[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
and distaste for intimacy had all but ruined her life.
He pushed back the thick hair from her cheek. "Don't you think it's time you told me the truth,
Maggie?" he asked softly.
She bit her lower lip, hard. "I'd rather die," she said on a husky laugh, but she meant it.
"Why?"
Her face contorted. "Painful subjects are best left alone."
He tilted her eyes up to his. He was somber, sternlooking. He felt the tension in her hands and he
smoothed them out gently, pressing her long fingers against his skin. "I was on the Internet, when we
flew here," he remarked out of the blue.
"So?" she murmured noncommittally.
"Aren't you curious about why?" he persisted slowly.
Her eyes lifted to his and a flash of fear brightened them momentarily. Surely he couldn't have found
out anything there, not when the files were protected....
He drew in a deep breath. "I don't even know how to tell you." His fingers slid around hers, warm and
strong.
"Lassiter mentioned something to me while we were talking, about a criminal case that came up in
Houston at the same time as the hotel fire that killed my parents." He searched her eyes. "I don't know
why, but it started me thinking about criminal cases... So I dug into some old files, using codes I
haven't resorted to in years, and I found out..." He hesitated, noting the look of stark horror on her
white face.
She tried to jerk away from him, sick, horrified at having him see the photos, knowing the truth. She
sobbed like a wounded thing as she fought his hands.
But he was far too strong. He eased her down onto the bed and pulled her against him, holding her
gently but firmly, with her wet cheek pressed against his chest.
"You should have told me years ago," he whispered harshly. "God, when I realized what I'd done to
you...!" His indrawn breath was harsh. His arms tightened, containing her helpless shivers. "I gave you
hell. I hurt you, made you afraid of me-so afraid that you had to hide the truth. How do I apologize
for what you went through because of the way I behaved? And I never even knew... You and your
damned secrets, Maggie!" he concluded with fierce anger.
"Amy thought it best..." she began hoarsely.
"Amy?" He drew away from her, scowling. "Amy was dead when you married Evans," he said,
misunderstanding.
Her eyes opened wider. She didn't understand what he meant.
He grimaced. He looked down at her with pain in his dark eyes. "We made a baby together, the night
Amy died," he said unsteadily. "Evans caused you to miscarry, in a drunken rage." He ground his teeth
together and there was anguish in his expression. "God, baby, I'd have killed him if I'd known...!"
She reached up and caught him around the neck, pulling him close, so close! He didn't know about the
other! It was all right. She buried her face in his throat, clinging.
She felt something damp against her cheek. Tears stung her own eyes. "I never would have told you,"
she choked, her voice breaking. "I never wanted you to have to know. I knew it would hurt you, so
much... !"
He groaned. His mouth searched over her face in hot, quick kisses that suddenly slowed and became
breathlessly tender. His big body relaxed into hers, pressing her gently into the mattress. He
whispered something she couldn't understand as one long, powerful leg insinuated itself between both
of hers through the cotton gown.
Ordinarily she would have been intimidated by the movement. She would have been nervous, shy,
hesitant. But he was sharing grief with her. She'd lost their child and now he knew. The pain was
suddenly bearable, only because he knew.
"Oh, Cord," she whispered brokenly, accommodating the slow, sensuous brush of his body over hers.
Her arms curled around his chest. "I wanted our baby," she said at his ear. "I wanted him so much. And
Bart hit me and hit me! I remember. ..I remember lying there, bleeding and broken, cursing him at the
top of my lungs for what I knew he'd done. I told him I'd tell you, and he'd never have a minute's peace
for the rest of his miserable life."
Her eyes stung with tears. "I told him I'd get even with him if it was the last thing I ever did...!" She
swallowed.
"He killed himself," she whispered. "I made him kill himself. I've had to live with that, too, on top of
everything else...!"
"Damn him. If he hadn't committed suicide, I'd have killed him myself!" he choked.
"He was an alcoholic and I never knew until after I married him. I suspected I was pregnant. I wanted
the baby to have a name, and I was afraid to tell you..."
"Yes. I was cruel to you. Horribly cruel."
She nuzzled her face against him. "You were shocked. I'd been engaged. You thought I was
experienced. It's all right."
"It will never be all right," he said harshly. "I didn't even think about consequences."
"We'd both been drinking," she said quietly. "Don't beat yourself to death with it. It won't change a
thing."
"It won't," he agreed heavily. "I'm sorry you had to go through that alone."
Her hands smoothed over his dark hair. "I phoned Eb."
"Yes, I remember you told me that," he said, and his tone was cold.
"I ... was going to have him get in touch with you," she confessed, "in a moment's insanity. But then
they told me about my husband's wreck, and I didn't make the call."
His big hands slid warmly against her body as he shifted slowly. His mouth brushed at her throat,
stirring her. "I would have come immediately," he whispered. "In fact, I did come, soon afterward, the
minute I heard that you were in the hospital. I never knew exactly why you were there." His hands
contracted bruisingly. "You were at home by then but you wouldn't even look at me!"
She kissed his throat gently. "You'd have seen right through me if I had. I wanted only to spare you the
heartache. It was over. Telling you would have accomplished nothing, except to hurt you."
He made a rough sound in his throat. His mouth found her breast through the thick cotton and pressed
hard against it. "I deserved to be hurt."
She smiled through her excitement. It was drugging, to be held so close by him, so hungrily.
"I've never hurt you deliberately."
"I wish I could say the same."
Her fingers toyed with his thick hair. It was delightful to be able to touch him, lie with him, be with
him. Her body tingled, and she felt no fear at all, only a sense of unreality. One of her long legs
moved involuntarily, sliding against his. To her surprise, the tiny movement aroused him blantantly,
and at once.
He stiffened. "I think you'd better not do that again," he said through his teeth. "Sorry."
He let out a heavy breath at her ear. "I wish we were in a hotel."
"Why?" she asked curiously.
He laughed deep in his throat. "I could call room service for an emergency condom."
She laughed, too. Her mouth moved lazily against his hot neck. "1 like feeling you like this," she said,
her voice faintly surprised.
His big hand caught her hip and pulled it up into his, letting her feel the full power of the arousal. His
fingers contracted and he shivered faintly. "I want to go inside you," he breathed at her ear.
Her soft gasp was audible. She couldn't believe he'd said something so blatant.
He moved lazily against her, while his mouth slid to the square neckline of the gown. He traced its
line with his lips, nuzzling under it to draw his mouth against the petal-soft skin. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl exclamation.htw.pl
and distaste for intimacy had all but ruined her life.
He pushed back the thick hair from her cheek. "Don't you think it's time you told me the truth,
Maggie?" he asked softly.
She bit her lower lip, hard. "I'd rather die," she said on a husky laugh, but she meant it.
"Why?"
Her face contorted. "Painful subjects are best left alone."
He tilted her eyes up to his. He was somber, sternlooking. He felt the tension in her hands and he
smoothed them out gently, pressing her long fingers against his skin. "I was on the Internet, when we
flew here," he remarked out of the blue.
"So?" she murmured noncommittally.
"Aren't you curious about why?" he persisted slowly.
Her eyes lifted to his and a flash of fear brightened them momentarily. Surely he couldn't have found
out anything there, not when the files were protected....
He drew in a deep breath. "I don't even know how to tell you." His fingers slid around hers, warm and
strong.
"Lassiter mentioned something to me while we were talking, about a criminal case that came up in
Houston at the same time as the hotel fire that killed my parents." He searched her eyes. "I don't know
why, but it started me thinking about criminal cases... So I dug into some old files, using codes I
haven't resorted to in years, and I found out..." He hesitated, noting the look of stark horror on her
white face.
She tried to jerk away from him, sick, horrified at having him see the photos, knowing the truth. She
sobbed like a wounded thing as she fought his hands.
But he was far too strong. He eased her down onto the bed and pulled her against him, holding her
gently but firmly, with her wet cheek pressed against his chest.
"You should have told me years ago," he whispered harshly. "God, when I realized what I'd done to
you...!" His indrawn breath was harsh. His arms tightened, containing her helpless shivers. "I gave you
hell. I hurt you, made you afraid of me-so afraid that you had to hide the truth. How do I apologize
for what you went through because of the way I behaved? And I never even knew... You and your
damned secrets, Maggie!" he concluded with fierce anger.
"Amy thought it best..." she began hoarsely.
"Amy?" He drew away from her, scowling. "Amy was dead when you married Evans," he said,
misunderstanding.
Her eyes opened wider. She didn't understand what he meant.
He grimaced. He looked down at her with pain in his dark eyes. "We made a baby together, the night
Amy died," he said unsteadily. "Evans caused you to miscarry, in a drunken rage." He ground his teeth
together and there was anguish in his expression. "God, baby, I'd have killed him if I'd known...!"
She reached up and caught him around the neck, pulling him close, so close! He didn't know about the
other! It was all right. She buried her face in his throat, clinging.
She felt something damp against her cheek. Tears stung her own eyes. "I never would have told you,"
she choked, her voice breaking. "I never wanted you to have to know. I knew it would hurt you, so
much... !"
He groaned. His mouth searched over her face in hot, quick kisses that suddenly slowed and became
breathlessly tender. His big body relaxed into hers, pressing her gently into the mattress. He
whispered something she couldn't understand as one long, powerful leg insinuated itself between both
of hers through the cotton gown.
Ordinarily she would have been intimidated by the movement. She would have been nervous, shy,
hesitant. But he was sharing grief with her. She'd lost their child and now he knew. The pain was
suddenly bearable, only because he knew.
"Oh, Cord," she whispered brokenly, accommodating the slow, sensuous brush of his body over hers.
Her arms curled around his chest. "I wanted our baby," she said at his ear. "I wanted him so much. And
Bart hit me and hit me! I remember. ..I remember lying there, bleeding and broken, cursing him at the
top of my lungs for what I knew he'd done. I told him I'd tell you, and he'd never have a minute's peace
for the rest of his miserable life."
Her eyes stung with tears. "I told him I'd get even with him if it was the last thing I ever did...!" She
swallowed.
"He killed himself," she whispered. "I made him kill himself. I've had to live with that, too, on top of
everything else...!"
"Damn him. If he hadn't committed suicide, I'd have killed him myself!" he choked.
"He was an alcoholic and I never knew until after I married him. I suspected I was pregnant. I wanted
the baby to have a name, and I was afraid to tell you..."
"Yes. I was cruel to you. Horribly cruel."
She nuzzled her face against him. "You were shocked. I'd been engaged. You thought I was
experienced. It's all right."
"It will never be all right," he said harshly. "I didn't even think about consequences."
"We'd both been drinking," she said quietly. "Don't beat yourself to death with it. It won't change a
thing."
"It won't," he agreed heavily. "I'm sorry you had to go through that alone."
Her hands smoothed over his dark hair. "I phoned Eb."
"Yes, I remember you told me that," he said, and his tone was cold.
"I ... was going to have him get in touch with you," she confessed, "in a moment's insanity. But then
they told me about my husband's wreck, and I didn't make the call."
His big hands slid warmly against her body as he shifted slowly. His mouth brushed at her throat,
stirring her. "I would have come immediately," he whispered. "In fact, I did come, soon afterward, the
minute I heard that you were in the hospital. I never knew exactly why you were there." His hands
contracted bruisingly. "You were at home by then but you wouldn't even look at me!"
She kissed his throat gently. "You'd have seen right through me if I had. I wanted only to spare you the
heartache. It was over. Telling you would have accomplished nothing, except to hurt you."
He made a rough sound in his throat. His mouth found her breast through the thick cotton and pressed
hard against it. "I deserved to be hurt."
She smiled through her excitement. It was drugging, to be held so close by him, so hungrily.
"I've never hurt you deliberately."
"I wish I could say the same."
Her fingers toyed with his thick hair. It was delightful to be able to touch him, lie with him, be with
him. Her body tingled, and she felt no fear at all, only a sense of unreality. One of her long legs
moved involuntarily, sliding against his. To her surprise, the tiny movement aroused him blantantly,
and at once.
He stiffened. "I think you'd better not do that again," he said through his teeth. "Sorry."
He let out a heavy breath at her ear. "I wish we were in a hotel."
"Why?" she asked curiously.
He laughed deep in his throat. "I could call room service for an emergency condom."
She laughed, too. Her mouth moved lazily against his hot neck. "1 like feeling you like this," she said,
her voice faintly surprised.
His big hand caught her hip and pulled it up into his, letting her feel the full power of the arousal. His
fingers contracted and he shivered faintly. "I want to go inside you," he breathed at her ear.
Her soft gasp was audible. She couldn't believe he'd said something so blatant.
He moved lazily against her, while his mouth slid to the square neckline of the gown. He traced its
line with his lips, nuzzling under it to draw his mouth against the petal-soft skin. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]