Read Online A Bride For Abel Greene by Cindy Gerard - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Cindy Gerard
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felt the struggle he was waging deep within himself—and the wanting that he ached to deny but couldn’t.
But mostly she felt alive. Alive like she’d never felt in her life. She was aware of each breath she drew, of the rise and fall of her breasts beneath her sweater, of the fine, silky hairs at the nape of her neck, of the tenderness of her skin, the sensitivity of her nipples. And she knew he was aware of what his gaze was doing to her.
Slowly she closed her eyes. Slower still she opened them to look at the man who wanted so badly not to want her. Twin cylinders of glittering, golden light arrowed through the tall windows and poured over them like crystal rain as they knelt, side by side, near Nashata’s makeshift whelping bed.
Abel was as beautiful by sunlight as he was by shadows and fire glow. His dark hair was highlighted to a blue-black sheen, his thick lashes tipped in feathery gold. But it was his face and the way the light played across the bronze planes of his cheeks and rugged jaw that defined and dramatized the character of the man within. And the inner struggle he was waging.
While she understood that he hadn’t yet accepted their fate, she felt enfolded in a warm, almost prophetic sense of rightness. In this unlikely place, at this unexpected time, she saw them kneeling together again—but at an altar, about to become husband and wife. And she wasn’t afraid anymore.
She’d learned something about this man in the last three hours. All her uncertainty had left her as they’d held vigil over Nashata here in the loft. Abel Greene’s gruff, stoic. aloofness was a ruse. All the posturing about sending her away was a defense. The gentleness he’d shown with Nashata as she’d struggled to bring her puppies into the world, the patience he’d shown Mark, who had worried over the event like a nervous godparent, all spoke to qualities any woman would want in a man. It had also told her that he didn’t really want to be alone. He had a lot to give to a relationship. He just didn’t know it yet.
The fact that they barely knew each other was irrelevant. People married all the time and didn’t really know each other. Her mother and father had been married almost twenty years. They still hadn’t known each other when they’d parted ways.
Mackenzie wouldn’t make that mistake. She might not know Abel now, but she would get to know this man. She wasn’t foolish enough to believe in something as fanciful as love might actually happen between them. She’d come here accepting that and was willing to settle for mutual respect.
Coming to Abel Greene had been exactly the right thing to do. For both of them. In spite of his determination to do otherwise, she wasn’t going to let him make the mistake of sending her back.
“It seems I need to thank you again.”
They were sitting at the kitchen table some time later. She’d followed him there after leaving Mark with Nashata and the pups.
He raised a fresh cup of coffee to his mouth.
She lifted her chin in the direction of the loft. “You were wonderful up there with Mark—the way you trusted him and made him feel you were counting on him to help you with Nashata.”
He shrugged. “I did need his help.”
“No, you didn’t.” Her smile was one of warmth and confidence. “Neither did Nashata. She was just doing what comes naturally. And I think you were doing what comes naturally, too. You made him feel necessary. Other than me, no one’s ever extended that kind of trust to him before.”
His response was to rise, snag his heavy coat from the coatrack by the door and shrug his broad shoulders into it.
“In case you hadn’t noticed, the snow has stopped. As soon as I get the lane cleaned out, I’ll take you back to the bus terminal.”
Her heart fell. She’d known he wasn’t ready to roll over and play dead in terms of allowing her to stay. But she had hoped she’d have some more time to convince him.
A quick glance out the window
But mostly she felt alive. Alive like she’d never felt in her life. She was aware of each breath she drew, of the rise and fall of her breasts beneath her sweater, of the fine, silky hairs at the nape of her neck, of the tenderness of her skin, the sensitivity of her nipples. And she knew he was aware of what his gaze was doing to her.
Slowly she closed her eyes. Slower still she opened them to look at the man who wanted so badly not to want her. Twin cylinders of glittering, golden light arrowed through the tall windows and poured over them like crystal rain as they knelt, side by side, near Nashata’s makeshift whelping bed.
Abel was as beautiful by sunlight as he was by shadows and fire glow. His dark hair was highlighted to a blue-black sheen, his thick lashes tipped in feathery gold. But it was his face and the way the light played across the bronze planes of his cheeks and rugged jaw that defined and dramatized the character of the man within. And the inner struggle he was waging.
While she understood that he hadn’t yet accepted their fate, she felt enfolded in a warm, almost prophetic sense of rightness. In this unlikely place, at this unexpected time, she saw them kneeling together again—but at an altar, about to become husband and wife. And she wasn’t afraid anymore.
She’d learned something about this man in the last three hours. All her uncertainty had left her as they’d held vigil over Nashata here in the loft. Abel Greene’s gruff, stoic. aloofness was a ruse. All the posturing about sending her away was a defense. The gentleness he’d shown with Nashata as she’d struggled to bring her puppies into the world, the patience he’d shown Mark, who had worried over the event like a nervous godparent, all spoke to qualities any woman would want in a man. It had also told her that he didn’t really want to be alone. He had a lot to give to a relationship. He just didn’t know it yet.
The fact that they barely knew each other was irrelevant. People married all the time and didn’t really know each other. Her mother and father had been married almost twenty years. They still hadn’t known each other when they’d parted ways.
Mackenzie wouldn’t make that mistake. She might not know Abel now, but she would get to know this man. She wasn’t foolish enough to believe in something as fanciful as love might actually happen between them. She’d come here accepting that and was willing to settle for mutual respect.
Coming to Abel Greene had been exactly the right thing to do. For both of them. In spite of his determination to do otherwise, she wasn’t going to let him make the mistake of sending her back.
“It seems I need to thank you again.”
They were sitting at the kitchen table some time later. She’d followed him there after leaving Mark with Nashata and the pups.
He raised a fresh cup of coffee to his mouth.
She lifted her chin in the direction of the loft. “You were wonderful up there with Mark—the way you trusted him and made him feel you were counting on him to help you with Nashata.”
He shrugged. “I did need his help.”
“No, you didn’t.” Her smile was one of warmth and confidence. “Neither did Nashata. She was just doing what comes naturally. And I think you were doing what comes naturally, too. You made him feel necessary. Other than me, no one’s ever extended that kind of trust to him before.”
His response was to rise, snag his heavy coat from the coatrack by the door and shrug his broad shoulders into it.
“In case you hadn’t noticed, the snow has stopped. As soon as I get the lane cleaned out, I’ll take you back to the bus terminal.”
Her heart fell. She’d known he wasn’t ready to roll over and play dead in terms of allowing her to stay. But she had hoped she’d have some more time to convince him.
A quick glance out the window
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