Read Online Beside a Dreamswept Sea by Vicki Hinze - Free Book Online Page A

ultraconservative silk tie that made him look like a guy fresh off the pages of GQ. With luck, she’d stop hoping he’d look less appealing in jeans. Imagining denim clinging to his thighs, she felt a warm rush of heat and nixed the thought. Unfortunately, he’d appeal in anything he wore.
    “Daddy’s gonna help Cally.” Suzie tugged at Jeremy, looking awfully pleased. “Come on, we can go now.”
    “No, I wanna stay here.” Jeremy pulled away. “Mrs. Wiggins is still mad at me.”
    Suzie rolled her gaze and gave Jeremy another solid tug. “She’s gonna be mad forever anyway, so what’s the difference? Come on, we’ve gotta get the dirt off you.”
    Jeremy frowned down at his mud-crusted jeans. “How come?”
    “Because, dimwit.” Suzie gave him a firm yank, then smiled sweetly at Cally and her father. “If only we have the courage to believe, miracles can happen beside a dreamswept sea.”
    A shudder rippled up Cally’s back. Her instincts rioted, flashed a warning: Listen. Take the message’s meaning into your heart.
    The feeling burned so strong it nearly buckled her knees. Suzie had said something vitally important. Cally couldn’t explain exactly what, but she’d understood the importance at gut level, and she swore she’d listen to it—as soon as she deciphered it. She lacked courage, but if she had it and believed—in what, she had no idea—then miracles—what kind of miracles, she again had no idea—could happen.
    Swiping at his nose, Jeremy frowned at Suzie. “Huh?”
    Bryce held that same baffled expression, and yet some odd light shone in the depths of his hazel eyes. As if he too felt something significant had just been disclosed and his instincts also had gone haywire.
    “Will you just come on?” Suzie let out a sigh of sheer frustration. “If we don’t get out of here, she’s never gonna figure out she could be our new mom.”
    “Our new mom?” Jeremy gaped.
    Suzie slapped her hand over her mouth. She’d clearly just let the proverbial cat out of the bag and regretted it. Cally’s face burned red-hot.
    Bryce’s turned purple. “Jeremy, go with your sister. Now.”
    The door shut behind them and, after a long moment, Bryce lifted his gaze. “I’m sorry, Cally. I’m Bryce Richards, widower and sole parent of the mischievous moppets, Suzie, Jeremy, and Alyssa, aka Lyssie. If you don’t believe I’m certifiably looney—I wouldn’t bet either way this morning myself—and you’ll give me that pin, I’ll do the honors and spare you a stick.”
    Looney, no. But definitely haunted. The dark shadows staining the skin beneath his eyes evidenced he was weary, but the look in them told her far more about troubled Bryce Richards. His trouble ran soul-deep. And, while she hated seeing anyone troubled, it did give her a good feeling to have a kindred spirit. Maybe they could help each other in some way. “Spare me a stick?” she asked, though what she really wanted was an explanation of Suzie’s “new mom” remark.
    “You said you always stick yourself.” Dipping his chin in a mock nod toward her carnation, he smiled.
    Breathless. Cally couldn’t think of anything coherent to say, so she remained silent. Why did he have this odd, settling and yet unsettling effect on her? Okay, he was attractive, and that look in his eyes made him even more appealing. Being around a man without troubles would just make her feel worse about her own situation. But he was too refined and stuffy for her tastes. Maybe it was the cane, or her sensing he was hurt emotionally and physically. Whatever it was, it made no sense. She’d been through too much with Gregory to be affected like this, to be drawn to a stranger with the same intensity she had been drawn to this house.
    Lust, she decided. Even with the beard. She was human and not immune to lust. That had to be it.
    Well, if she was bent on lusting, at least she’d chosen herself a dynamite candidate and not a jerk. If he was a jerk, then