Asking for Trouble by Jannine Gallant Read Free Book Online Page A

talk once in a while, have dinner or go for a ride.” His smile looked tired. “I’m never bored when I’m with you, and I miss that.”
    “Don’t you think spending time together is just asking for heartache?”
    “Ignoring each other hasn’t worked real well for me. If I can start thinking of you as nothing but a friend, maybe I’ll be able to move on.”
    Her gaze dropped to his still extended fly, and she raised one brow.
    His teeth flashed. “So, it’ll be a work in progress, but you can hardly blame me. You’re standing there, wearing nothing but my T-shirt…”
    She gave the hem another tug. “I don’t know, Cole.”
    “You’re friends with other men, aren’t you?”
    “Of course, but—”
    “No buts. We’ve managed okay together the last couple of days, haven’t we?”
    “Yes, but—”
    He waved his finger. “There’s that word again.” Letting out a sigh, he pressed on. “Even though I’ve been out of my mind with worry over Jackson, I still enjoyed every minute we were together. I need a dose of your straight talk every now and then to keep me on my toes.”
    “I could send you snarky texts a couple times a week.”
    His soft laugh echoed in the dimly lit hallway. “See, that’s what I’m talking about.”
    She rolled her eyes. “I guess I was wrong. Looks like men want me for my acerbic wit, not my organizational skills.”
    “Huh?”
    “Never mind.” She drew in a long breath and let it out slowly. “If I agree to see you on occasion for strictly platonic activities, will you quit badgering me and let me go back to bed. It’s the middle of the night, and I’d like to get a few hours of sleep.”
    “You bet.”
    His smooth drawl rolled across her senses like melted butter over the pancakes they’d enjoyed. Pressing her lips together, she nodded, then slipped back into the bedroom, clicking the door shut behind her.
    “Well, hell,” she whispered. “That was stupid, stupid, stupid.”
    Navigating around the crib in the glow of the nightlight, she crawled into bed and tucked her knees tight against her chest. Spending any sort of time with Cole would just make her fall in love with him all over again.
    As if you ever stopped.
    The irritating inner voice taunted her. Ignoring it, she pondered the more pressing question. What’s in it for Cole? The man didn’t have women who were just friends. He pursued them with one goal in mind—bed. Hard to believe he’d gone all noble because he missed her zippy comebacks. If she knew Cole—and she knew him better than most—he had an ulterior motive. She sifted through the possibilities until a tension headache threatened. Call her slow, but if sex wasn’t the objective, she couldn’t begin to imagine what Cole Matheson wanted.

Chapter Five
    Cole juggled the grocery sack as he pushed the door open, waited for Tucker to amble through, then shut it behind him. Humming beneath his breath, he headed into the kitchen—and lurched to a stop. “You’re up.”
    “Of course I’m up. It’s almost eight o’clock.”
    Miranda spooned something that smelled like peaches or apricots into Jackson’s mouth while the baby played with the Cheerios littering his tray. Wearing the wrinkled shirt and shorts from the previous day, and with her hair hanging down her back, she looked utterly beautiful despite the dark shadows beneath her eyes. A testament to her lack of sleep the night before. He could relate.
    “I bought eggs and bacon, also bread and lunchmeat and fruit that doesn’t come in a jar.” He lifted a plastic container from the top of the grocery sack. “And, my favorite chocolate chip cookies. I thought we could have a picnic lunch later.”
    She didn’t even glance his way. “Later, I’ll be in my garden. I didn’t finish planting my petunias thanks to an unexpected trip to the emergency room.” With a paper towel, she wiped Jackson’s mouth. “But eggs sound good. Are you cooking?”
    “If you like