Along Came a Ranger by Debra Holt

Author:Debra Holt [Holt, Debra]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Published: 2017-09-10T23:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

“I’ve wanted to sit in that porch swing since I arrived the first time,” she returned with a full smile at his suggestion and glad of the change of subject. It might be time to see if fortune favored the bold. “I’m not tired after having slept the entire day away.” She stood and then held up a palm in his direction. “And I will walk to that porch. Your ego will just have to suffer.”

His reply was to step forward and offer her his arm. She looked at it for a moment and then she curved her arm around it. They had an agreement. After a brief pause in the hallway, while Davis thoughtfully retrieved a colorful afghan off the chair in his office in case Stacy might need more warmth, they finally settled into the porch swing.

Dusk had spread across the yard and a soft evening breeze stirred the night. The evening star was just making its appearance in the inky sky above. Davis stretched his long legs out in front of him, one booted foot gently sending the swing in slow movements back and forth. One arm stretched along the length of the back of the swing.

If Stacy allowed her head to relax backward, she would find a soft pillow for her head. She was very much aware of the man lounging beside her and mindful of her wardrobe. She was grateful for the afghan and kept it draped across her lap and around her legs. It didn’t keep a slight shiver from going through her body when the line of his body accidentally made contact with hers in the swing.

“If it’s too cool out here, we can go back inside.”

Did his eyes not miss anything?

“No, I’m fine. It’s a lovely evening. The fresh air is better than any medicine, and I really am not an invalid. I feel much more like myself. Darcy’s soup must have done the trick, along with a nice long nap in a real bed. Much better than that damp, smelly hollowed-out rock Lizzie and I shared last night.”

Then a shadow filtered through her. He also saw that. Davis sat up straighter, his head bent in her direction as his eyes searched her face.

“What’s wrong, Stacy? Are you in pain?”

“No, it’s not that. It’s just that, for a moment, I remembered how differently I spent last night. It goes without saying that I much prefer this.” She brushed away the darkness to end on a lighter note.

A long finger gently lifted and smoothed a lock of her hair back across her shoulder. His voice was as potent as an actual caress.

“You’re safe. Lizzie is home and safe. Everything is right with the world again.”

“I certainly hope she got the blueberry pancakes she wanted as soon as she got home,” Stacy said with a smile, remembering the child’s words.

Noting the quizzical arch in his brow, she filled him in on her and Lizzie’s conversation and the child’s request for breakfast when she returned back to her family.

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