Beautiful Dreamer with Bonus Material by Elizabeth Lowell

Author:Elizabeth Lowell
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
ISBN: 9780062208842
Publisher: HarperCollins US
Published: 2000-12-31T13:00:00+00:00

Sixteen

HOPE’S FIRST REACTION on seeing Turner was anger and a disappointment so deep that it made her dizzy.

“Haven’t you ever heard of knocking on doors?” she asked coldly.

The wind gusted back up to its full strength, making the house tremble with its endless power. Wind whispered grittily against windows and walls in a long exhalation that became a low wail masking all sound from outside the walls, increasing the isolation inside.

Turner smiled with a predatory anticipation he didn’t bother to conceal. “Baby doll, I’m hurt. Is that any way to welcome your fiancé on your birthday, especially when he’s got a present for you?”

Hope remembered the night eight years ago, when he had grabbed her and taught her just how careless a strong man could be.

Turner noticed the elegant green dress, the shadowed invitation of her long, long legs, the heightening of her eyes, the fullness of her mouth. She was a woman dressed for a lover.

And she hadn’t known he was coming.

“Who are you all tarted up for?” he snarled.

“No one.”

“Bullshit. No woman dresses up like that except for a man.”

“I do.”

She went to the refrigerator, pulled out a ham, and sliced off a chunk. Swiss cheese came next. Deliberately ignoring Turner, she cut the ham and cheese into neat strips.

Turner watched her every motion with brooding eyes. He hadn’t dressed up for her. He was wearing the same spotless, ironed jeans, shiny boots, and crisp white shirt he wore every day on his ranch.

“It’s Rio,” Turner said. His voice was like his eyes—flat, ugly, threatening. “The bunkhouse gossips are right. That half-breed’s fucking you.”

Hope’s fingers tightened around the knife handle. Her hands wanted to shake with anger and a wave of fear. Turner was a man who had never understood a woman’s refusal. Never accepted it.

Never permitted it.

I should have known he would wait until I was truly alone. That’s his style. No witnesses. No word but his against mine. And who would believe a dirt-poor ranch girl turned down the richest bachelor around?

No one believed me before. No one would now. What are a few bruises against a few million dollars?

Coolly Hope went through her options.

There weren’t many. Assuming she could stay away from Turner long enough to get to a phone and call the sheriff—which she doubted—help was almost an hour away. There were two exits from the kitchen. Turner was standing in one and closer to the second than she was.

But somehow she had to get out of the kitchen. Given a chance, she was certain she could outrun him.

Ignoring him, she made small pockets in the chicken breast with the knife’s gleaming tip. She tucked strips of ham and cheese into the pockets, along with a sprinkling of herbs.

There was no sound in the kitchen but the rough cry of the wind.

“You answer me when I talk to you,” Turner said harshly.

“Nobody is my lover,” she said, her voice as cool and precise as the blade Rio had sharpened. “Nobody is fucking me, either. Thank you for your neighborly concern, but you made a long drive for nothing.

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