Read Online Worth the Risk by Sarah Morgan - Free Book Online Page A

cold.
    ‘Mum—what are you doing in here? There’s a brilliant motorbike outside and—’ She stopped dead when she saw Sean, her expression wary. ‘Who’s that?’
    Ally swallowed, too flustered to comment on Charlie’s lack of manners. ‘This is Dr Nicholson, sweetheart. He’s going to be working at the surgery for a while and Uncle Will thought he could stay in our stable. Where’s Grandma?’
    ‘She said to tell you she’d ring you later. She’s gone because Princess is calving. I wanted to stay but she said no.’ Charlie stared at Sean. ‘Is that your motorbike?’
    ‘It is.’ Sean returned her gaze steadily, his face expressionless as his eyes flickered over the blonde hair and huge blue eyes.
    ‘Can I have a ride on it?’
    ‘No, you can’t!!’ Ally said quickly, careful not to catch Sean’s eye. ‘Come on, let’s go next door. If you hurry up you can still catch Blue Peter.’
    ‘Aren’t you going to introduce us?’ Sean’s voice was velvety smooth and Ally took a deep breath and forced herself to look at him. It was a mistake. Her heart slammed against her chest as she met those dark eyes.
    ‘This is my daughter, Charlotte.’
    ‘Known as Charlie, no doubt.’
    Charlie stared at him. ‘How did you know that?’
    Sean’s eyes were still on Ally. ‘Call it intuition.’
    ‘What’s intu—?’
    ‘Just go next door, Charlie,’ Ally interrupted quickly, stooping to pick up the abandoned schoolbag in an attempt to conceal her flushed face. ‘We’ve finished in here anyway, so I’ll just get Dr Nicholson the keys and then he can move in when he likes.’
    ‘Great.’ Charlie bounced out in front of them. ‘Wait till Karen sees that motorbike.’
    Ally locked the door with trembling hands, aware that Sean was still watching her. When she risked a glance in his direction her heart tumbled frantically. Dear God, why did the man make her so nervous? She’d met attractive men before and not even given them a second glance. Why was Sean Nicholson different? Why did he affect her so badly? Still, at least this time she hadn’t dropped the keys. With a huge effort she pulled herself together. He was just a man. A handsome one maybe, but a man nonetheless, with all the selfish, self-centred attributes that went with the territory. She could handle him. She could.
    She unlocked the door of the barn and Hero bounded up, tail wagging. Charlie immediately shot off to her bedroom, dragging the dog with her, leaving her alone with Sean.
    Her heart thudding in her chest, Ally walked briskly over to the kitchen and tugged open one of the drawers.
    ‘You’ll need a set of keys.’
    Sean lounged in the doorway, his eyes flickering briefly to the keys that she dropped onto the kitchen table. ‘So you’re happy for me to move in, then?’
    ‘Happy?’ Ally closed the drawer with a thump. ‘No, I’m not happy. I’m letting you move in because of Will so let’s be clear about that right from the start.’
    Sean straightened and his firm mouth moved slightly. ‘Because of Will?’
    ‘Yes!’ Damn the man. How dared he stand there, looking so arrogantly handsome and amused? He obviously thought she couldn’t wait for him to move in. ‘I happen to owe Will a lot and I don’t want to hurt his feelings.’
    Sean scooped up the keys and jangled them in his palm. ‘And what’s me moving in got to do with Will’s feelings?’
    Ally glanced at him briefly and then coloured and bit her lip. ‘Because he thinks he’s matchmaking and I haven’t the heart to disillusion him.’
    ‘Ah, now I see.’ Sean pocketed the keys and his eyes gleamed. ‘You’re saying that you’re prepared to have a wild affair with me to spare Will’s feelings.’
    ‘Oh, very funny.’ She gritted her teeth. ‘You know very well that’s not what I’m saying.’
    ‘You’re not?’ He raised an eyebrow, his eyes dancing wickedly, and she resisted the temptation to thump him. Instead, she wrapped her arms round