A Soldier Under Her Tree by Kathy Douglass

Author:Kathy Douglass
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2020-09-07T14:34:41+00:00

* * *

Russell waited until he heard Hannah’s bedroom door close before allowing himself to move. Then blowing out a ragged breath, he sank to the floor. Wow. That kiss had practically burned him from the inside out. Even now, desire still raged inside him and it took every ounce of strength in his body not to climb the stairs, pound on Hannah’s door and beg her to let him in. But he couldn’t do that.

He’d barely managed to control himself this time. He’d come close to laying Hannah down on the pillows and making love to her. But then he’d spotted the empty wine bottle. Although she hadn’t drunk all that much, he didn’t know how it affected her. Her words only confirmed his thoughts. I must have drunk more wine than I thought. Obviously she wasn’t in a place to consent. And he wasn’t the type of man to take advantage of a woman.

Besides, starting a physical relationship right now would be a mistake—one they might not recover from. Their romance wasn’t real. More important, their friendship was too new—too fragile—to survive that type of misstep. They needed to build their friendship before trying to have any other type of relationship.

Hannah was still hurting from her former fiancé’s behavior. Though she hadn’t said the exact words, it was clear that she hadn’t gotten over his betrayal. The holiday season that once had brought her joy now caused her great pain. Right now, she wasn’t in a space to have a relationship with him or any other man.

Not that he was in a place to get involved, either. In a matter of weeks, he was going to be forced out of the army. He was...nowhere with nothing to offer her. Right now he didn’t have a present, much less a future, so becoming involved with Hannah was out of the question. Despite knowing that, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. Even when they weren’t together, his mind was filled with thoughts of her. The way her eyes sparkled when she smiled. The way her wavy hair caressed her shoulders. Her sweet scent that teased and enticed him.

The way her bare skin had glistened after her shower had haunted his thoughts all day. He closed his eyes and forced himself to face the truth. Hannah had consumed his thoughts ever since the first time he’d seen her that summer day. She’d been so beautiful in her yellow floral dress and high-heeled sandals. He’d spotted her walking down Main Street and had been struck still. He didn’t know how long he’d stood in the middle of the street before the blare of a car horn had shaken him out of his stupor. Then she’d gotten into a car and driven off, leaving him feeling as if he’d missed out on the greatest opportunity in his life.

He’d been thrilled beyond belief the next evening when he’d spotted her at the cookout Joni and Lex had hosted and hadn’t wasted a moment before going up to her and introducing himself.

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