She shook her head. “You’re impossible.”
“And that’s why you love me.” Her startled gasp told him he’d hit a nerve. He hadn’t meant to. “Sorry. That’s my automatic response when somebody says I’m impossible. I’ve been called that a lot.”
“Listen, Rance, I?—”
“Hey, we’re dealing with some complicated emotions. Falling for each other isn’t the same as making a commitment. I didn’t mean to imply you had. Like I said. Knee-jerk reaction.”
“We should leave.”
“Yes, we should.” He gestured for her to go out ahead of him.
As he followed her into the living room and helped her on with her coat, he resisted the urge to massage his chest, which was tight as a drum and hurt like hell.
Nice little speech he’d made, but it didn’t change what he’d seen in her eyes when he’d come out with that flippant comment. She wasn’t just falling. She was there. In love. With him.
That was what he’d wanted, right? And he’d succeeded brilliantly. Congrats to him. How was she supposed to go find that husband now? As things stood, he’d just handed her a bucketful of suffering.
Unless he was willing to let her carry it for months, maybe years, he’d better come up with a solution to this mess. And do it fast. The problem required a permanent fix, something more consequential than a few stolen hours in each other’s arms.
He'd find it or die trying. Well, he wouldn’t literallydie.But if he brought long-term sorrow to the woman he loved, he might as well be dead.
CHAPTER FOURTEEN
Evidently good sex won out over anxiety. Lani slept until her alarm went off and woke up feeling terrific. She’d love to have Rance lying next to her. Then she could roll over and… yikes, not the thoughts she should be having if she intended to pull up the gangplank.
She would do that, right? She’d told him no and she’d stick with that. But she couldn’t wait to see him again.
Glancing at her phone, she hopped out of bed. She had just enough time to shower, dress in something cute and grab a quick breakfast before he arrived at nine.
Her shower went fast but choosing an outfit took longer. Yeah, she wanted to look good for Rance. That had been true since she’d met the guy back in February. She just hadn’t admitted it.
The clingy gold sweater she chose emphasized her breasts and the gold flecks in her eyes. Although she’d tried to think of ways he could mute his sexiness, he hadn’t asked the same of her.
That said, a woman determined to hold the line had no business wearing this sweater. Turned out the woman gazingback at her as she put on her makeup was seriously considering his latest tantalizing scheme.
No matter how hard she’d worked to keep him at arm’s length he’d managed to sneak past her defenses. His book had severely weakened them and last night had finished the job.
If his prediction that he’d be a letdown in the sack compared to Dooley had been true, she might have saved herself. Saved him, too, because she wasn’t the only one facing heartbreak.
But his lovemaking hadn’t been a letdown. Far from it. He’d been… she paused, her mascara wand halfway to her flushed face, her body tingling and her breath wonky. He’d been so damn….
She gulped as a wave of lust left her shaking. Better stop thinking about it before she stabbed herself in the eye with the wand. Besides, she had to get some breakfast and announce her plans to her folks without alerting them to… anything.
She’d hoped they might be out of the kitchen by the time she walked in, but no such luck. Instead they were lingering over a second cup of coffee and evidently feeling chatty.
And curious, at least in her mom’s case. She asked what Granny had served for dinner. Oh, no. They’d forgotten the pound cake. Shoot.
She briefly described the meal and apologized for not bringing a couple of slices back with her. “Everything was delicious.” She hoped she’d said that with the right amount of enthusiasm — not too little and not too much.
“I’m sure it was.” Her sweet dad didn’t suspect a thing. He never did. “Granny’s a hoot. Fits in like she was born here.”
“She does. Well, I gotta run. Rance and I are heading over to the ranch house in a few minutes.” She washed down her peanut butter toast with a few swallows of coffee. “He’s picking me up.”
Her mother’s brows arched. “Another sleigh ride?”
“No, something else. Christmas secrets.”
“Say no more, sweetheart.” Her dad grinned. “This Christmas will be one for the record books. I still can’t believe we cut down our own tree. Or that we’ll ride down Main Street in a sleigh and the next day have almost thirty for Christmas dinner at Desiree’s.”
