Read Online One Night Standoff by Delores Fossen - Free Book Online Page A

walked off the porch toward a dark blue truck.
    Clayton didn’t waste any time. He got her inside and shut the door, locked it, but he didn’t go far. He stopped and leaned the back of his head against the glass insert on the door.
    “How bad is the headache?” she asked in a whisper. Lenora eased off his Stetson and put it on a peg hook next to the door. “And before you answer, I’d prefer the truth.”
    “I’ve had worse,” he mumbled.
    She was afraid that was indeed the truth, and it was a stark reminder that Clayton wouldn’t be going through this if it wasn’t for her. She was the reason he’d been shot in the first place.
    Lenora pressed the wet tissues against his neck again. This time, the front. “Do the doctors have any idea how much longer you’ll get the headaches?”
    He pulled off his glasses, hooked them on his jeans pocket and met her gaze. “They’re getting farther apart.”
    She stared at him. “Do you do that a lot—dodge questions that you don’t want to answer?”
    He made another of those noncommittal sounds, obviously still not planning to answer. That meant he might be dealing with these for the rest of his life.
    The glass panel on the door made this part of the entry light, so Lenora took him by the arm and led him into the dark room on the right. It was a den with brown leather furniture, but thankfully all the blinds were closed on the row of windows on the far wall. Since she doubted that she could convince him to sit, Lenora put him back against the wall and continued to put the wet tissues on his throat.
    “I’m fine,” he mumbled and would have moved away from her if she hadn’t blocked him with her body.
    It didn’t take her long to realize that just wasn’t a good idea. Her breasts landed against his chest, and the close contact gave her another jolting reminder that Clayton was, well, hot. She’d thought it the first time she laid eyes on him, and apparently her body wasn’t about to reverse that opinion now.
    She tried to step back, but this time it was Clayton who did the stopping. He snagged her by the wrist before she could put some distance between them. Lenora was about to tell him it wasn’t a good idea, but then she saw something other than pain in his deep-brown eyes. The heat, yes.
    But maybe more.
    “Do you remember?” she asked. She didn’t clarify—did he remember having sex with her—but Lenora figured they were on the same page here.
    Their bodies seemed to be, anyway.
    The air between them changed. So did the rhythm of her breathing. And even though she tried to level it, Lenora was reasonably sure she was giving off every signal a woman could give to a man to let him know she was interested. Definitely not a good idea, because she needed to get away from Clayton so he wouldn’t be attacked again.
    It was a solid reason to move.
    But she didn’t.
    She huffed, beyond frustrated with herself. And worse. She still didn’t back away when Clayton leaned down, his mouth inching toward hers.
    “This might help me remember.” His warm breath hit against her lips when he spoke.
    And suddenly more than anything, Lenora wanted him to remember. Oh, and she wanted him to kiss her, too. Clayton might not have any memories of their one-night stand, but Lenora was well aware that he could set fires with his mouth.
    He moved in closer. Closer. And she was just a breath away from kissing him again. Too bad she could already feel it and also too bad her body seemed to think this was foreplay, that Clayton would haul her off to bed again.
    That wouldn’t happen.
    Even if she desperately wanted it.
    Her eyelids were already fluttering down, getting ready for that kiss, when Clayton stopped. It took her a moment to realize why. The baby was kicking, and with her body pressed against Clayton’s, he could feel it.
    In that split second of time, the heat went from his eyes, and he slid his hand over her belly. Concern replaced the heat and the pain.
    “Is the