Reckless Heart by Barbara McMahon Read Free Book Online

didn’t want him to know she’d been paying so much attention to a family that meant nothing to her. They'd looked so happy. Had she been that happy as a child? It was hard to think back when recent events still claimed her thoughts.
    She was an only child of a difficult man. Her mother had left when she was a toddler, and her father had never spent time on picnics or playing with her in the snow. Josh had been lucky in his childhood and for a moment envy rose.
     

Chapter Four
     
     
    “The whole place needs a thorough cleaning,” he said, glancing around the room.
    Molly nodded and stepped forward. He was tall. If she used him as the hero in her book, she should probably know exactly how tall he stood. Stepping closer, she noticed her head just reached his chin. His shoulders seemed even broader when she came close like this. Her hands itched to measure the width, to feel the hardness of his muscles, to sculpt their strength.
    Tilting her head slightly, she wondered how hot his skin would feel. Would it be sleek and taut over his muscles? Or was his skin covered in hair? Golden hair covered his forearms, shining against the tan of his skin. Was he covered all over, or was his chest smooth and bare?
    Swallowing hard, Molly tried to move her gaze away from the man. While her perusal was for research, she found herself warming at the thoughts running through her mind.
    Slowly she drew in a shaky breath and tried to remember what she was supposed to be doing.
    “Are you all right?” Josh’s sharp voice penetrated the haze and she swung around to face him.
    “Of course.”
    “You look as if you’ve gone into a trance.”
    “I was thinking of something for my story.”
    He leaned forward a little until he was close enough that his breath brushed against her cheek when he exhaled. Entranced, Molly longed to reach up and touch his cheek, to trace the indentation beside his mouth, rub her fingertip across his lips and see if they were soft and warm, or hard and cool.
    “I want a full day’s work for a full day’s pay,” he said.
    She blinked. “Why ever would you think you wouldn’t get it? I’m a hard worker.”
    “You’ve been here twenty-four hours and so far you have practically starved us and done nothing else,” he replied.
    She grew indignant. “I cleaned your kitchen and went shopping for food, don’t forget. Both were, I might add, a monumental task.”
    “Right, and by the amount of food you bought, you’ll be heading out again tomorrow.”
    “Wait a minute. I wasn’t aware of how much you would all eat. If you will recall, Mr. Hart, I offered to show you the list when I was leaving. If you had even glanced at it, you might have seen I was a little light on some of the supplies and let me know. So if I do have to go back tomorrow, I count you as much to blame as me.”
    Josh stared at her in disbelief. “You’re blaming me for your own ineptitude?”
    She tilted her chin, planted her fists on her hips and nodded. “Not that I consider myself inept, just a bit inexperienced. Which you should have known.”
    “My dear Miss Forrester, I expect the agency to send me someone competent and capable, not someone who has to be led around like a two-year-old.”
    Glaring at him, she wanted to retaliate in words that would set him back on his heels. But nothing came to mind.
    “I'm hardly a two-year-old. As soon as I get my computer hooked up, I’ll make a master list and be sure to buy more than enough of everything I need the next time I go shopping.”
    A thought struck her. “But how I’ll fit it all in my car, I’m not sure...”
    She trailed off. Her car had been packed with groceries yesterday. If she bought even more, she’d need to make two trips.
    “Take one of the ranch trucks. You can fill the pickup bed with the groceries. That’s what the other housekeepers did.”
    She frowned. “I don’t know if I can drive a truck.”
    “I’ll get one of the men to show you how if you