out, but she preferred to make something fresh, show off a little bit.
“It is. But I had so much of it already.” He puffed out his cheeks.
How adorable. She found everything he did entertaining. Kayla shut the fridge and, without asking, opened the cupboards. She found one with canned goods and food staples. “Hmm,” she mumbled, scanning the contents. She’d have to improvise. “You like omelets?”
Nico’s face lit up. “I love me some eggs.”
“Cool. I’ll whip up some veggie omelets.”
“You don’t have to cook for me, you know.”
She had a weakness for nursing people back to health. She had a weakness for one man named Nico. The combination of the two pulled on her heartstrings. “I want to,” she said, setting aside her personal agenda.
“Don’t you have something better to do than hang out with an invalid? I’m not a barrel of laughs right now.”
Good time to gauge his interest. She locked eyes on him. “Why? You want me to leave?”
The Right Temptation Page 2
