A Cowboy Under the Mistletoe by Vicki Lewis Thompson Read Free Book Online Page B

Finally she’d managed to doze off only to wake up superearly.
    At least she’d had plenty of time to put fresh sheets on the bed and clean towels in the bathroom. The sheets were plain white. For a moment she’d wished for something less boring, but then she’d remembered how he’d looked at her.
    He wouldn’t notice the color of the sheets. All he’d require would be her naked body stretched out on a relatively soft horizontal surface. And all she’d require would be permission to caress his naked body as they made sweet love all night long.
    Being at work had presented another challenge. She had trouble not staring at the calendar. Yes, she could see his sculpted chest even with her eyes closed, but that didn’t mean she didn’t want to study it some more.
    That wasn’t a good idea, though. Every time she glanced at Ty’s picture, a shiver of anticipation ran through her. Sooner or later Meryl was liable to notice. Precisely at one, Ty strode into Rangeland Roasters. Today he wore typical wrangler clothes—jeans faded and softened with time and scuffed boots that had seen plenty of action in the barn and the corral. He had on the same shearling jacket and brown Stetson, but underneath he had on a blue chambray work shirt. The longer he was in Sheridan, the less he resembled an attorney.
    He met her gaze and she felt the connection from the roots of her hair to the tips of her toes. She gave a short nod to let him know she’d be right with him. Then she ducked into her small office to grab her parka and her phone.
    “It’s all yours, Meryl,” she said to her dark-haired assistant as she pushed her arms into the sleeves of her coat. “Call me if you have any problems.”
    “I won’t.” Meryl’s quiet confidence had earned her the promotion. She was unflappable.
    Whitney required that trait in order to feel comfortable putting someone else in charge of the shop. “Well, let me know if you do. I can be here in no time.”
    “Go have fun. You deserve it.”
    Whitney lowered her voice. “I don’t know how much fun a girl can have in an hour.”
    “With a guy who looks like him? Plenty.”
    As Whitney walked toward Ty, she had to agree. His welcoming smile was a party all by itself. She gazed up at him. “Hi, you.”
    “Hi, yourself.” Warmth flashed in his gray eyes.
    “Rosie came in this morning.”
    He nodded. “I’m not surprised. I knew she drove in for some secret Christmas shopping. She’s tickled about us.”
    “I could tell.”
    “I explained to her that dating isn’t going to be a simple thing with you here and me down in Cheyenne, but she seems to think we can work around it.”
    She gazed at him and realized the distance between Sheridan and Cheyenne was shrinking in her mind. “We might.”
    “We just might. Time will tell. And speaking of time, we’d better get moving. The clock’s ticking.” With a hand against the small of her back, he guided her out the front door of Rangeland Roasters. Then he laced his fingers through hers and started off at a brisk pace toward the diner.
    “Is this what they call speed dating?”
    He slowed immediately. “Sorry. Guess I wanted to maximize the time I spend sitting next to you.”
    “At the counter, right?”
    “Yes, ma’am.” He squeezed her hand. “Especially after you gave me a vivid picture of what might happen in a booth. Besides, we’ll get seated quicker and served faster. Do you know what you want?”
    That gave her the giggles, and her breath frosted in the cold air. No more snow had fallen since Wednesday night, but the temperature still hovered around thirty degrees.
    “I can see where your mind is.” Laughter rippled in his voice.
    “Do you blame me? You’ve strongly suggested that tonight we’ll—”
    “Maybe we shouldn’t talk about that.”
    “Nobody’s paying attention.”
    “Nobody except yours truly, and talking about it makes me want to do it, which has predictable anatomical consequences.”
    “