Read Online Texas Temptation by Bárbara McCauley - Free Book Online Page A

froze.
    Turning slowly, he narrowed his eyes and listened intently. A small sound, a sigh, came from the living room. He reached for the kitchen light and flipped it on.
    Annie. His throat went dry at the sight of her. She was lying on his couch, her feet dangling over the side, her head propped on a pillow. A map and several logs were spread around her, and he remembered she’d mentioned coming by here.
    No. Good Lord, not now. I can’t take this.
    He looked down at his hand and realized he had the bottle of whiskey in a death grip. He set it down, cursing as he moved toward her. He had to wake her up, get her out of here. Now.
    He knelt beside her, leaning close as he reached for her shoulder, intending to shake her.
    She sighed again, and he felt the soft warmth of her breath on his neck. He squeezed his eyes shut and swallowed hard.
    â€œAnnie,” he whispered.
    She smiled and curled her long slender fingers beside her cheek. Her hair shone like silk.
    He cursed again.
    His gaze moved slowly over her, at the soft rise and fall of her breasts, the curve of her hip, the long legs in tight jeans. His body responded instantly; he felt the blood pumping through his veins, the pounding of his heart, the growing hardness of his arousal. He imagined what it would be like to slide her clothes off and slip into the heat of her body. To look into her eyes as he moved inside her, to hear his name on her lips, instead of—
    He pulled his hand sharply away and stood. He was a fool to allow himself thoughts like that. An idiot.
    Because Annie Bailey was the one woman he could never have.
    Drawing in a long ragged breath, he moved the map and logs out of the way, then reached for the throw on the arm of the couch and gently covered her with it. She didn’t stir.
    He moved into the kitchen and frowned at the bottle on the counter. His palms itched, but he left the bottle where it was and shut off the light.
    It was going to be a hell of a night.

Five
    S he awoke slowly, stretching her arms over her head with a satisfied groan. Snuggling under the blanket, she smiled and slipped her arms around the pillow, hugging the soft cushion and sighing contentedly.
    Finally a good night’s sleep.
    She burrowed deeper into the mattress, refusing to open her eyes, even though she was aware that the sun was up. She listened to the quiet tick of a clock and the hum of an air-conditioning unit. The mattress seemed softer this morning, and the smell of coffee was sheer heaven.
    The smell of coffee?
    She went perfectly still. She hadn’t ordered room service. Breath held, she slowly opened her eyes.
    Oh, my God.
    She was in Jared’s living room, on his couch!
    She closed her eyes again, praying that she was dreaming, that she hadn’t actually spent the night in his trailer. The last thing she remembered was stopping by here to pick up the logs. She’d sat down to look at Jared’s map, then closed her eyes for a moment.
    And slept the entire night through.
    This time when she ventured a look, she was staring into eyes that were Stone blue. She threw the blanket over her head and groaned again.
    â€œOh, Jared,” she moaned, “why didn’t you wake me up?”
    She heard him chuckle. “I doubt a herd of horses would have woken you up. And besides, disturbing a peaceful sleep ranks somewhere with kicking puppies and pulling the wings off butterflies.”
    She pulled the blanket tighter over her head, resisting Jared’s tug. She wished the couch would swallow her. “I’m so sorry. I’ll get out of your hair as soon as—”
    He tugged harder, yanking the blanket off. “Don’t worry about it, Annie. It’s no big deal.”
    She peeked up at him, suddenly terribly conscious of what she must look like. But Jared wasn’t looking so hot himself, she thought, taking in his tousled hair, dark lines under his eyes and the morning beard. And yet, even though he looked