Reilly's Return by Amelia Autin

Author:Amelia Autin [Autin, Amelia]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: General, Fiction, Contemporary, Romance
ISBN: 9780373078202
Google: aS_so_jVMSsC
Publisher: Harlequin Enterprises, Limited
Published: 1997-09-24T04:00:00+00:00

Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html

She snuggled against him, listening to the slow thud of his heart. For a while the only other sounds in the room were the crackling fire and the soft rasp of their breathing. Then he asked, "What made you change your mind?" He didn't wait for a response before clarifying, "I mean, why tonight?"

Mandy thought a long time before telling him the only truth she could. "I lost you once, and it almost killed me. If you had trusted me a year ago—"

"I couldn't." The harsh growl didn't fool her. Not anymore.

She hadn't known when they first met just what a loner he essentially was. She'd fallen for the facade at first, the reckless, flirtatious persona he presented to the world, but it had been those tantalizing glimpses of the lonely inner man that had drawn her under his spell, that had made her fall in love with him. But she hadn't really known him.

She knew more about him now, and it explained so much. Like a lot of cops, he was a throwback to the days when men sacrificed their lives to protect those weaker than themselves. His personal code of honor had strict rules—a man didn't put the woman he loved in the line of fire. Looking back, she realized their time together had been too short for her to teach him that she could be trusted, that telling her of the danger threatening him wasn't the same as putting her in jeopardy. According to his code of honor he'd done the only thing he could to keep her safe, not comprehending the devastation he'd left behind.

She sighed. "I know you believe that," she said softly, referring to his earlier statement, "but it doesn't change how I felt when I lost you, or what I thought when you turned up alive."

"Mandy—"

"No, let me finish. I realized tonight that if I let you go on believing I didn't love you anymore, I'd be doing the same thingto you that you didto me." She kissed the underside of his chin. "How will I ever teach youto trust me if I don't trust you?"

As the words left her mouth her conscience gave her a small pang. If she truly trusted him, if she were completely honest, there were things she needed to tell him, and it wasn't just about the baby. Not tonight, she pleaded with herself. Not when we've just found each other again. I'll tell him, she promised her conscience, but not tonight.

"It's not easy for me to trust, Mandy,"Reilly said diffidently. "I wasn't raised that way." His voice was brusque as he explained, "When I first teamed up with my partner, Josh, it took me almost two years before I trusted him enoughto let him guard my back."

Mandy didn't say anything, just stroked a hand over his chest, encouraging him to go on.

"Both my parents died when I was young,"he said, the tight-edged words dropping into the silence, "and I grew upinfoster homes.

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