A Ring And A Rainbow. Deanna Talcott

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      Chapter Two

      Hunter’s mouth brushed over hers. She should have stopped him, Claire thought dizzily, before she allowed his powerfully sweet kiss to addle her brain and destroy her defenses.

      Yet Hunter didn’t overpower her, and his mouth made no demands. Instead he expertly touched and tasted, meeting her hunger halfway. In a gesture of comfort that did seem to have some inexplicable healing power.

      Years and burdens fell away as he magically carried her back to her youth, to memories that were steeped in expectation and hope. He lifted her, and she soared, weightless for the first time in years.

      No hard feelings? she thought woozily. Everything about him was hard. The way he held her, the way he cradled her. The way his fingers pressed into her back, drawing her to him, the way his knee instinctively sluiced between her legs, taking possession.

      It would have been easy to give herself up to the kiss. Remarkably easy. But she restrained herself, slapping a conscious rein on her emotions, willing her tongue to still, her lips to cease their explorations.

      Hunter pulled away, the coarse stubble on his cheek grazing hers. “Now that,” he whispered huskily, “makes me feel like I’ve come back home.”

      His arms dropped loosely to her sides, his fingertips sliding down the length of her forearms and her wrists. She imperceptibly drew back, shaking him off.

      “Hunter,” she said shakily, “that won’t happen again. You can joke and say that we’ve kissed and made up. But all we will ever be toward each other is polite. Anything else is out of the question. We can be neighbors for the few days you’re here. But anything more than that is—”

      “Out of the question?”

      She took a step back, regret nipping at her heels. “Yes. I think maybe we understand each other now.”

      “Don’t count on it, Claire. I never did things the easy way. You, better than anyone, should know that.”

      “The whole town knows that, Hunter. Because you didn’t just walk out on me, you walked out on your dad and your mom. They expected you to run the station, to keep it going.”

      “It wasn’t what I wanted,” he retorted, dismissing her reproach.

      “Apparently, neither was I,” she pointed out softly. She turned to go, then stopped at the back door, the key still in her hand. It was all she could do to walk away from him, but she forced herself to do it. “I meant to tell you. I know you’ll be crowded here, and there’s no good place to stay within thirty miles. So, if you decide you need an extra bedroom, someone’s welcome to use the guest bedroom at my place. You can let them know.”

      She opened the door and had one foot on the steps.

      “Thanks, Claire. I’ll bring my stuff over later.”

      She swung around to face him, unable to wipe the surprise off her face. “You’ll what?”

      “I’ll shower first, then bring my stuff over,” he said nonchalantly, “after the girls get in.”

      “I didn’t mean you,” she stammered. “I meant Courtney or Lynda or—”

      “You’ll want me,” he said decidedly.

      Her eyes widened.

      “That is, I’m the one that’s the best houseguest. The girls and their families are loud and noisy and on a schedule that runs counterclockwise to the rest of the world.”

      “I can adjust.” She’d have to adjust, because there was no way she could live in the same house with Hunter. Not even for a few days.

      “But Courtney’s baby is colicky. Beth’s little boy has asthma and—”

      “I know that.”

      “But he’d probably be allergic to your cat.”

      “What! How do you know I have a cat?” Claire bristled, incensed that he knew even one intimate detail about her. Huh. He probably regarded her as an old maid who had nothing to do except sit around carrying on conversations with her cat.

      “Mom mentioned it. Said you found the kitten in her garage.”

      “Well, she couldn’t take care of it,” she said defensively. “That was the winter she went on that whale-watching cruise.”

      He chuckled. “Mmm, nice of you to take it in, though. Even so, it would most likely send Brendon into an asthma attack. Cat dander, and all that.”

      Claire grimaced. Okay. She didn’t want to be responsible for that. “Then maybe Mindy. Or Lynda…”

      “I don’t know. Mindy’s husband is a lovable guy, but an uncontrollable slob. And frankly, they bicker all the time. But you probably already know that, too. Lynda’s better half works nights, and when he isn’t working he’s up banging around the kitchen, making omelettes and frying up hash browns.” He lifted his broad shoulders. “Looks like you’re stuck with me.”

      She stepped back inside the kitchen. “No. Not a good idea. It wouldn’t look good for you to be in my house.”

      “Why not?”

      She sputtered. “Because—because someone might think we were taking up where we left off.”

      “So?”

      “So it matters to me what people think—and I don’t want you in my home.”

      To his credit—or amazing acting abilities—Hunter recoiled, as if he’d been hurt. “I just thought it would be the best all-around solution,” he said. “For both of us. Since you were willing to help us out, and I simply want to fly under the radar with my sisters’ families.”

      “Hunter, we both know it goes way beyond that.”

      He gave her a long, assessing gaze, one that made Claire waffle. She needed to dismiss those tawny-colored eyes, that suggestive slant of his mouth. He wasn’t going to talk her into this. He wasn’t! But even as her mind was СКАЧАТЬ