The Stranger She Married. Crystal Green

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СКАЧАТЬ hid a sudden laugh behind her hand, turning away from him. When she recovered, their gazes caught, and he felt fire in his belly—fast-moving and furious. He could almost feel her hair silking down his skin, her breasts sliding over his chest.

      Damn, his libido was moving way too quickly. He wasn’t even sure he liked Rachel, but something deep inside told him it didn’t matter. He felt chemistry between them—a brew that could allow them to make love like strangers, making the tangled sheets hot and sweaty, making the morning-after parting of ways a simple act.

      The thought was all too easy, causing Matt to wonder if Matthew Shane had spent much time in roadside bars, roadside motels.

      He cleared his throat and answered Tamela’s blunt question. “A country singer, huh? Well, I lived in Texas for a while. It’s comfortable to wear jeans and a hat when you work on a ranch with horses.”

      “Like our horses?” she asked, a single dimple lighting one side of her mouth.

      “Not really. Down there we have quarter horses, and we use Western saddles, just for a start.”

      Tamela nodded as if she knew exactly what he was talking about. Matt realized that she’d been raised on this farm, learned to ride with English saddles, on thoroughbreds and saddlebreds.

      The whole scene was a lifetime away from Texas flatlands and dust, bluebonnets and horizon-filled sunsets.

      The phone rang, and Rachel stood. “Excuse me.”

      As she walked away, she tossed a glance over her shoulder, seemingly worried that he’d revert back to the old Matthew at any moment.

      But would that be such a bad thing?

      He and Tamela turned to each other, questions drawing them together like time-sharpened hooks.

      Rachel walked into the adjoining kitchen, dodging the island cutting block with its hanging cast-iron pots and pans in order to get to the phone. Her heart was still pounding from the sight of Tamela and Matthew, huddled together in the family room. She didn’t know why she felt so threatened.

      Heck, yes she did. She was afraid the old Matthew had come back to her, bad habits and all. She didn’t want to say it was a relief that this new man—this stranger—didn’t remember everything Matthew had done to let her and Tamela down, but… Okay, maybe it was a relief.

      “Hello?” she asked, after getting the phone.

      “Ms. Shane?” drawled a crisp, to-the-point voice.

      “Chloe Lister?” Thank goodness. Talk about saved by the bell, or the ringer or…whatever. “There’s no one else in this world I’d rather be talking to right now.”

      A deep sigh from the other end of the line. “Don’t tell me. Matthew got there before I could. Dammit, I knew I’d blown it.”

      “Listen, Chloe, don’t be so hard on yourself. I hired you to find my husband, and obviously you flushed him out. He walked right up to me today while I was working on the farm, just as calm as you please. Like he’d been away on an extended business trip.”

      “I understand, Ms. Shane.”

      Rachel could imagine Chloe, dressed in a crisp business pants suit with her straight hair cut in a sharp line to the jaw. Vigilant and purposeful, that’s why Sam Reno, the county sheriff and a good friend, had recommended Chloe’s investigative services.

      The woman said, “I should’ve known that Texas foreman was lying through his teeth to me. He kept looking at the door, as if expecting the truth to walk in at any time. The man must’ve gone to Matthew right after I left.”

      “You did well, Chloe,” Rachel said, wandering to the kitchen entrance to spy on Matthew and Tamela. The pair was seated on the couch, laughing together about something or another. A bolt of…what was it—jealousy?…coursed through Rachel at the sight.

      Tamela would’ve been too young to remember Matthew’s frequent business trips and the countless parties he’d attended with the thoroughbred set, parties he’d enjoyed without Rachel. She’d opted to stay home with her daughter.

      Not that Matthew had been a bad father. He’d showered Tamela with affection, making the child glow whenever he walked into the room. Rachel had to admit that she felt a prod of envy, thinking about how his effortless love won over their daughter every time, while she’d had to take the everyday ups and downs of it.

      But hadn’t she been living with this protective silence her whole life? She’d done it when she’d seen her mother’s sins, kept quiet in order to make sure the family was happy.

      She’d lived most of her life in her parents’ upstate New York home, dressing like the perfect daughter, smiling at the dinner table as her mother and father asked about her day at prep school. Then she’d hide in her room at night, locking away her mother’s secrets with her. Even after Rachel had gone to college, she’d kept her silence. Maybe that was Rachel’s destiny—to be the sentinel of domestic happiness, securing all the bad news from those she loved the most.

      Rachel shook herself back to the moment as Chloe rounded up the phone call. “I’ll be there as soon as I can, Ms. Shane. Expect me tonight.”

      “Thank you. I’ll have dinner waiting, all right?”

      Chloe signed off, every bit the professional. Rachel could almost imagine her buffing her shoes and delinting her ensemble before checking in tonight.

      She turned off the phone and leaned against the door frame, watching Matthew. She hated to admit it, but he was still capable of seducing her with a glance. Whether he meant to or not.

      Maybe it was his light brown eyes, the way they invited a girl to a guaranteed good time. Or maybe it was that half smile, the one that used to smack of arrogance. Now the added melancholy drew her, made her want to smooth a palm over his brow to promise him everything was going to be all right.

      Sure. Make those vows you can never keep, Rachel.

      Where Matthew used to be light and charming, this man was dark and reticent. Even the achingly uncertain glances he’d slid in her direction were working the old magic on her.

      And that body. Matthew had always shadowed her with his height, but he’d gone soft around the edges with his playboy ways, the whiskey-chub around the belt line, the desk-jockey arms. This new guy was all muscle. All temptation.

      Don’t go back to the way things were, she told herself. Don’t fall into his arms for no reason. Don’t let that overwhelming sexual draw make you forget that your marriage had become a tattered thing after your extended honeymoon period.

      Rachel straightened her spine, donning her protective facade once again. Then she dialed Matthew’s family to tell them that their brother had finally come home.

      Matt watched Rachel pace the kitchen floor, phone to her ear, her body flashing past the door every few moments.

      He couldn’t help himself. He wanted her to look at him again, maybe even smile at him for once. He wanted to know exactly what was going through her mind. Was she calling the men in the white coats to haul him out of her life? Or was she yearning to touch him as much as he wanted to touch her, just to get a taste of what Matthew СКАЧАТЬ