Read Online His Dakota Bride (Book 5 - Dakota Hearts) by Lisa Mondello - Free Book Online Page B

taking her invitation the wrong way.
    “Before you go getting excited about the offer, I’m talking about this couch, not my bed. It’s been a trying day and I can see how wiped out you are. There’s no need having Logan come out here and then having you drive all the way back to your house. So just stay here.”
    His disappointment clouded his expression. She couldn’t help but laugh. She shook her head, and under her breath, she said, “You’ll never change.”
    “Not where you’re concerned. You ruined me, Sky. I haven’t been with another woman since the last time we were together in Samoa.”
    His blue eyes were beautiful as he gazed up at her. She remembered them so well. The sincerity of his words made them hard to ignore. She shifted uncomfortably where she stood unable to squash the flash of guilt that she felt.
    “Don’t. This was my choice. Even after I learned you got married, I didn’t want to be with another woman. No one was you.”
    “You had all the choices, didn’t you?”
    “Not all. If I could have stopped Jay from touching you these last few years, I would have. It damn near killed me thinking about that.”
    # # #
     
     

Chapter Nine
     
    Wade watched Skylar as she turned away from him. But not before he saw her bottom lip tremble with emotion. Wade wondered what was haunting Skylar the most. Was it the failed marriage, or the fact that it hadn’t been him loving her as she’d confessed she’d wanted?
    Before she could leave the room, he asked, “Did you ever love him?”
    Wade told him himself plenty of times he wasn’t going to ask Skylar that question. Ever. It wasn’t fair to her and she didn’t have to tell him. But the need to know the truth was so strong, he couldn’t stop himself.
    “Sadly, no. That’s the worst of it.” She laughed at the look he gave her. “Don’t look so relieved.”
    “I never claimed to be perfect, Skylar. But I can’t help the way I feel.”
    “There was so much I wanted to say to you. I would find myself standing in that kitchen wondering about what you’d think about Alex. He’d reach a milestone and I’d ask Kate about you. All that time she never knew. At night I’d sleep on the corner of the bed and cry. I was wearing another man’s ring and yet I was crying for you.
    “They say it takes two for a marriage to fall apart but it was my fault. All mine. I didn’t let Jay be a father to Alex, and he always felt it. Something in me was always holding back. I never should have married him.” She said the last part quietly. “You ruined me, too.”
    The urge to touch Skylar overwhelmed him beyond what he’d imagined was possible. She was still standing across the room. But Wade could almost smell the scent of the citrus lotion she used to put on right before bed. He wanted to lean into her to see if it was still part of her nightly ritual.
    But they’d already been through enough today. The fact that she was even willing to let him stay the night was a war he didn’t think he’d win just days ago.
    She took a deep breath and lifted her chin. “If you need another blanket, there are more in the linen closet in the bathroom. Fresh towels, too, if you want to take a shower. You used to always take a shower before bed,” she said quietly.
    “That’s right.”
    “Well, goodnight, Wade.”
    “Sleep well.”
    He dragged his gaze away from Skylar as she left the room and headed down the hallway, but only because watching her leave would have pushed the longing he felt to have her in his arms deeper into his gut. It was already so strong it threatened to level him. He waited for the sound of her bedroom door to shut before he turned back to look in the direction she’d just walked, wishing he was on the other side of that closed door with her.
    He pulled himself up from the sofa that would be his bed for the night, and walked to the bathroom. Once inside, he closed and locked the door, but didn’t feel the lock connect. He played