Drake Sisters 04 - Dangerous Tides

to relax, to just breathe and not blurt out that she didn't date much and was terribly uncomfortable. He'd probably laugh at her. She flew all over the world and exuded complete confidence in every area of her life except her personal one. The truth was, she had no idea why she was sitting across the table from Tyson Derrick.

    "I knew you liked the restaurant."

    She sat back in her chair and regarded him over the flickering candle. The shadows on his face emphasized his good looks, the stubborn set to his jaw and the sensual shape of his mouth. He wore a dark jacket over a blue shirt and faded blue jeans rather than slacks. Libby thought he looked incredible.
    "You seem to know a lot about me."

    "People have a tendency to talk about your family."

    Libby set her glass down and looked him directly in the eye. There was something about the way he said Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    it, his tone, a curl of his lip, maybe even contempt in his gaze. "What does that mean?"

    He shrugged. "Your family likes publicity. I think that's common knowledge."

    She stiffened. "I am not going to sit with you and have dinner while you make disparaging remarks about my family. I can leave right now if you'd like."

    "Don't be silly, Libby. You're too sensitive when it comes to your family. Of course people talk about them. Hannah is a supermodel. Her face is everywhere. Joley sells out every concert. If she makes a CD, it sells over a million copies immediately and hits number one on the charts. She wins every music award possible. Kate's books are bestsellers and stay on the Times list for weeks."

    "That's only three of us, Ty. I'm a doctor, Sarah does security and Abigail is a marine biologist."

    "And Elle? She does seem to manage to fly under the radar."

    Libby's gaze shifted away from his. "Elle programs computers."

    Tyson smiled at her. "Don't ever try to play poker, Libby. The point is, all of you are well known, whether you like it or not. Doesn't going into the music industry or modeling or even writing books demonstrate a need for attention?"

    "No." She glared at him. "Joley plays music because it's who she is. She happened to get lucky and make it big, but that's beside the point. She was born to make music and Kate has to write. She'd be writing whether she was published or not. Abigail loves the ocean and sea life. I needed to help people."
    She leaned her chin into her palm. "What about you? Why do you work in a laboratory and fly rescues in helicopters?"

    His eyebrow shot up. "You don't think it's for humanitarian reasons?"

    "No. I think you're very removed from the human race most of the time, Ty. That's part of the reason Generated by ABC Amber LIT Conv erter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html
    you don't understand my family."

    The waiter placed the plates in front of them and Tyson waited for him to leave before he sat back in his chair and regarded her through half closed eyes. "I suppose I am. I wish I could tell you I find cures for various diseases because I want to help mankind, but I'm just not that nice."

    He wanted to lie to her, to give her an answer that would make her admire him, but he wasn't about to deceive her. Her entire life was built around a deception and those closest to her continued to perpetuate it. He loved looking at her, sitting across from her watching the shadows play across her face, and it suddenly occurred to him that he should exercise a little diplomacy—an art he'd never bothered to learn.

    Libby studied his face. There was an expression in his eyes, hunger, desire, longing, she couldn't describe it exactly but she knew he hadn't wanted to tell her the truth. "You aren't as bad as you think you are. You've done a lot of good, Ty."

    "For selfish reasons."

    She shook her head. "Is it selfish of Joley to need to play music? Or Kate to write books? You do what you do because your nature demands it. You have to find answers. You were driven in college and you still are as an adult."

    Deep inside his gut twisted and a vise seemed to squeeze his heart. She was so nonjudgmental, accepting his need, the furious compulsions that drove him, that kept him in his laboratory for weeks and months. The need was so strong and he was so focused at times he had complete tunnel vision, uncaring of his own health or the needs of the people around him. No one, not even Sam, had ever understood his relentless pursuit of science let alone