she was taking advantage of him even now. âYou make it sound as if Bobbyâs nothing more than a last resort.â
âIsnât he?â
âOf course not. I just want to get together with him and catch up.â
âIs that some euphemism for getting him into your bed?â
âYouâre being crass again,â Dinah accused. âItâs not about sex.â
âThen youâve given up fame and fortune and rushed home because you suddenly had an epiphany in the middle of Afghanistan and realized that youâre wildly in love with him?â Maggie asked skeptically. âBecause thatâs the only reason that would justify you getting that poor manâs hopes all stirred up again after all these years.â
âIâve always loved Bobby,â Dinah replied carefully. Not that heâd crossed her mind more than a half-dozen times in recent years and always with more fondness than passion. Good marriages had been built on a whole lot less, she told herself.
âNot the same thing as being in love with him,â Maggie replied. âDoes your heart go pitter-pat when you see him?â
âI havenât seen him in ten years,â she retorted irritably. The truth was her pulse had never skipped so much as a single beat at the sight of Bobby. Heâd been comfortable and back then thatâs all sheâd wanted, a man who wouldnât tangle her emotions into knots. That had left her free to pursue her own dreams.
Deep down Dinah recognized that Cord had seen her intentions and had set out in his own way to protecthis brother, but Bobby hadnât wanted his protection and sheâd been shocked and angry that Cord would betray his brotherâs trust the way he had.
âHow would I know if Bobby turns me on?â she grumbled defensively.
âMy point precisely,â Maggie said, clearly satisfied. She gave Dinah a knowing look. âIâll bet Bobby has never once gotten you all worked up the way Cordell did just last night. Now there is a man worth throwing away a career just so you can have him climbing into your bed.â
Dinah thought of the way her blood had sizzled through her veins within ten seconds of trying to carry on a sensible conversation with Cord Beaufort. That was irritation, plain and simple. Heâd been annoying her like that since they were toddlers.
âBobby is sweet and kind and smart,â she repeated emphatically.
âAnd dull as dishwater,â Maggie countered. âYouâll be bored stiff in a week.â
âAnd you think Cord would be an improvement?â
âDefinitely.â
âYouâre out of your mind.â The very last thing she needed in her life was a man who made her feel prickly and restless, the kind of man who prided himself on taking women on some sort of emotional roller-coaster ride. Sheâd given up danger when sheâd left Afghanistan.
Maggie grinned. âWeâll see,â she said with smug confidence.
Dinah decided it was past time to turn the tables on her friend. âWhat about you, Magnolia?â she inquired, deliberately using her friendâs hated real name. âAnyone special in your life? Since you seem so fascinatedby Cordell, perhaps you should be encouraging him to give you a tumble.â
âI tried, to be perfectly honest,â Maggie admitted. âHe wouldnât give me a second look. Iâm far too tame for the likes of Cordell.â
âAnd Iâm not?â
âYou play a form of roulette with car bombs and rebel gunmen,â Maggie replied. âIâd say that qualifies you for a man who likes living on the edge.â
Dinah sighed. Though no one here knew it, sheâd fallen for a man like that, a man who courted real danger every day. Sheâd wound up with a broken heart. Of course, there was a vast difference between physical danger and the emotional minefield a woman would have to tiptoe