Read Online Ready for Marriage? by Ann Major, Beverly Barton Anne Marie Winston - Free Book Online

he wondered what Deb would have thought of him kissing Kris…and then he’d been dumb enough to tell her he needed time to figure out their relationship.
    He could almost smile about it if he didn’t miss her so much. She should have been born a redhead, because it sure didn’t take much to set fire to her temper.
    He started to punch in her number, then stopped. He’d better decide what he wanted to say, or he was liable to have her jumping down his throat again. I still don’t know what to say to you but I’d like to spend more time with you. I miss you .
    It was that simple. And it was honest. He had a feeling honesty was the only way to go with her.
    Decisive now, he did call, and when she answered, he was ready. ‘‘Hey, Kris. How are you?’’
    ‘‘Fine.’’ She sounded…cautious. ‘‘How about you and Mollie?’’
    ‘‘Mollie’s fine.’’ He could talk to her about his day-care problems on the Fourth. ‘‘I’m not so fine. I miss you.’’
    She was silent. Finally she said, ‘‘I know it’s really different now that I’m not around as much. It’ll get easier.’’
    It wasn’t exactly the response he realized he’d been hoping for. ‘‘I don’t mean I miss your help with Mollie,’’ he clarified. ‘‘I miss you . And that’s why I’m calling. What time do you want me to pick you up on the Fourth? I thought it might be nice to do the picnic thing again. That was fun last year.’’
    He heard her catch her breath, and she was silent for a moment. ‘‘Um, Derek, I can’t get together with you and Mollie this year.’’
    Now it was his turn to be silent. ‘‘Look, Kris, I’m sorry for upsetting you the other night—’’
    ‘‘No,’’ she said. ‘‘It’s not that. If I were free I’d be glad to come with you. But I already have a date.’’
    She had a date. A date? He completely forgot what she said about being glad to go along. ‘‘With who?’’
    ‘‘No one you know.’’ Her voice sounded pleasant but firm. ‘‘He’s a new member of the church.’’
    The church that he, Derek, attended on Christmas and Easter while she had taken Mollie to Sunday school all year long. Until recently. ‘‘Oh.’’ He wondered if he sounded as shaken as he felt. ‘‘Well, maybe we’ll see you there.’’
    ‘‘Maybe.’’ Her voice was cheery. ‘‘Give Mollie a kiss for me.’’
    ‘‘I will.’’ What he really wanted was for Kris to give him another kiss. But that was looking less and less likely as her words sank in. After another lame exchange of small talk, he hung up—and threw the phone against the wall in a rare display of temper that even he hadn’t been prepared for.
    ‘‘Dammit!’’ He flopped down on the couch and drummed his fingers on his knees. Alarm bells began to ring in his head. What an ass he was. Here he’d been, thinking nonstop of himself and how a relationship with Kristin would affect him.
    It was a shock to realize that she wasn’t even thinking of him at all. If you imagine I’m going to sit home waiting while you dissect your feelings and decide whether or not I might be allowed to fit into your life, you are seriously mistaken .
    God, she hadn’t been kidding! He’d disregarded the words, he saw now, because he assumed they were meant to manipulate him. But they hadn’t been. His heart sank. No, far from manipulation, Kristin was giving up. Going out with someone else.
    The thought made him want to snarl. She had no business going out with another man after she’d kissed him like that! Deb might have been the onlyother woman he’d ever had a physical relationship with, but he wasn’t stupid. He knew he wouldn’t lose his head with just any woman like he nearly had with Kris. God, they’d practically spontaneously combusted the other night. He still got hard every time he thought about it.
    He was so confused. He wanted her. He didn’t want to want her. He was afraid to want her. Kristin was a very different