Read Online The Ghost of Christmas Present by Jenny Lykins - Free Book Online
Authors: Jenny Lykins
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wanted something so badly he
ached.
She should have been
flustered when she realized she'd lain inside him. But instead she felt
closer to him than ever. Connected somehow. When he sat up and
swung his legs off the couch, it was as if he whisked away a warm
summer breeze and replaced it with the chill air of the
arctic.
"Do I have you to thank for keeping me
warm all night?" she asked as she plucked her sweater from the end
of the coffee table, shaken at the sense of loss she'd felt when
he'd moved.
He wiggled his dark eyebrows at her in
answer.
"Should I thank you for that dream I
was trying not to wake up from, too?" Even as she asked, elusive
remnants evaporated like wisps of fog in the sun.
"Not guilty on that count, counselor,
but I could oblige you if you'd let me. If you'll remember, you
banned me from your brain."
It occurred to her that she might
consider lifting the ban for another dream like the one so rapidly
fading from her mind.
The frigid air in the cabin raised
goosebumps on her arms and turned her thoughts to building the fire
and turning up the oil heater. With more than a little reluctance
she rose from the couch, then knelt by the fireplace and stacked
kindling and wood over the glowing coals.
"I really do appreciate you keeping me
warm. I don't even remember falling asleep."
"Believe me, it was my pleasure," he
said from behind her in a voice as smooth as old bourbon. "When I
tried, I could almost believe we were holding each
other."
Tears, hot and choking and unexpected,
surged to her eyes at his words. She blinked them back and
swallowed past the tightness in her throat.
"It almost felt like you were holding
me," she agreed quietly, thinking of the warm, comforting feeling
she'd awakened with. She gave the fire one more jab, then turned on
the balls of her feet and looked at him with a moist smile. "We're
a pair, aren't we?"
Jared studied her, looking as miserable
as she felt.
"Yeah. A regular Romeo and
Juliet."
He jumped up from the couch and started
prowling the living room. It still unnerved her to watch him pace
through solid objects, but he didn't even seem aware he was
pacing.
He followed her into the kitchen and
prowled while she made coffee. He followed her into the bathroom,
then did an about-face and left her alone when she turned and
quirked an eyebrow at him.
Once alone, Alane took care of the
necessities, brushed her teeth, dunked her face in icy water, then
decided to draw a nice hot bath and soak for a while to try and get
her mind off the storm of emotions buffeting her.
While hot water filled the tub and
scented steam fogged the mirror, she flopped her hair atop her head
and peeled off the clothes she'd been wearing for twenty-four
hours. She stepped gingerly into the tub, then sank with a sigh
until the steaming water lapped at her shoulders.
With eyes closed and muscles relaxed,
she leaned back and tried to clear her mind of all the worries that
had plagued her from the moment she'd realized she was falling in
love. Ridiculous. Impossible. Heartbreaking. Wonderful.
The mere thought of Jared brought a
smile to her lips. A short-lived smile.
She loved a man who was no more
tangible than a dream. A man bound to his property - a property she
had rented for only five more days. Five days of ecstasy and
torture. Five days of trying to outwit fate. Five days before she
had to leave and Jared had to stay.
"Alane, we have a problem."
She jerked so hard, water erupted over
the sides of the clawfoot tub. She splashed more over in her
attempt to cover herself with a pitifully small
washcloth.
Jared finished melting through the
wall, apparently taking no notice that she was in the middle of
bathing, a frown drawing his eyebrows into one straight line. He
paced the length of the room once, then perched on the edge of the
clothes hamper.
"I've been thinking," he went on, as
though he made it a habit to chat with her while she bathed. "How
long have you rented the cabin?"
She
ached.
She should have been
flustered when she realized she'd lain inside him. But instead she felt
closer to him than ever. Connected somehow. When he sat up and
swung his legs off the couch, it was as if he whisked away a warm
summer breeze and replaced it with the chill air of the
arctic.
"Do I have you to thank for keeping me
warm all night?" she asked as she plucked her sweater from the end
of the coffee table, shaken at the sense of loss she'd felt when
he'd moved.
He wiggled his dark eyebrows at her in
answer.
"Should I thank you for that dream I
was trying not to wake up from, too?" Even as she asked, elusive
remnants evaporated like wisps of fog in the sun.
"Not guilty on that count, counselor,
but I could oblige you if you'd let me. If you'll remember, you
banned me from your brain."
It occurred to her that she might
consider lifting the ban for another dream like the one so rapidly
fading from her mind.
The frigid air in the cabin raised
goosebumps on her arms and turned her thoughts to building the fire
and turning up the oil heater. With more than a little reluctance
she rose from the couch, then knelt by the fireplace and stacked
kindling and wood over the glowing coals.
"I really do appreciate you keeping me
warm. I don't even remember falling asleep."
"Believe me, it was my pleasure," he
said from behind her in a voice as smooth as old bourbon. "When I
tried, I could almost believe we were holding each
other."
Tears, hot and choking and unexpected,
surged to her eyes at his words. She blinked them back and
swallowed past the tightness in her throat.
"It almost felt like you were holding
me," she agreed quietly, thinking of the warm, comforting feeling
she'd awakened with. She gave the fire one more jab, then turned on
the balls of her feet and looked at him with a moist smile. "We're
a pair, aren't we?"
Jared studied her, looking as miserable
as she felt.
"Yeah. A regular Romeo and
Juliet."
He jumped up from the couch and started
prowling the living room. It still unnerved her to watch him pace
through solid objects, but he didn't even seem aware he was
pacing.
He followed her into the kitchen and
prowled while she made coffee. He followed her into the bathroom,
then did an about-face and left her alone when she turned and
quirked an eyebrow at him.
Once alone, Alane took care of the
necessities, brushed her teeth, dunked her face in icy water, then
decided to draw a nice hot bath and soak for a while to try and get
her mind off the storm of emotions buffeting her.
While hot water filled the tub and
scented steam fogged the mirror, she flopped her hair atop her head
and peeled off the clothes she'd been wearing for twenty-four
hours. She stepped gingerly into the tub, then sank with a sigh
until the steaming water lapped at her shoulders.
With eyes closed and muscles relaxed,
she leaned back and tried to clear her mind of all the worries that
had plagued her from the moment she'd realized she was falling in
love. Ridiculous. Impossible. Heartbreaking. Wonderful.
The mere thought of Jared brought a
smile to her lips. A short-lived smile.
She loved a man who was no more
tangible than a dream. A man bound to his property - a property she
had rented for only five more days. Five days of ecstasy and
torture. Five days of trying to outwit fate. Five days before she
had to leave and Jared had to stay.
"Alane, we have a problem."
She jerked so hard, water erupted over
the sides of the clawfoot tub. She splashed more over in her
attempt to cover herself with a pitifully small
washcloth.
Jared finished melting through the
wall, apparently taking no notice that she was in the middle of
bathing, a frown drawing his eyebrows into one straight line. He
paced the length of the room once, then perched on the edge of the
clothes hamper.
"I've been thinking," he went on, as
though he made it a habit to chat with her while she bathed. "How
long have you rented the cabin?"
She
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