beginning? Where was that? At conception, where some quirk of the Palmer gene pool had decided to produce a child with an exceptional IQ? Or later, when Meri had first realized she was never going to fit in anywhere? Or perhaps that long-ago-but-never-forgotten-afternoon when the man she loved had so cruelly rejected her?
“We’re spending the month together,” she told him. “I thought we could have more fun if we played. I know you like to play, Jack.”
He swore under his breath. “This isn’t like you, Meri.”
“How can you be sure? It’s been a long time. I’ve grown up.” She turned slowly. “Don’t you like the changes?”
“You look great. You know that. So what’s the point?”
The point was she wanted him desperate. She wanted him panting, begging, pleading. Then she would give in and walk away. It was her plan—it had always been her plan.
“I’m not going to sleep with you,” he said flatly. “You’re Hunter’s sister. I gave him my word I’d look after you. That means taking care of you, not sleeping with you.”
She’d meant to keep her temper. Honestly she’d even written it on her to-do list. But it was simply impossible.
“Take care of me? Is that what you call disappearing two seconds after Hunter’s funeral? All of you left—all of his friends. I expected it of them but not of you. Hunter told me you would always be there for me no matter what. But you weren’t. You were gone. I was seventeen, Jack. My father was a basket case, I was a total social outcast with no friends and you disappeared. Because that was easier than facing your responsibility.”
He put down his luggage. “Is that why you’re here? To tell me off?”
He had no idea, she thought, still furious and wishing she could breathe fire and burn him into a little stick figure, like in the cartoons.
“That’s only part of the fun.”
“Would it help if I said I was sorry?”
“No, it wouldn’t.” Nothing would change the fact that he’d abandoned her, just like everyone else she’d ever loved.
“Meri, I know we have some history. But if we’re stuck here for a month, we need to find a way to get along.”
“Be friends, you mean?” she said, remembering how he’d said he would always be her friend, right after rejecting her.
“If you’d like.”
She took a deep breath, then released it. “No, Jack. We’ll never be friends. We’ll be lovers and nothing else.”
Two
The next morning Meri woke up feeling much better about everything. After leaving out food for Jack, she’d escaped to her room, where she’d had a bath and a good cry. Some of her tears had been about her brother, but a lot of them had been for herself. For the geek she’d been and the losses she’d suffered.
After Hunter had died, their father had totally lost it. He’d been less than useless to her. Within a year he’d started dating nineteen-year-olds, and in the nine years since, his girlfriends had stayed depressingly young.
She’d been on her own and she’d survived. Wasn’t that what mattered? That she’d managed to get the help she’d needed to move forward and thrive?
She turned on her clock’s radio and rocked her hips to the disco music that blasted into the room. She was sorry she’d missed the disco years—the music had such a driving beat. Of course, she was a total spaz on the dance floor, but what she lacked in style and grace she made up for in enthusiasm.
After brushing out her hair, she braided it, then dressed in a sports bra, tank top and another pair of skimpy shorts. Ankle socks and athletic shoes completed her outfit.
Humming “We Are Family” under her breath, she left her room and prepared to implement the next part of her plan for revenge.
Jack was in the kitchen. She walked up to him and smiled.
“Morning,” she said, reaching past him for the pot of coffee. She made sure she leaned against him rather than going around. “How did you sleep?”
His dark eyes flickered slightly, but his expression never changed. “Fine.”
“Good. Me, too.”
She poured the coffee, then took a sip, looking at him over the mug.
“So,” she said. “A whole month. That’s a long time. Whatever will we do with it?”
“Not what you have planned.”
She allowed herself a slight smile. “I remember you saying that before. Did you always repeat yourself? I remember you being a whole lot more articulate. Of course, I was younger then, and one looks at one’s elders with the idealism of youth.”
He nearly choked on his coffee. “Elders?”
“Time has been passing, Jack. You’re, what, nearly forty?”
“I’m thirty-two and you know it.”
“Oh, right. Thirty-two. Time has been a challenge for you, hasn’t it?”
She enjoyed baiting him too much, she thought, knowing she was being totally evil and unable to help herself. The truth was, Jack looked amazing. Fit, sexy—a man in his prime. The good news was that sleeping with him wouldn’t be a hardship.
“You gave up on seducing me?” he asked.
“Not at all. But this is fun, too.”
“I’m not sleeping with you.”
She glanced around the kitchen, then looked back at him. “I’m sorry, did you say something? I wasn’t listening.”
“You’re a pain in the ass.”
“But it’s a darned nice ass, isn’t it?” She turned to show him, patted the curve, then faced front again. “Okay, go get changed. I’ll take you to the nearest gym. You can get a thirty-day membership. Then we’ll work out together.”
“There’s no equipment here?”
She smiled. “I guess Hunter didn’t think of everything after all. It’s a good thing I’m around.”
He stared at her. “You think you’re in charge?”
“Uh-huh.”
He put down his mug, then moved close and stared into her eyes. “Be careful, Meri. You’re playing a game you don’t know how to win. I’m out of your league and we both know it.”
A challenge? Was he crazy? She always won and she would this time. Although there was something about the way he looked at her that made her shiver. Something that told her he was not a man to be toyed with.
But he was just a man, she reminded herself. The sooner she got him into bed, the quicker she could get on with her life.
Jack followed Meri into the large gym overlooking the lake. The facility was light and clean, with only a few people working out. Probably because it was midday, he thought as he took in the new equipment and mentally planned his workout.
Back in Dallas, he worked out in his private gym, built to his specifications. But this would do for now.
“So we can circuit-train together,” she said brightly, standing close and gazing up at him with a teasing smile. “I’m great at spotting.”
She was trying to push his buttons. He was determined not to react, regardless of what she said or did. Meri was playing a game that could be dangerous to her. He might not have taken care of her the way he should have, but he had looked out for her. That wasn’t going to stop just because she was determined to prove a point.
“Want