Explosive Read Online Free Page A

while slow in coming, were every bit as disarming as his eyes. At this close of a range, one of those smiles might be explosive on impact.
    But his smile never came, of course.
    This Wednesday night was different from every other one that had come before it.
    “What . . . what are you doing here?” she asked breathlessly.
    Thomas just stared at her for a second, his face rigid.
    “I was looking for Dr. Lancaster,” he said before he returned to gathering her papers.
    “He’s not here. He didn’t have any other appointments on Wednesday evening, aside from ...” She faded off, but rallied when Thomas glanced up at her soberly. “ . . . your brother. Do you want me to call Andy?” she asked. It would be understandable if Thomas requested a consultation with a psychologist.
    “No, that’s all right. I’ll try to catch him another time.”
    “I was so sorry to hear about your brother and your nephew.”
    The words spilled out of her throat in a rush of compassion. She hoped she hadn’t offended him when he merely resumed picking up her papers and journals. Sophie knew it was best to follow a grieving person’s lead in these situations, so she busied herself with helping him retrieve the fallen items. She shouldn’t have spoken to him in such a familiar fashion.
    “Sorry about all this,” she said, nodding to the papers. “I’m flustered . . . trying to get out of this place and wondering if it’s even possible.”
    She reached to take the papers and journals that he held, but Thomas didn’t release them.
    She glanced up at him to see that he studied her. If there was one thing about Nicasio, he really made a woman feel like he wasn’t just looking, but saw. That’s how he always had managed to make her feel, anyway.
    “Your mind isn’t the only thing that has ten million things stuffed in it.” He nodded at her briefcase. “You’re busting at the seams, Dr. Gable.”
    Dr. Gable. Several months ago, the Doctor had become Dr. Gable . Since she’d never formally introduced herself, Sophie found herself wondering how he’d discovered her name. She liked to think he’d asked someone, even though it was more likely he’d seen her name on the front door of the medical offices and figured out which doctor she was by a process of elimination. She was the only female in the group practice.
    She gave a shrug, her flickering gaze taking in his slightly amused expression. It struck her suddenly how intimate their postures were, kneeling on the floor there together, her face only inches apart from a casual acquaintance who she felt an almost overwhelming need to embrace . . . to comfort.
    She relinquished the papers into his hold and rose to her feet. For a few seconds, he remained kneeling, his face near her thighs. She stepped back and brushed the wrinkles out of her skirt, trying to smooth not only the fabric, but her ruffled nerves.
    “I’m about to go on vacation at Haven Lake, downstate. It’s a pain, tying up so many loose ends,” she explained with a smile, trying to lighten the tension-filled moment.
    His eyebrows rose on his forehead. He stood slowly, uncoiling his long body. He’d removed his jacket and tie and wore dark blue pants that rode low on his narrow hips. A navy and white striped dress shirt set off his golden brown tan. Sophie’d often speculated how he’d acquired that tan. Did he spend his weekends playing tennis at a club? Boating? Swimming?
    Something in the long, lean lines of his torso and powerful shoulders and chest seemed to argue for the latter. Somehow, she could perfectly imagine Thomas Nicasio knifing through the water, mastering that domain just like he appeared to so effortlessly master the rest of his world.
    “Surely that’s not a good explanation for the state of your briefcase. You’re supposed to leave work behind when you go on a vacation, aren’t you? Not that I’d know that from personal experience or anything.” The twitch of his lips struck her as a