Read Online An Outrageous Proposal by Maureen Child - Free Book Online Page A

for the silver pot on the
rolling tea table in front of them. Hefting it, she refilled both her own and
Laura’s cups. Tea might be the big thing over here, but thankfully Patsy Brennan
was willing to brew a pot of coffee for the Page sisters every morning. “Also,
moving is terrifying. Not only going to a new place and starting over, but it’s
all the logistics of the thing. Canceling mail and utilities, starting them up
somewhere else, and the packing.”
    Georgia shuddered and took a sip of coffee to bolster her.
    “I get that. I was worried when I first moved here with Ronan,
but everything went great.”
    “You had Ronan.”
    “And you have me. ”
    “Ever the optimist,” Georgia noted.
    “No point in being a pessimist,” Laura countered. “If you go
around all grim, expecting the worst, when it happens, you’ve been suffering
longer than you had to.”
    Georgia just blinked at her. “I’ll work on that one and let you
know when I figure it out.”
    Laura grinned, then sobered up again. “I wish you’d reconsider
living here with us. There’s plenty of room.”
    She knew her sister meant it, and having her offer was really
wonderful. Even though having a secret affair was hard to manage when you were
living with your sister. “I know, and I appreciate the offer. Just like I
appreciate you letting me stay here when I visit. But I want my own place,
Laura.”
    “Yeah, I know.”
    Morning light filtered into the room, and the winter sunshine
was pale and soft. The baby monitor receiver that Laura carried with her at all
times sat on the coffee table in front of them, and from it came the soft sounds
of Fiona’s breathing and the tiny sniffling sounds she made as she slept.
    “Yesterday, Sean told me he owns a couple of cottages at the
edge of the village,” Georgia said. “He’s going to sell me one of them.”
    “And that,” Laura said thoughtfully, “brings us to the main
question for the day. What’s going on with you and Sean?”
    She went still and dropped her gaze to the black coffee in her
cup. “Nothing.”
    “Right. What am I, blind? I gave birth in the hospital,
Georgia,” her sister pointed out, “I didn’t have a lobotomy.”
    “Laura…” Georgia had known this was coming. Actually, it was
probably only because Laura was so wrapped up in Fiona that she hadn’t noticed
earlier. Laura wasn’t stupid and as she just mentioned, not blind, either.
    “I can see how you guys are around each other,” Laura was
saying, tapping her fingernails lightly against the arm of the chair. “He
watches you.”
    “Oooh, that’s suspicious.”
    “I said he watches you. Like a man
dying of thirst and you’re a fountain of ice-cold water.”
    Something inside her stirred and heat began to crawl through
Georgia’s veins, in spite of her effort to put a stop to it. After that proposal
Sean had made last night, he’d kissed her senseless, then dropped her off here
at the manor, leaving Georgia so stirred up she’d hardly slept. Now, just the
thought of Sean was enough to light up the ever-present kindling inside her.
    Shaking her head, she said only, “Leave it alone, Laura.”
    “Sure. I’ll do that. I’m sorry. Have we met?” Laura leaned
toward her. “Honey, don’t get me wrong. I’m glad you’re having fun finally. God
knows it took you long enough to put what’s-his-name in the past—”
    At the mention of Georgia’s ex, she frowned. Okay, fine. It had
taken her some time to get past the fury of being used, betrayed and then
finally, publicly dumped. But she figured most women
would have come out of that situation filled with righteous fury.
    “Gee, thanks.”
    “—I just don’t want you to get crushed again.”
    “What happened to that optimism?”
    Laura frowned at her. “This is different. What if you guys
crash and burn? Then you’ll be living here, with Sean right around the corner
practically and seeing him all the time and you’ll be miserable. I don’t