The Rancher's Return by Karen Whiddon

Author:Karen Whiddon
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: Thrillers, Romance, Suspense, Fiction
ISBN: 9781460378663
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2015-02-01T17:00:00+00:00

Chapter 11

He moved his fingers to her shoulder. Kaitlyn fought the urge to arch her back to show him where she wanted his touch. He hadn’t come for this, and they’d both admitted the other time had been a mistake.

Yet for the life of her, she couldn’t find the words to tell him no. Truth be told, she didn’t want to.

When he reached for her hand, she gave it willingly.

“Come, sit.” He walked her around the backyard to a stone bench in the middle of a small rose garden. A six-foot privacy fence surrounded them, and she tried to relax, telling herself no one could see them.

He released her. “Please. Take a seat.”

With a small nod, she complied. Again she took care to smooth her T-shirt down as she perched on the edge of the cool stone. The gesture gave away her nervousness, but she had to do something with her hands.

Reed remained standing, his broad-shouldered figure blocking out the moon.

“Believe it or not, I’ve actually sort of missed you,” she said.

His smile flashed white. “Yeah, well. I actually kind of got used to having you around.”

Which she guessed was as close as he’d get to saying he’d missed her, too. She nearly smiled back, then sensed she was treading on dangerous ground. He’d made it quite clear that their relationship would stay platonic, two people helping each other get what they wanted. The passion between them had been a mistake, and she knew he’d never understand how much his touch had healed her.

“Where’s your truck?” she asked, trying to get back on normal footing.

“I parked a block over and walked here.” His arch look told her he knew exactly what she was trying to do. “That way I knew for sure I wasn’t followed.”

Chest tight, she nodded. He’d never know how beautiful she found everything about him, from his shock of thick, dark hair, to the muscles that rippled under his T-shirt every time he moved. The inherent strength in his features, the calm confidence he carried with him made him devastatingly handsome.

And dangerous to her equilibrium.

“Why are you really here, Reed? Were you able to make any real progress with Alex?”

“Not yet.” His voice rang with confidence. “But I will. It’s only a matter of time.”

She refused to allow herself to be swayed. “But you put yourself in danger. Both of us, not to mention Zoe and Brock. I don’t understand why—”

“I wanted to make sure you were all right,” he interrupted, sounding quietly furious. “I was careful. I took precautions. Kaitlyn, I don’t understand, but I couldn’t stop thinking about you. I... Oh, hell.”

His mouth covered hers, his kiss hungry and hot as he pulled her up against him.

Then, just as abruptly as the kiss had begun, it ended. His expression fierce, he glanced away, swallowing hard. “No,” he said. “That’s not why I came here. Actually, I need to apologize to you.”

Confused and aroused, she gazed at him. “Apologize for what?”

“For that. For what happened before.”

Ah, now she understood.

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