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.Before she was satisfied, before the fires he had been stoking had the opportunity to flame higher, hepulled back. Anna, I -- The realtor cleared her throat, and whatever he wanted to say was lost. She looked around Max and met the woman s disapproving stare. Sorry, but Max is right.This placesucks. Max chuckled as she grabbed his hand and pulled him behind her. Don t worry, we ll show ourselvesout. * * * * *Three weeks after the start of their affair, Max sat as his desk looking over some reports, and tried toignore the worry clawing at his stomach.There was something definitely wrong with Anna lately.Oh,she d been as loving as usual, as playful as he d come to expect, but& there was something missing.Sheno longer had that little sparkle in her eye she used to have when she teased him.They d practically been living at each other s houses for the past few weeks.The nights they d spenttogether had come to mean more to him than getting to work on time.And he didn t need anyone to tellhim how out of character that was for him.It had never happened before.On top of that, he d canceledtwo business trips, and a much needed board meeting.To others it may seem tame, but to Max,rescheduling trips and meetings was just not done.He leaned back in his chair and propped his feet on the desk.Max hadn t told Anna he loved her.Notyet.She d flip out if he told her, and he didn t want anything disturbing her.His plan was working, exceptfor one small thing.Anna was already pulling away from him.Little by little over the past few weeks,she d erected a wall.Not in the bedroom, never there.Anna gave herself willingly when it came to sex.But the intimacy he wanted -- hell, he craved -- wasn t there.The knot in his gut tightened.She kepttrying to find ways to keep from being seen together in public.Like she didn t want anyone to know theywere involved.Without knocking, Jeanine walked in. Well, must be nice to be the boss.Taken to long afternoonbreaks, have we? He dropped his feet on the floor and straightened. What did you need? She eyed him, her soft blue eyes showing her concern, but didn t say anything else about it I need yoursignature on these forms and then I m out of here.I m going to Orlando for the weekend. He signed the forms and handed them back to her. Don t do anything I wouldn t do. And lately, that means just about anything.Seeya Monday, Max. Once alone, his mind turned back to his problem.There had to be some way, some plan he could comeup with, to get Anna to admit that she loved him.* * * * *Anna sat at a table in the back of her shop, filling ketchup bottles.They d had some heavy traffic thepast few days, and she hadn t had time to do the little things that needed to be done.The stress of thejob was getting to her.Just today, she d snapped at Myra for getting someone s order wrong.And thatjust wasn t like Anna at all.Anna sighed.She knew what the problem was -- her relationship with Max.Keeping it at the level itwas, not giving herself completely to him, was taking its toll on her nerves.Each day, she woke with thedetermination to keep herself aloof, to hold back.By that night, every fiber of her being wanted to shoutout her love for him.His gentle passion, his aggressive play, all of it was driving her over the edge,pushing her further. Anna, I was wondering if I could take off early. She glanced up from her task to find Myra eyeing her with trepidation. No problem, Myra.And I amreally sorry for losing my temper with you today. Oh, no, I understand. But even as she said it, Anna watched the tension drain from her posture. Withwork and your relationship with Mr.Chandler-- What do youmean, my relationship with Max? she asked sharply.Myra tensed again, and Anna regretted her outburst.Myra cleared her throat. Well, I guess I assumed, like everyone else, that you two were an item. Oh, Lord.She d tried her best to keep it under wraps because she was sure she wouldn t be able tohandle the pitying looks when Max and she broke up.She could take name calling and dirty looks butpity& that would be hard to take.Anna looked down, staring blindly at the ketchup bottle in her hand.Everyone in town knew what a catch he was, and if they split, she knew they would assume she d donesomething. It s just& When Myra didn t finish, Anna looked up. It s just what? Y all aren t seen out anywhere, but he s been here more than usual.And well, Anna, you all park infront of each other s houses.You know how this town is. She nodded, not sure if she could find her voice.It wasn t that bad.So everyone knew they were havingan affair.Big deal.So, there might be a few bumps in the road when they split, but really, why was that sobad.Anna never cared about fitting in with people in her hometown.She loved it here, but that was it.From her teens on, she d known she wasn t a conformist.And when they split up, she would move on, push ahead,find someone else.So what if they pitied her?She knew that when it came down to it, both of them would decide that splitting was for the best. It sokay, Myra.I completely understand.Go study for your finals. Relief filled Myra s face and she nodded.Once alone, Anna decided that maybe things with Maxweren t so bad.So what if everyone in town knew what was going on? She could face them -- she could face anyone.Anna stood and started to gather the empty ketchup bottles when the bell on the door jingled.Withoutlooking up, she said, We re closed for the day. When the person said nothing and didn t leave, she looked up to find Cynthia shooting daggers at her. Oh, I think you may want to have a chat with me.It seems you ve been fucking my fiancé. Chapter ElevenFor a moment, Anna couldn t think.Who the hell was Cynthia talking about? Then, like a fifty-pound bagof coffee beans, it hit her.Max.She was claiming that he was still her fiancé. What do you mean? Anna asked.Cynthia walked down the aisle, avoiding the chairs that had been left out by customers.She was dressedin a pale green linen suit, not a hair out of place, her makeup perfectly applied.Damn, Anna hatedcheerleaders.And Cynthia had been head cheerleader their senior year in high school. I think you know what I mean, Anna. No, I really don t. Cynthia smiled, but with no real humor. The whole town knows you two have been screwing aroundfor weeks, while I was gone on that trip Max sent me on. Anna laughed. Max sent you on a trip after you dumped him? I don t believe that for a minute. Yes, I dumped Max, but we got back together the next day.Didn t he tell you about my visit to theoffice? Anna shook her head, hoping that her shock didn t show on her face.Letting a cheerleader like Cynthiathink she had the upper hand could be deadly. He showed up late, but you know about that, don t you? Her smile turned positively evil. I told himthat for the benefit of the families and the business, the marriage should go on.And you know Max -- thefamily business is more important to him than anything else. Anna swallowed.Her mind raced from one possibility to the next.Why hadn t Max told her that Cynthiacame by to talk to him, if he had nothing to hide? No, there was no way Max would use her like that. I went on the vacation he d booked for the two of us, because Max said he couldn t get away
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