Read Online Just Married! by Shirley Jump Cara Colter - Free Book Online
Authors: Shirley Jump Cara Colter
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saidsoftly. “I don’t know why it’s always so volatile between them.”
“Passion,” he said. “It’s hard stuff to tame.” As if he was any kind of expert on passion—or wanted to be thinking about the subject when he was in such close proximity to her!
“I can’t leave Waldo in the car. It’s getting too hot.” To prove her point, she slipped the hoodie off her dog.
He hoped that meant the imminent removal of her own jacket, even as he thought Samantha was showing a remarkable lack of gratitude for his chivalry. He should just turn around and dump her on that sidewalk, but he thought of Charlie wailing, and Amanda throwing things, and her thinking she could do something to fix it, and he just couldn’t.
“Okay, we’ll buy some sandwiches and eat at the beach.”
“I guess I could change into my other clothes.”
And deprive him of the camisole? At least he’d made one good decision today, and he admitted it to her now, trying to appear contrite. “Um, I forgot to pick them up after I paid for the new things.”
She stared at him, her gaze going right through him. He was never going to be able to tell her a lie. Ever. But what did it mean that he was thinking like that? As if there was an ever in their future.
They were having lunch. He was sticking around for another day or two to finish looking at properties in Cape Cod and then he was leaving St. John’sCove far behind him. And that meant this woman, her dog and his crazy cousin and her heartbroken husband were going to be in his past, not his future.
“You didn’t forget,” she said, those gray-green eyes narrowing. “You left my clothes on purpose! I’m trying to tell you that’s who I really am, jeans and T-shirts, baseball caps.”
“And I’m trying to tell you it’s not,” he said softly but every bit as stubbornly as her.
For a moment she looked ready to fight, but then she just sighed.
“Eating on the beach will probably wreck the skirt,” she said. She plucked at something on it.
The material already had a run in it, probably from the dog. She looked up at him suddenly, daring him to draw a conclusion about that.
“Who cares about the damned skirt?” he said, and meant it.
“Now you sound like the real me,” she said, and when he hooted with laughter, she rewarded him with that smile again, and he was aware of being glad their day together had not ended, and that they had been given a chance to start again.
Ethan Ballard was rescuing her, Samantha reminded herself, watching as he stood in line to get hot dogs from Ernie’s. And before that, the shopping trip, the visit to Annie’s Retreat had all been part of a game. That was how he played , pathetic as that was.
None of it was about him liking her.
And why should she like him? He was a bigwig investment shark from Boston who didn’t care anything about little people like Annie and Artie and her. He didn’t even know how to have a good time.
But she did like him, even knowing how damned foolish that was. She liked him and she was glad in some horrible, fickle part of herself that wasn’t sensible that he had asked her to play his bride for a day, even if he had downgraded it to fiancée in the last moment. She was glad she’d gone shopping with him, she was glad to have seen Annie’s Retreat and she was glad that he had rescued her from that horrifying scene unfolding outside her store.
Look , she told herself sternly, you’re twenty-five years old. It’s hardly a news bulletin that you like a man.
Well, okay, in this town it probably was, which meant they should go eat their hot dogs somewhere else.
In fact, it was more like It’s about time than a news flash. What if, for once, she just relaxed into what life offered her instead of trying to fight it?
So, she liked him. How big a deal was it? Why not enjoy that? For one afternoon? Why didn’t she teach him what playing really meant, show him a little hint of her world, just as he had shown
“Passion,” he said. “It’s hard stuff to tame.” As if he was any kind of expert on passion—or wanted to be thinking about the subject when he was in such close proximity to her!
“I can’t leave Waldo in the car. It’s getting too hot.” To prove her point, she slipped the hoodie off her dog.
He hoped that meant the imminent removal of her own jacket, even as he thought Samantha was showing a remarkable lack of gratitude for his chivalry. He should just turn around and dump her on that sidewalk, but he thought of Charlie wailing, and Amanda throwing things, and her thinking she could do something to fix it, and he just couldn’t.
“Okay, we’ll buy some sandwiches and eat at the beach.”
“I guess I could change into my other clothes.”
And deprive him of the camisole? At least he’d made one good decision today, and he admitted it to her now, trying to appear contrite. “Um, I forgot to pick them up after I paid for the new things.”
She stared at him, her gaze going right through him. He was never going to be able to tell her a lie. Ever. But what did it mean that he was thinking like that? As if there was an ever in their future.
They were having lunch. He was sticking around for another day or two to finish looking at properties in Cape Cod and then he was leaving St. John’sCove far behind him. And that meant this woman, her dog and his crazy cousin and her heartbroken husband were going to be in his past, not his future.
“You didn’t forget,” she said, those gray-green eyes narrowing. “You left my clothes on purpose! I’m trying to tell you that’s who I really am, jeans and T-shirts, baseball caps.”
“And I’m trying to tell you it’s not,” he said softly but every bit as stubbornly as her.
For a moment she looked ready to fight, but then she just sighed.
“Eating on the beach will probably wreck the skirt,” she said. She plucked at something on it.
The material already had a run in it, probably from the dog. She looked up at him suddenly, daring him to draw a conclusion about that.
“Who cares about the damned skirt?” he said, and meant it.
“Now you sound like the real me,” she said, and when he hooted with laughter, she rewarded him with that smile again, and he was aware of being glad their day together had not ended, and that they had been given a chance to start again.
Ethan Ballard was rescuing her, Samantha reminded herself, watching as he stood in line to get hot dogs from Ernie’s. And before that, the shopping trip, the visit to Annie’s Retreat had all been part of a game. That was how he played , pathetic as that was.
None of it was about him liking her.
And why should she like him? He was a bigwig investment shark from Boston who didn’t care anything about little people like Annie and Artie and her. He didn’t even know how to have a good time.
But she did like him, even knowing how damned foolish that was. She liked him and she was glad in some horrible, fickle part of herself that wasn’t sensible that he had asked her to play his bride for a day, even if he had downgraded it to fiancée in the last moment. She was glad she’d gone shopping with him, she was glad to have seen Annie’s Retreat and she was glad that he had rescued her from that horrifying scene unfolding outside her store.
Look , she told herself sternly, you’re twenty-five years old. It’s hardly a news bulletin that you like a man.
Well, okay, in this town it probably was, which meant they should go eat their hot dogs somewhere else.
In fact, it was more like It’s about time than a news flash. What if, for once, she just relaxed into what life offered her instead of trying to fight it?
So, she liked him. How big a deal was it? Why not enjoy that? For one afternoon? Why didn’t she teach him what playing really meant, show him a little hint of her world, just as he had shown
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