Out Of Her League by Kaylea Cross Read Free Book Online Page B

sent her senses spinning, and she had to give herself a mental shake to clear her head. “Okay, follow me,” she said, leading the way up to the second floor with her thigh protesting every step. She would have one hell of a bruise there come morning.
    In the guest room she turned back his bedding, gathered some towels in the en suite and set a new toothbrush on the counter for him. “I would never have asked you to stay, you know.” Had she done the right thing? Her nerves jittered at the prospect of the two of them spending the whole night in her house together, but that had to be better than being totally alone, at the mercy of her stalker. Didn't it?
    “I know. I figured you wouldn't want to put me out, right?”
    “Something like that. But anyhow, I really appreciate this. I was going to sleep with my lucky bat under my pillow after you left.”
    He chuckled and sat on the edge of the bed. “Well, that should make anybody think twice about coming after you. You've got one hell of a swing.”
    She stood in the doorway watching him, startlingly powerful and masculine amidst all the feminine decoration. Her stomach flip-flopped. “I was hoping to impress you at your first game, but instead I ended up as road kill.”
    He gave a snort of laughter. “Bad-ass road kill, though. You gave her a wicked limp.”
    “Yeah, well, she gave me a limp and a concussion.”
    He winced in sympathy. “Did you take your anti-inflammatory?”
    “Yes doctor, I did, and I beg you, please don't wake me up every hour.”
    “That's what the hospital ordered, darlin', and it's only because I'm worried about you.”
    Her heart squeezed at his concern. And because he called her darlin', even though he didn't mean anything by it. “All right. Sleep well.”
    “You too.”
    Yeah, right. If she managed to nod off between his hourly checks on her. She'd probably lie awake all night imagining that muscular body in bed on the other side of the hall. Wasn't that ironic? A gorgeous hunk was sleeping in her guest room, and the only man who seemed interested in her was a stalker who might be out there hiding in her azaleas.

CHAPTER 4

    He followed their progress through the house with every light she turned off, the bitterness of her betrayal gnawing with each passing second. Bad enough his Christa had let that other guy take care of her after she was injured, but now she was letting him stay the night with her? No one can take care of you like I can , he fumed, a hot stab of jealousy spiking through him. How dare she reject him like that. The idea of her sleeping with that stranger while he was standing outside helpless to prevent it nearly choked him.
    He didn't want to believe the truth, even when it was staring him in the face. His angel, his paragon of womanhood was a whore after all, just like all the others had been. Like his drunk of a mother had been. The disappointment swamping him was almost suffocating.
    Calm down, calm down, he commanded himself, setting aside his binoculars and trying to understand. All his life he'd battled to keep the rage at bay. His breath came in quick, sharp pants as he fought to regain control. Breathe. Slow... slow...
    She had just been in a terrible collision and wasn't herself. She was in pain, probably still shaken up, and he couldn't expect her to behave normally. Maybe the man was only staying the night to take care of her. How he hated to see her hurting, especially when that bitch who'd hit her had gotten away with a sprained ankle. She was testing his loyalty, that was all. When she discovered how devoted he was to her, she would see they were meant to be together. She'd know .
    Christa Bailey was nothing like the others. From the first day he'd seen her, carrying pots of flowers into a condo at the beach, he'd accepted that fate had intervened. When she'd emerged onto the deck and tucked the plants into their containers, he'd been struck by how fresh and feminine she was. All his research showed