0373659458 (R) by Karen Templeton

Author:Karen Templeton [Templeton, Karen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2015-02-15T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Eight

Most likely, if Zach had kept his mouth shut Mallory would’ve never known he was there. Except for one thing he’d started to feel a little creepy, watching her when she didn’t know it. And for another...well, he supposed he at least owed her an apology. Because even though technically this wasn’t a date, a gentleman doesn’t abandon his guest.

Then again, a gentleman didn’t entertain the kind of thoughts Zach was entertaining.

Because the moment she and her mother had arrived, every single thing he’d told himself the night before—all that stuff about logic and practicality and how what he had now was enough—had gone ka-blam. Not that he could’ve analyzed his feelings if you’d paid him. All he knew was, each time he saw her, smelled her, heard that laugh, his control slipped a little more, making him want to...

What?

To somehow absorb whatever it was that that had kept her her despite everything that had happened. To be more like her. To be with her.

Alone.

And preferably naked.

Yeah. And hell, no.

And damned if his heart rate didn’t kick up as she wheeled toward him, a slight smile on her lips. Not in any hurry, though—and he’d seen how fast she could go, so he knew the chair was no hindrance. The sun sliced across the yard, making her hair flame. The stark light wasn’t particularly kind, but it was revealing. Honest.

Now it wasn’t only his heart rate kicking up.

“If you recall,” she said when she got closer, “I’m not real fond of crowds.”

It took him a moment—because the blood flow wasn’t exactly surging toward his brain—to remember what he’d said to provoke her response. Probably because he’d expected her to take him to task for ditching her.

“And yet you obviously like people.”

The smile stretched. “I love people. Just not so many of them at once. In fact...”

Mallory moved closer before pivoting her chair to face the mountains. The temperature was already dropping with the sun; she rearranged that shawl, tugging it higher on her neck.

“Russell loved to throw these big parties. I much preferred intimate dinners, six people at the most. But more and more he kept coming up with some excuse or other for those dinners at the last minute, forcing me to cancel. Didn’t take me long to realize he was doing it on purpose, that being in a small group forced him to actually relate to his guests. So much easier to mask who you really are in a crowd. And I really hate pretending.”

“Isn’t that a little weird, coming from an actor?”

She barked out a little laugh. “I do know the difference between taking on a role and real life.” Her gaze slid to his. “Where are the boys?”

“With Mom and Dad, last I saw. Although around here, everybody looks out for everybody’s kids. Meaning nobody can get away with squat.”

“A real-life example of ‘it takes a village.’”

“Pretty much, yep.” At her wistful expression, he asked, “Who’s Landon more like? You or his dad?”

Her mouth pulled flat as she thought.

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