Pregnancy Countdown. Linda Wisdom Randall

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СКАЧАТЬ in a woman’s bathroom, but it was the first time he’d been in Nora’s. Deciding he had the time, he did a little exploring. A closet revealed a colorful supply of towels in tangerine, turquoise, lime and lemon colors. The bath towels were oversize, the dimensions perfect for a man. He wondered how many men had showered in her bathroom. He quickly decided it wasn’t something he wanted to think about.

      Once he finished, he towel dried his hair and worked to make himself as presentable as a morning-after visitor could be.

      Mark left his jacket in the bathroom as he followed his nose to the kitchen. The homey aroma of food cooking sent his appetite level up several notches.

      Damn, if he didn’t feel like the man of the house going in to have breakfast with the woman of the house. He stopped abruptly. Now where had that come from?

      WHO KNEW?

      Nora felt her pulse rate start to speed up as sultry images again invaded her mind.

      Mark’s family liked to tease him that he never moved any faster than he had to. Last night, Nora had learned that was very true. The man knew how to draw lovemaking out until she’d been gasping and crying out for him to put her out of her misery. He had ignored her pleas, and when he finally did release her, she felt as if she’d been shot out into space among the stars.

      She was positive she still hadn’t come down.

      Nora concentrated on putting last night in a logical perspective. It wasn’t working. She didn’t want to call last night a mistake, but the word was blinking in bold red letters inside her head. She feared making love with Mark was the first step down a path she didn’t dare travel. She told herself she could make it easy. She could blame the event on unsettled emotions. She’d been grappling with mind-numbing grief that had evolved into the need to connect with another living being. Mark holding her last night had fed that need.

      She tried to tell herself that it could have happened with whomever had been holding her last night, but Nora had never been a good liar.

      Come on, Nora, call it what it was. A one-night stand.

      Sure it was. The earth spun around, the stars fell down around us. I’m still in shock.

      Making love was different with Mark. They shared a past, even if that past hadn’t included their being lovers. After they broke up, she’d told herself it was easier because they hadn’t been lovers. That had been because she wasn’t completely sure of Mark. For a man who’d been given more than the usual allotment of charm, he’d never provided her with any reason to distrust him. But she had always felt it could happen at any time. Mark had only to flash one of those devastating smiles of his and women fell all over him. Literally.

      Nora never stopped to think that it was her own insecurity that pushed her away from Mark. That what her father had done to the family had remained in the back of her mind and affected any chance of Nora finding love because she was afraid she would be left behind the way her mother had been. She never stopped to think that the breakup might have been her fault, not Mark’s. Nora couldn’t live with the fear that one day, Mark might be tempted to leave.

      “Something smells good.”

      She whipped around so fast the small pitcher she was holding slipped from her fingers. Only Mark’s quick reflexes kept it from shattering on the floor. He set the jug on the counter.

      “Pancakes?” He eyed the golden-brown circles on the hot griddle.

      “Sourdough pancakes,” she explained, picking up a plate. “What with my being gone a while, I didn’t have too many supplies in the house, but I did have my sourdough starter and I had some freeze-dried eggs to use along with some sausage from the freezer. I’m surprised I had as much in there as I did.” She nodded toward the coffee pot. “There’s juice in the refrigerator if you want any. Glasses are in the cabinet.”

      “Want some?”

      Been there, done that.

      She banished her mocking private voice to the far reaches of her brain. The man was merely inquiring if she wanted orange juice.

      “Yes, thank you.” She slowly poured more of the pancake batter onto the griddle. At least she could hold on to her composure on the outside.

      It wasn’t the first time a man had spent the night in her bed. Although, for many months, the only male who had been there was Brumby, her beloved bulldog.

      A few minutes later she handed Mark a plate heaped high with pancakes, sausage and a couple of scrambled eggs. The look of bliss on his face rivaled Brumby’s when he was given a beef bone.

      “Tell me about the wedding,” she requested when she sat down across from him.

      “The usual. Everyone was dressed up like grown-ups, Zach looked as if he was ready to pass out at any moment, Ginna looked gorgeous,” Mark replied. “The only hitch was the nephew-to-be, Trey, taking his ring-bearer duties too seriously. When big brother Jeff untied the ribbons to give the rings to Zach, the little guy pretty much threw a fit. He said loud and clear that he was to protect the rings and Jeff couldn’t have them. Trey’s sister, Emma, told him to shut up and stop acting like a baby. That broke up any solemnity the service had.”

      Nora smiled at the idea of Zach’s twins adding a few surprises to the ceremony. “Who caught the bouquet?”

      “Our aunt Minnie pretty much trampled the competition,” he replied. “Six marriages and she’s still hopeful she’ll eventually get it right. I give her credit for perseverance.”

      “And the garter?” She referred to the custom of the groom tossing the bride’s garter over his shoulder toward the single men. A custom that revealed who the next groom would be.

      Mark studied his pancakes as if they held the secrets of the universe. “No one interesting, although Aunt Minnie wanted to participate. Dad and Gramps told her no way.”

      Nora arched an eyebrow. Her smile grew in proportion with her glee as she easily figured out who the lucky recipient was.

      “You caught the garter?”

      “It was a conspiracy. I had no plans on standing out there with the other idiots,” he said. “At the last minute, Jeff and Brian pushed me out into the front of the group, and just like the Red Sea the group parted so the garter was literally thrown in my face.” His expression boded ill for his two older brothers.

      “You should have known you’d be the next target. Your dad said he hopes Nikki waits until she’s forty before she gets married,” Nora reminded him, speaking of his youngest sister.

      “Nikki has no desire to get married until she’s out of medical school. It’s Aunt Minnie who needs watching. The reception had barely started before she had husband number seven narrowed down to three victims.” He leaned back in his chair and spoke, emphasizing his words with eloquent gestures.

      Nora’s smile widened into a genuine one as she listened to Mark’s stories about friends and relatives celebrating his sister’s special day. He described each incident so well that she felt as if she were right there with him.

      But she also knew she had to consider last night a one-night stand even though that kind of experience wasn’t her style. The last thing she needed was to get caught up with Mark Walker again. It hurt too СКАЧАТЬ