A Bridge to Dreams by Sherryl Woods Read Free Book Online Page A

People start to forget. New faces have taken my place.”
    â€œDid you enjoy all the attention?”
    â€œI enjoyed winning. The rest was unavoidable. To be perfectly truthful, there were times I took advantage of it. It can be very lonely, if you don’t. Women like you don’t want to get involved with a man who’s always on the run. The glamour wears thin very quickly. They want someone they can count on when the kids get sick or when the washer breaks down.”
    â€œSomeone like Frank,” Karyn said, unable to restrain a grin.
    â€œFrank?”
    â€œMy oldest brother. He’s very handy. He turns positively rapturous at the sight of something broken.”
    â€œJust the kind of man I meant,” Brad concurred, laughing at the description.
    â€œI want more,” Karyn countered, warming to the subject. “I mean, I know there’s a lot to be said for stability and responsibility, but I’m perfectly willing to rely on myself for those. They weren’t traits that did my mother any good. My father was as responsible as they come, but he died when he was barely fifty and she was left on her own with little education and no marketable skills. It’s not smart for a woman to count on anyone other than herself.”
    â€œThat’s a pretty cynical attitude.”
    â€œNot cynical,” she contradicted. “Realistic. I’m not dismissing the value of love, mind you. I’m all for romance and storybook endings, but not solely for the purpose of providing a safe, secure future.”
    â€œAh,” he said. “I think I’m beginning to catch the distinction. I think it puts you somewhere between feminism and fairy tales.”
    â€œYou’re laughing at me,” she said indignantly.
    â€œNo, sweetheart. I’m envying you. You’re so certain about what you want out of life.”
    â€œIs that how I seem to you?”
    â€œAbsolutely. I’ve never known anyone more confident in herself and her goals. All that self-reliance is a little intimidating to a man who’s going through a midlife crisis that’s not of his own choosing.”
    â€œOnly if you think the only way to maintain a relationship is for the man to control the purse strings. Are you that insecure, Brad? Can’t you conceive of a relationship with a woman that’s a full partnership in every sense of the word?”
    â€œI’ve never thought about it before,” he said. “I guesswe’ll just have to wait and see how deep my macho chauvinism runs, won’t we?”
    â€œWhen do you anticipate knowing?”
    â€œOh, I’d say I should have a better idea by the end of the week. Now why don’t we talk about your insecurities for a minute.”
    â€œMine? I thought you just said I was intimidatingly confident.”
    â€œWith one exception that I’ve discovered so far. You turned practically green with jealousy when that woman came up to our table. Why?”
    â€œShe seemed like exactly the kind of woman who knows how to go after everything she wants and get it.” Including you, she thought to herself.
    He shook his head. “I guess I’ll just have to spend the rest of this week proving to you that you have absolutely nothing to worry about from a woman like that.” His fingers combed back through the short curls of her hair until his palm rested against the curve of her cheek. “You are a beautiful, vital, exciting woman. No man who’s out with you would ever turn his attention to someone else unless he’s a damn fool.”
    The attempt to still her self-doubt was sweet, but Karyn wasn’t crazy enough to believe she could compete with the full-figured, flamboyant redheads of the world. “It’s very nice of you—”
    He pressed his finger against her lips. “No doubts.”
    â€œBrad, how can I not have doubts?” she said, trying desperately to cling to reality