Read Online Lone Star Cinderella by Debra Clopton - Free Book Online Page A

over her shoulder at him. He smiled and his hand on her waist tightened.
    â€œSteady there,” he said.
    She looked back toward the rocks, telling herself the interest she saw in his eyes was her imagination and she needed to be very careful. Seth Turner wouldn’t find a plain woman like her attractive. He was the type of manwho would not only date gorgeous women but also dynamic, self-confident women. A mousy history teacher like her was not in his league and she knew it. To let him realize she was thinking about him in that way would be embarrassing. She was a practical girl after all…on a treasure hunt! At least that made her feel better.
    â€œCan we go down there?” she asked, filled with anticipation. That was what had her head crazy—it was the excitement of the map. Otherwise she would never have been entertaining such thoughts about Seth.
    â€œNot today. We won’t make it back to the truck before nightfall.”
    â€œBut it’s right there.”
    â€œMelody, we’d have to climb down that steep rocky incline, and then we still wouldn’t have time to get any farther with the map instructions. I’m telling you, it’s too late.”
    â€œBut—”
    â€œHey, no discussion. I brought you out here to show it to you. That’s it. And you’re lucky I did that.”
    Melody bit her tongue. The man was intent on reminding her that he didn’t want to have anything to do with this treasure. She was fuming as he hopped to the ground and held his arms up to her. “I can get down from here by myself,” she snapped, grabbing a tree branch to steady herself and proceeding to slip and slide down the rock.
    Seth watched her with a grimace, and she felt foolish for having not taken his helping hands. Especially when she could see her actions had him secretly wanting to laugh!
    Humiliated, she scooted past him and kept on walking. She’d show him that she could hike through the woods with the best of them. As a matter of fact, she’d be back out here tomorrow, and she was going to really start looking for the treasure. She’d show him all right. She should thank him for bringing her out here and showing her the way. But she didn’t. She wasn’t stupid, and if he didn’t want to hunt for the treasure that was his problem.
    â€œAre you mad at me?” he asked, falling into step beside her as she plowed back the way they’d come.
    â€œI hardly have the right to be mad at you. This is your property after all. Your map. Your treasure.”
    He was staring at her. She could tell even though she didn’t dare take her eyes off the path—at the rate she was going, to do so would be pure stupidity. But he was watching her, and she knew because the hair on the back of her neck was standing up. She glared back at him. “I can’t believe you brought me out here to yank my chain, to—to dangle the treasure hunt in front of my eyes. You never had any intention of looking for the treasure. Jerk!” She continued stomping uphill.
    â€œMelody, c’mon. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean it that way. I was trying to show you how futile it would be. Please slow down. At this rate you could break your neck. There are all sorts of holes—”
    â€œI’m not going to step in a hole,” she barked. “You think I can’t even walk around out here by myself? Well, I can.”
    He chuckled. “Don’t laugh at me,” she warned, walking faster—stumbling.
    â€œMelody, I’m sorry I laughed. You just surprised me with your temper. And I never said you couldn’t hike. Would you hold up?”
    He apologized twice, but she was too mad to care. “ You’re the one who said it was going to get dark soon. You know you’ve just laid out all the rules. Why is it that everyone in my life sets the rules that I’m supposed to follow? Everyone thinks that they can just tell