He sensed Melissa’s presence before he felt her slip up to the rail beside him. He glanced down and felt the sharp tug of desire flare to life all over again, proving the very point he’d just made to himself.

She had pulled on one of his shirts, which fell to midthigh, leaving her long, slender legs revealed. She’d cuffed the sleeves halfway up her arms. The sun turned her tousled hair to strands of fire. She looked part innocent waif, part sexy siren.

“It should never have happened,” she said, meeting his gaze, her expression troubled.

“I don’t—I won’t—regret it.” He studied her intently. “You do, though, don’t you?”

“Only because it complicates everything,” she said, echoing his own thoughts. “I want so badly to think clearly about all of this, to make the right choices this time. When you touch me, my brain goes on the blink. I’m all sensation and emotion and nostalgia.”

“Stay here with me tonight,” Cody blurted impulsively, suddenly wanting to seize the opportunity to force a resolution to their standoff. “Sharon Lynn will be fine with Daddy. Maritza will be there to help him look after her.”

A wistful smile played around her mouth. “Haven’t you heard a word I was saying?”

“All of them. I was just thinking, though, that we’re both stubborn, strong people. Surely we could sit down and discuss all of this rationally and reach a sensible conclusion.”

“Here?” she said doubtfully. “Within a few feet of that bed in there? Within a few feet of each other, for that matter?”

She was shaking her head before the last words were out of her mouth. “Forget it, Cody. It would never work. Besides, this isn’t something we can resolve in a few hours or even a few days.”

He sighed heavily. “So what do we do?”

“We give it time.” Her expression turned rueful. “Preferably in very public places.”

Cody wasn’t wild about her solution. Now that he’d made up his mind to make the commitment he should have made two years earlier, Melissa’s insistence on a delay was exasperating. He also feared that a decision reached on cold logic alone might not work in his favor. He wanted the heat of their passion on his side.

Of course, he reminded himself, their chemistry didn’t necessarily confine itself to suitable locations. It could flare up just about anywhere, anytime, with the right look, the right caress. And there was something to be said for deliberately, provocatively stirring it up, when fulfillment was absolutely out of the question.

Yes, indeed, he decided with a renewed sense of anticipation, he could make things between himself and Melissa hotter than a day in the sweltering Texas sun. He could make it his business to drive her wild.