Read Online The Faithful Wife by Diana Hamilton - Free Book Online
Authors: Diana Hamilton
Tags: Romance
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turning on his heels and walking out on her and Guy, was too demeaning to live with.
CHAPTER FIVE
B ELLA came awake to the distinctive aroma of freshly brewing coffee wafting up from the kitchen directly beneath her bedroom.
The window was heavily curtained, so she had no way of knowing if the late winter dawn had broken, but one thing she did know: Jake was getting ready to leave. Without her.
She wasnât going to stay here on her own!
Jumping out of bed, shivering in the chilly air, she scrambled into the warm leggings and sweater sheâd worn the day before and pushed her feet into her sturdy walking shoes, panic making her heartbeat very fast.
There was no time for refinements, even the most basic ones such as bathing, or brushing her hair. She wouldnât put it past him to be walking out of here right now, creeping out, because he wouldnât want her to wake and come racing after him! He had certainly made it perfectly clear that he didnât want her tagging along, under any circumstances. He didnât want her anywhere near him.
Well, he couldnât force her to stay. So sheâd dog his footsteps every inch of the way, and if he didnât like it he could lump it!
Already breathless from her haste, she flew down the stairs and arrived in the kitchen with a clatter. The room was filled with clear bright light and the enticing fragrance of coffee. Jake, wearing the bulky sweater and warm dark cords heâd had on yesterday, was staring out of the window.
âNo need to break your neck. Nobodyâs going anywhere,â he said drily.
He turned from the window, his mouth curling. But it wasnât a smile, Bella saw. That tight-lipped grimace could easily have developed into a full-blown snarl if heâd let it; she didnât have to be an expert in facial expressions to recognise that. But it didnât stop her wretched body responding to him as if the reaction had been programmed in, right from the day of her birth.
He hadnât shaved, and the darkness of his tough jawline was more than the mere affectation of designer stubble. It made him look more dangerous, more forbiddingly exciting than ever before. And what was he talking about? Why had he altered his plans?
Answering her unspoken questions, he narrowed his eyes and drawled softly, âYou even have the weather on your side. So how did you manage that? Magic?â
He turned abruptly away, bunching his hands in the pockets of his trousers, staring bleakly through the window at the winter wasteland.
Pushing past the hurtful contempt of his words, Bella made sudden sense of what he was implying and went to stand beside him at the window, careful not to brush against himâbecause touching him would be her undoing, she knew dam well it would.
Stealthy snow had fallen silently in the night, blown into drifts by the howling wind. Drifts of the glittering, pure white stuff were piled up against the sturdy cottage to the height of the window-frame. Imprisoning them here together. Evie and Kitty couldnât have hoped for a better result!
âThereâs coffee in the pot.â He stepped back quickly, away from her. She could sense the tension in his hard body, hear it in his dark, gravelly voice.
She was right; he couldnât bear her to be anywhere near him. Finding her with Guy on that fateful night had made her physically repulsive to him. Yet there had been moments when sheâd hoped...
âWeâre going to have to try to live with this impossible situation.â
She could hear him moving about, and she could detect resignation in his voice now. A toneless monotone that told her quite plainly that being forced to endure her undiluted company was not something he was wildly excited about.
She could have done without his earlier sarcastic implication that sheâd magicked up a snowstorm to keep him here. Very much against his will. She didnât know which hurt the most, bitter
CHAPTER FIVE
B ELLA came awake to the distinctive aroma of freshly brewing coffee wafting up from the kitchen directly beneath her bedroom.
The window was heavily curtained, so she had no way of knowing if the late winter dawn had broken, but one thing she did know: Jake was getting ready to leave. Without her.
She wasnât going to stay here on her own!
Jumping out of bed, shivering in the chilly air, she scrambled into the warm leggings and sweater sheâd worn the day before and pushed her feet into her sturdy walking shoes, panic making her heartbeat very fast.
There was no time for refinements, even the most basic ones such as bathing, or brushing her hair. She wouldnât put it past him to be walking out of here right now, creeping out, because he wouldnât want her to wake and come racing after him! He had certainly made it perfectly clear that he didnât want her tagging along, under any circumstances. He didnât want her anywhere near him.
Well, he couldnât force her to stay. So sheâd dog his footsteps every inch of the way, and if he didnât like it he could lump it!
Already breathless from her haste, she flew down the stairs and arrived in the kitchen with a clatter. The room was filled with clear bright light and the enticing fragrance of coffee. Jake, wearing the bulky sweater and warm dark cords heâd had on yesterday, was staring out of the window.
âNo need to break your neck. Nobodyâs going anywhere,â he said drily.
He turned from the window, his mouth curling. But it wasnât a smile, Bella saw. That tight-lipped grimace could easily have developed into a full-blown snarl if heâd let it; she didnât have to be an expert in facial expressions to recognise that. But it didnât stop her wretched body responding to him as if the reaction had been programmed in, right from the day of her birth.
He hadnât shaved, and the darkness of his tough jawline was more than the mere affectation of designer stubble. It made him look more dangerous, more forbiddingly exciting than ever before. And what was he talking about? Why had he altered his plans?
Answering her unspoken questions, he narrowed his eyes and drawled softly, âYou even have the weather on your side. So how did you manage that? Magic?â
He turned abruptly away, bunching his hands in the pockets of his trousers, staring bleakly through the window at the winter wasteland.
Pushing past the hurtful contempt of his words, Bella made sudden sense of what he was implying and went to stand beside him at the window, careful not to brush against himâbecause touching him would be her undoing, she knew dam well it would.
Stealthy snow had fallen silently in the night, blown into drifts by the howling wind. Drifts of the glittering, pure white stuff were piled up against the sturdy cottage to the height of the window-frame. Imprisoning them here together. Evie and Kitty couldnât have hoped for a better result!
âThereâs coffee in the pot.â He stepped back quickly, away from her. She could sense the tension in his hard body, hear it in his dark, gravelly voice.
She was right; he couldnât bear her to be anywhere near him. Finding her with Guy on that fateful night had made her physically repulsive to him. Yet there had been moments when sheâd hoped...
âWeâre going to have to try to live with this impossible situation.â
She could hear him moving about, and she could detect resignation in his voice now. A toneless monotone that told her quite plainly that being forced to endure her undiluted company was not something he was wildly excited about.
She could have done without his earlier sarcastic implication that sheâd magicked up a snowstorm to keep him here. Very much against his will. She didnât know which hurt the most, bitter
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