A Soldier's Homecoming by Karen Foley

Author:Karen Foley
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fiction, Romance
ISBN: 9781949068481
Publisher: Tule Publishing
Published: 2018-05-25T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Nine

Whatever Lucas had expected, it hadn’t been the sweet, vulnerable woman he’d discovered on the mountain today. Just thinking about her expression as she’d pushed off the zip-line platform made him smile. Her initial fear had morphed into an exhilarated joy, and her laughter had echoed behind her as she’d zipped away from him. Lucas realized he wanted to hear her laugh like that again, without abandon. He’d started this journey with the single intention of learning more about India. What he’d discovered surprised him. He liked her, and he hadn’t expected that.

He thought there was something infinitely sad about India Gale, although she tried to hide it. He could see it in the dark depths of her eyes when she thought no one was watching, and the way her gaze would become faraway, as if her thoughts were somewhere equally distant. Was she thinking about Martin during those moments? Had they been lovers? The thought of her with his stepfather made his gut clench, and he forced the unpleasant images away. The more he got to know India, the more instinct told him she hadn’t been romantically involved with Martin. Moreover, his stepfather hadn’t been the kind of man who would have looked at a woman outside of his marriage. His vows had meant something to him, even if Meredith had convinced herself they hadn’t.

He watched India now as she gazed out the window at the passing landscape. The mountains were dark shadows on the horizon, and the moon cast silvery light on the surface of Whitefish Lake as they drove south. She sighed softly.

“What is it?” he asked. Reaching over, he covered her hand with his. Her skin was soft and warm.

She started and jerked her gaze to him but didn’t pull her hand away. “I was just thinking how unexpected this day turned out.”

She’d voiced his own thoughts, exactly. He never would have guessed that he would give a shit about this woman. But he did. “In what way?”

She slid him a quick, self-conscious glance. “I didn’t expect to like you.”

Ah.

He gave her fingers a brief squeeze, before releasing her hand. “I like you, too, India Cordoza.”

He liked her too much. Not for the first time, he wished he hadn’t agreed to snoop into her life. He wished his mother could move on with her own life, and let the past go. He didn’t care about the money that had been settled on India, and he knew for sure his mother and sisters didn’t miss it and weren’t suffering as a result.

Part of him just wanted to tell India the truth about who he was and see where it went. Maybe she would tell him she and Martin had only been friends, or business associates. Or maybe she would be furious at his deception and shut him out of her life completely. He only knew he liked this woman, and wanted to know her better.

“So, have you decided if you’re going to stay in Glacier Creek?”

The question pulled Lucas out of his thoughts.

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