Read Online The Navy SEAL's Christmas Bride by Cora Seton - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Cora Seton
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arrived on the plane, but Sarah isn’t interested in a one-night stand. She’s looking for more.” He shrugged. “I guess I am too. Surprisingly enough. Not marriage, necessarily. Not yet, anyway. But something.” He braced himself for Mason’s ridicule, but Mason looked thoughtful.
“It’s funny how it hits you hard all at once, isn’t it? One minute you’re a SEAL with a job to do, one hundred percent concentrated on the mission at hand. The next minute—boom!—you’re ready to get married.”
“It was like that for you?”
“Yeah, it was,” Mason admitted. “Hit me like a ton of bricks. Guess I always thought I’d have to do a bunch of soul-searching to make my choice, but as soon as I saw Regan, something clicked. It was that simple.”
“Feels about that simple with Sarah.” He was grateful Mason was the kind of friend he could say this out loud to. “I didn’t think I was the marrying kind.”
Mason laughed. “Buddy, no man thinks he’s the marrying kind until suddenly the marrying kind is all he is. If you think you could love Sarah, go for it. Don’t mess around and get caught short-handed when another man steals her away.”
Another man? Hell, no. Every fiber in his body denied that possibility. No one was allowed to touch Sarah.
No one but him.
“Brr, is it me or is it extra cold today?” Ella said as she entered the Hall’s cheerful kitchen, a gust of cold air blowing past her to prove her point.
“The temperatures dipped way down overnight. Another day or two of this and it will be great skating weather.” Regan carried a plate of bacon into the dining room. Sarah followed her with a pitcher of orange juice. She was beginning to feel at home here on the ranch, and she enjoyed the camaraderie among the women here.
“Today’s a good day for staying indoors.” Ella hung up her jacket, washed her hands, and moved straight to the cutting board where Regan had left several oranges. She got to work slicing them up.
“Don’t forget poker and pool tonight at the Cruz ranch,” Regan said.
“What should we bring?”
“I thought I’d bake some brownies,” Sarah put in. She’d felt so included since she’d come to Chance Creek, she wanted to give back a little, and brownies were her specialty.
“We bought some wine to take along, too,” Regan said.
“Sounds good.”
“Smells good, you mean,” Dan said, coming into the kitchen. “Gotta love the breakfasts around here. No cold cereal at Crescent Hall.”
“That’s for sure,” Regan said. “We all work hard so we get to eat real food. Sit down and help yourself.”
The meal was as noisy an affair as usual as the men all filed in to join them, and Sarah enjoyed the banter as she ate her French toast and bacon. She felt Dan’s gaze on her and did her best not to catch his eye. She felt sure she’d give herself away if she did. The previous day in the bath had been… amazing. Her whole body buzzed with longing every time she allowed herself to think about it—which was about every fifteen seconds. She wanted to be with Dan again. Wanted to feel his touch.
But overnight she’d realized that was a very bad idea.
In a few days she’d return to the military and Dan would move on to start his new career. Despite all their time together they hadn’t once had a real conversation about his plans. He hadn’t asked her if she was interested in his venture, or for her advice—or for her money, as an investment. She was separate in his mind from his future business. Which meant she was probably separate from his future, period.
She was very clear that she wanted more than a fling with Dan.
“I guess you two will have to call off your competitions for the day, won’t you?” Ella asked, shaking Sarah from her reverie.
“I guess.” She caught Dan’s eye and the look he gave her told her he was thinking about their bathtub escapade too.
“Not necessarily.” He reached out and grabbed the butter dish, pulling
“It’s funny how it hits you hard all at once, isn’t it? One minute you’re a SEAL with a job to do, one hundred percent concentrated on the mission at hand. The next minute—boom!—you’re ready to get married.”
“It was like that for you?”
“Yeah, it was,” Mason admitted. “Hit me like a ton of bricks. Guess I always thought I’d have to do a bunch of soul-searching to make my choice, but as soon as I saw Regan, something clicked. It was that simple.”
“Feels about that simple with Sarah.” He was grateful Mason was the kind of friend he could say this out loud to. “I didn’t think I was the marrying kind.”
Mason laughed. “Buddy, no man thinks he’s the marrying kind until suddenly the marrying kind is all he is. If you think you could love Sarah, go for it. Don’t mess around and get caught short-handed when another man steals her away.”
Another man? Hell, no. Every fiber in his body denied that possibility. No one was allowed to touch Sarah.
No one but him.
“Brr, is it me or is it extra cold today?” Ella said as she entered the Hall’s cheerful kitchen, a gust of cold air blowing past her to prove her point.
“The temperatures dipped way down overnight. Another day or two of this and it will be great skating weather.” Regan carried a plate of bacon into the dining room. Sarah followed her with a pitcher of orange juice. She was beginning to feel at home here on the ranch, and she enjoyed the camaraderie among the women here.
“Today’s a good day for staying indoors.” Ella hung up her jacket, washed her hands, and moved straight to the cutting board where Regan had left several oranges. She got to work slicing them up.
“Don’t forget poker and pool tonight at the Cruz ranch,” Regan said.
“What should we bring?”
“I thought I’d bake some brownies,” Sarah put in. She’d felt so included since she’d come to Chance Creek, she wanted to give back a little, and brownies were her specialty.
“We bought some wine to take along, too,” Regan said.
“Sounds good.”
“Smells good, you mean,” Dan said, coming into the kitchen. “Gotta love the breakfasts around here. No cold cereal at Crescent Hall.”
“That’s for sure,” Regan said. “We all work hard so we get to eat real food. Sit down and help yourself.”
The meal was as noisy an affair as usual as the men all filed in to join them, and Sarah enjoyed the banter as she ate her French toast and bacon. She felt Dan’s gaze on her and did her best not to catch his eye. She felt sure she’d give herself away if she did. The previous day in the bath had been… amazing. Her whole body buzzed with longing every time she allowed herself to think about it—which was about every fifteen seconds. She wanted to be with Dan again. Wanted to feel his touch.
But overnight she’d realized that was a very bad idea.
In a few days she’d return to the military and Dan would move on to start his new career. Despite all their time together they hadn’t once had a real conversation about his plans. He hadn’t asked her if she was interested in his venture, or for her advice—or for her money, as an investment. She was separate in his mind from his future business. Which meant she was probably separate from his future, period.
She was very clear that she wanted more than a fling with Dan.
“I guess you two will have to call off your competitions for the day, won’t you?” Ella asked, shaking Sarah from her reverie.
“I guess.” She caught Dan’s eye and the look he gave her told her he was thinking about their bathtub escapade too.
“Not necessarily.” He reached out and grabbed the butter dish, pulling
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