Miss Greenhorn by Diana Palmer Read Free Book Online

and Nate’s spicy cologne as his lips brushed leisurely all over her face. She lay in his arms, across his lap, with his breath sighing out heavily through his nose while his mouth began to possess hers with relentless intent. She tangled her fingers in the thick, cool hair at his nape with more instinct than experience, her nails faintly abrasive.
    â€œI like that,” he said under his breath. He lifted his head and studied her rapt face. His lean fingers traced the soft lines of her chin and throat, making her tingle with new sensations. “I’m glad you came to Arizona, Christy.”
    â€œSo am I.” Her pale eyes searched his dark ones in the faint light. “Kiss me, Nate,” she whispered unsteadily.
    His blood surged in his veins like a tidal wave. His lean hand lifted her head and he bent, crushing her mouth under his in little, biting kisses that made her gasp, arching her body against his as she gave in to the experienced caresses.
    He guided her arms around his neck and his warm hands stroked up and down her back while he deepened the kiss in a way that brought a shocked gasp from her. He could almost feel the surprise in her, as if a kiss had never affected her so strongly. But after a minute, she relaxed and her lips began to respond, shyly, to his.
    The response went to his head. He had a pretty good idea that she was feeling a desire for him that she’d never felt for anyone else. Perhaps even sophisticated women were vulnerable once in a while, but he didn’t want love from her. He didn’t want forever. He only wanted a night. He looked down at her with a deep scowl. She was still and shaken, her eyes enormous in her pale face, looking back at him with a curious kind of expression. He wondered if it would be too soon to make a move on her, and decided that it would. She didn’t seem like the kind of woman who made quick decisions about a man. Just as well, he assured himself. He didn’t want to start something until she was almost ready to leave for home. It would be easier for both of them if it was a brief affair, quickly over.
    She didn’t know what he was planning. She saw a dark, intent look in his eyes that thrilled her, because she mistook it for the beginnings of love. She knew that she was falling in love with him. It could have been because no other man had ever paid her any real attention. Well, except for Harry, she thought ruefully. She wondered what he’d say if she told him that there was a widower named Harry with three kids who wanted to marry her? He needed a mother for his sons more than he needed a wife, and he was about as exciting as a worn pair of sneakers. But he was a teacher with a stable income, he had a nice house, and the kids weren’t bad. She’d have a comfortable life. Except that she didn’t love Harry, and she was beginning to love Nate. Despite the differences between them, his wealth and her lack of it, his Western heritage and her Eastern one, she thought there might be a chance for them. And heaven knew, he did seem to want her desperately, if that expression on his face was any indication of what he was feeling.
    Even as she thought it, he was easing her back into her own seat, fastening her seat belt.
    â€œWe’d better get back,” he said quietly. He started the car and they turned toward the ranch.
    He didn’t speak as he drove. She was getting to him. Now that he’d had a taste of her, he knew he was going to want more. She delighted his senses, but he had to be careful not to let himself be taken in. She was just a tourist, he reminded himself, and not a permanent resident. She could be a big headache if he didn’t handle this right. Sometimes that act of hers almost fooled him, but no woman her age could be that innocent and ignorant of men. He had to keep that in mind.
    Christy felt as if she’d done something unforgiveable. She wondered what had disturbed him, because she