Kiss Me, Cowboy by Maureen Child

Author:Maureen Child [Child, Maureen]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2010-10-26T04:00:00+00:00

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Chapter 8

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Emily was sound asleep and her fever was down. But Nora still refused to leave. Mike watched her from the hall doorway, and in the soft glow of the princess night-light gleaming in the corner of the room, she looked … too damn good.

He leaned forward, bracing his hands on either side of the doorway and squeezed until he wouldn't have been surprised to hear the old wood snap in his grip. To indulge himself, he let his gaze slide over her. That fresh-as-a-daisy outfit she'd been wearing when she arrived was now wrinkled and stained with a few drops of liquid ibuprofen. She'd raked her hands through her hair so often it was a tangled mess, and her eyes looked tired and worried.

Still, desire flashed inside him, even brighter and stronger than it had that afternoon. This was more than a reaction to her good looks, though God knew that was there, too. He was responding to who she was. How she'd cared for Emily. How she'd worried and fretted and read one story time after time until he was pretty sure she knew it by heart.

This desire raging and pulsing inside him was fueled by what he'd seen of her in the last few weeks. It was the flowers in his house. The laughter that had brightened every corner of a home that had grown too dark. The warmth that had invaded his soul no matter how much he tried to fight it.

And he knew there would be no relief from the wanting because he couldn't give her what she was looking for. Couldn't take that kind of risk. If he only had to consider his own happiness, then he might surrender to these feelings. But he had Emily to think about, too. And to protect her from another possible rejection, he would do anything. Even if it meant denying himself the one woman he wanted more than his next breath.

As if she sensed him watching her, she shifted her gaze to him. When their gazes locked, Mike knew he was in deep trouble. She stood up, bent down and stroked Emily's forehead, then straightened again and moved across the room.

Mike stepped aside as she got closer. When she passed him, she brushed against his body and his skin caught fire. That was the only explanation for the sudden explosion of heat that damn near swamped him. Shaking his head, he gave his sleeping daughter one last look, then turned and followed Nora out into the great room.

She kept walking until she stood in front of the now-cold hearth. On the mantel above the stone fireplace was a line of framed photos. Most were of Emily, but there were a few others, too.

"Are these your parents?" she asked without turning around.

"Yeah," he said, and stopped a good five feet from her. Couldn't hurt to keep a little distance between them. "They live up north. Near Reno."

"Pretty up there," she said, and let her fingers trail along the oak mantel, sliding up to the next picture.

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