Can't Resist a Cowboy by Elizabeth Otto Read Free Book Online

tag clanked against the chain as she stepped back. “I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have…”
    “You never have to apologize for touching me, Carrie.” Low, almost dangerous, the tone sent a sensual ripple through her body. “In fact, I’d like you do it again, right now.”
    Her gaze fell to his lips as her palm met his chest. Carrie took one small step forward, pressing her hand flat again and traveling it over his pecs, the fabric of his shirt sliding over his firm, warm muscle, to his ribs where his torso stiffened and his breath stalled. Lightly, he gripped her wrist in one hand and tipped her chin with the other. Her mind and body seemed to go somewhere else, a static place, where this moment erased everything else.
    He swept a thumb over her lower lip. “We have unfinished business.”
    She shook her head, trying to dissuade him, herself; both. In a couple weeks she’d be gone—would be reduced to seeing Levi once or twice a year when she came home to visit, maybe. That wasn’t really worth the emotional wringer she’d have to go through if she let herself get close to him.
    “We don’t.”
    “We do.”
    “No.” She shook her head again, the sting behind her eyes biting. If this moment could truly be suspended and molded into whatever she wanted it to be, there would be a second chance. Her vision and health would be perfect, and she could safely live in this remote place. But her future wasn’t malleable. And a second chance wasn’t possible.
    “Maybe you have unfinished stuff, but I don’t, and I’d rather you didn’t bring it up again.”
    His head dipped low. Her lips began to tingle and want. With the touch of his breath, her mouth parted. He drew closer.
    “Sounds like a challenge, Carrie. Remember what happens when you challenge me?”
    She studied the faint kiss of freckles across his nose, the angle of his cheekbones and strength of his smooth jaw. The beauty of it muddled her thoughts…until she remembered that she couldn’t do this. If he kissed her, she’d want more.
    Carrie stepped back, immediately regretting the loss of his closeness. “Yes, I do. You usually lose.”
    A low chuckle sounded from deep in his throat, the reverberation of it giving her goose bumps. “Never lost your spirit, did you, Sunshine?” The nickname tugged at her heart. It was another connection , like a puzzle piece falling into place.
    Carrie glanced up, her forehead going tight with the sudden realization that Levi was the common thread in her deep-seated need to be here, surrounded by family and familiar faces. If she didn’t get control of whatever was going on between them right now, she was going to fall. Hard. Wallowing in self-pity over what she couldn’t have wasn’t an appealing thought. She did too much of that as it was.
    “Look, my granddaddy’s barn is on that land. I don’t know what my father is thinking, but he’d never want it torn down.” She reached in her pocket for her truck keys, trying hard to get her in-control side back into place.
    He groaned. “This again? No one is taking down the barn.” He crossed his arms, feet wide like a military guard standing over something important. “Nothing is set in stone, and we don’t have to develop that exact location. That’s why the survey crew is there, so we can look at options. Which reminds me.” He pulled his cell from his pocket and looked at it. “I’m about out of time to catch them before they go. This has been fun, but you’ll have to excuse me.”
    Levi indicated the door with a sweep of his arm. Suddenly sluggish, Carrie realized it was well past noon and she hadn’t eaten or taken her insulin. She’d been a little fatigued this morning but attributed it to not sleeping well. No way did she want to push it, even though she was tempted to go with Levi to meet the crew. Food, medicine, and a nap would dictate the rest of her day.
    Descending the porch steps, she opened her truck door and looked back at him.