Double Blind by Hannah Alexander

Author:Hannah Alexander
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin Enterprises
Published: 2008-08-25T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty-Three

In spite of ordering Preston, more than once, not to come here, in spite of knowing his presence could be awkward and in spite of her irritation that he didn’t seem to believe she was capable of taking care of herself, Sheila could not deny her relief at his sudden appearance. But she wasn’t going to let him know.

He had come all the way to Arizona. For her. He wanted her. A romantic gesture couldn’t get much better than that.

And yet, when Ryan was alive, he had made huge, romantic gestures in an effort to control her. Unfortunately, it usually worked. She’d come too far, endured too much, to allow another man to repeat that pattern.

Everything she knew about Preston told her he wasn’t a manipulative man. She had always appreciated his good interpersonal boundaries, in spite of his dysfunctional childhood. He was neither dependent on others to make his life complete, nor interested in forcing anyone to think or do what he wanted. She knew he had undergone some therapy to establish a more emotionally healthy outlook on life, and she appreciated the results.

And that was why his suddenly showing up shocked her. Of course, just because she had told him not to come didn’t mean he had to comply. There again, she had no right to control him, either.

She turned to see Tanya carrying a duffel bag and what appeared to be a pillow and blanket from the dorm, while Canaan rushed to help her with it. Blaze hurried along beside him, obviously eager to make new friends, get the lay of the land and plunge into work—indeed, an answer to Canaan’s prayers.

Prayers that Sheila, herself, would have gotten in the way of, ironically, if Preston had done as she wished. But then, who knew?

“Mad at me?” Preston asked from close behind her.

She suppressed the smile that sprang from deep within her. “I told you not to come, and you came anyway, dragging poor Blaze along as an excuse.” And Blaze’s present behavior suggested that Preston might have done some major soul sharing on the drive out, as well.

“Would you believe me if I told you it was Blaze’s idea?”

She shook her head, watching Canaan, Blaze and Tanya step into her apartment.

“It’s true,” Preston said, waving his hand in front of her face to get her full attention. “He wants to do this, Sheila, and it looks as if you and Canaan could use the help.”

She sighed and looked up into the blue-gray depths of those eyes she admired so much. “Don’t you dare try to convince me that poor, defenseless Preston Black was bullied by mean old Blaze Farmer into escorting him out here. Nobody bullies you.”

“Blaze doesn’t have a car.”

“If you were so gung ho for him to come, you could’ve let him use your Jeep. Better yet, you could’ve bought him a new one.”

Preston walked in silence for two beats. “Okay, I didn’t say he bullied me into coming, I just said it was his suggestion, and one thing led to another, and your phone calls cinched the deal for me.

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