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.“I can’t give you what you deserve, and I’m damned if I’m going to give you less.You need someone to love you with all their heart and soul, someone to marry you and give you babies, a partner and a lover and a friend.And the most I can offer you is a short, sweet fling, and you deserve far better than that.”“Are you going to tell me why?” she murmured against his chest.She could feel his body tense, and hesitate, and patiently she waited.“Because I’m still in love with my wife,” he said finally.Anne didn’t even flinch.She’d been expecting and dreading something like this, but the reality of hearing it was mercifully numbing.“Are you?” she questioned with admirable restraint, willing her body not to withdraw from his tortured warmth.“Don’t you think she’d want you to let go?”“Maybe.But I don’t want to let go,” he said bleakly.“Why not?”“Because I don’t deserve to.As much as I loved her, part of me hates her.Hates her for dying, hates her for killing our baby, hates her for going off to that damned cabin where no one could reach her.” His voice was low and painfully rasping.“She was always headstrong and willful, and that willfulness killed her and killed our child.And I hate her for that, and I can’t let go.And still tied to Nialla, I can’t offer you anything.You’re strong and beautiful and brave and clever,” he murmured.“And you’ve settled for too little for too long.”“You’ve got it all worked out,” she murmured helplessly.“So what does that mean for us?”“It means this is a one-night stand,” he said harshly.“I should have kept my distance in the first place.I promise you, I will from now on.You don’t need any more complications in your life right now.” He released her abruptly, rising to his feet in one fluid movement, reaching for his jeans.His outline against the fire was uncompromisingly beautiful, uncompromisingly aroused male.Anne looked away, down at the carpet with a great interest belied by the sudden flame of desire that had shot through her at the sight of him.“So that’s settled?” she murmured.“It’s settled,” he said, his voice firm in the darkness.“Where would you like me to sleep?”She looked up at him then, her eyes wandering quite shamelessly over his body.The firelight outlined the muscles and sinews in his long legs, caressed the firm male buttocks, and threw his strong chest into relief.He was still holding his jeans in his hand, and his eyes met hers.“In my room,” she replied, very calm.“You said this was going to be a one-night stand.The night isn’t even half over.”He didn’t hesitate.A moment later he was across the room, pulling her into his arms in a grip so tight only his own willpower would be able to break it.“It’s your choice, lady,” he said hoarsely, his eyes boring down into hers.“I’ve made it,” she answered, threading her arms around his neck and resting her face trustingly against his shoulder.His skin was smooth and warm to the touch, and she sighed deeply, caught up between the twin demons of hope and despair.“I’ve made it,” she whispered again, to herself, as he drew her up the winding stairs to her bedroom.Chapter TenIt was the sudden glare of lights as the power came back on that tore her from a sound, sated sleep with a rude violence that had her sitting bolt upright in bed.The curtains were drawn against the faintly encroaching sunlight, the digital clock by her bed was flashing with irritating monotony, and she was alone.And then the sound that had been hovering in the back of her sleep-drugged mind intruded again, this time registering on her fully awake brain.It was the sound of a chain saw—several, in fact.Slowly she pulled herself from the warm, narrow haven of her bed, pulling a robe around her body as she stumbled toward the window.The front of the house was a hive of activity.Telephone trucks, electric company trucks, men with chain saws and ladders and hardhats scurrying around busily in the fitful sunlight that glistened off the wet grass.Even Proffy’s venerable Plymouth was now parked to the left of the house.And Noah’s battered VW was gone.She was in no hurry—there was nothing to rush downstairs for.A long, leisurely shower helped knead some of the aches from her body, even though the water was barely lukewarm.A part of her regretted washing the last traces of his lovemaking from her flesh, wanted to cling to the physical remembrance of their seemingly unique coupling that still left her weak with longing at the very thought.But Noah was gone, never to return, and she had no reason to doubt his resolve.She certainly hadn’t acted very wisely in her choice for a weekend fling, she mused with some bitterness as she pulled on fresh underwear and a pair of jeans.If she wanted a casual affair, a weekend of adventurous sex with no strings attached, why did she have to choose someone she was halfway in love with? She would have been better off haunting a singles bar, or accepting one of Holly’s many invitations for a weekend in New York.Holly wouldn’t have let her go through a forty-eight-hour period without several attractive men to choose from, particularly with her sublimated passion for Wilson.The forest green of her cotton sweater deepened her eyes; the wet tangle of black hair made her narrow face even paler to her discerning gaze.It was a fortunate thing Proffy was so unobservant.She’d still have a great deal of explaining to do about the deep-purple bruise beneath her eye.While not expecting hugs and kisses, she was still startled by the glare Proffy sent her from across the breakfast table.He was making do with instant coffee and burnt toast, and Anne immediately assumed it was her dereliction of household duty that had earned his displeasure.“Do you realize how much trouble it is to make a cup of coffee in this house?” he demanded by way of greeting.“I couldn’t even find the damned beans, much less the filters and the coffee grinder [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]