Renegade: A Taggart Brothers Novel by Lisa Bingham Read Free Book Online

school year, it was important that she get her kids enrolled as soon as possible so they could make friends before summer vacation. Then . . .
    Jace squeezed her hand again.
    “You look like your brain is going to explode.”
    A rueful laugh burst free. “It might. I thought that once I arrived at Annie’s, I could take a few days to get accustomed to the area.”
    “You can still do that.”
    She opened her mouth to argue with him, then simply shook her head, realizing that she didn’t want this man to know how desperate her situation was.
    Jace glanced at her again, seeming to invite her to confide in him, but she offered him the same plastic smile she’dperfected over the years to hide her true feelings. She’d learned long ago that she was alone in her struggles. Although help might have been offered by Phillip’s friends, they hadn’t really wanted her to accept.
    But she could tell that Jace saw through the subterfuge because the smile he threw her in return was openly amused. “Give it a try, okay?”
    He released her then, subtly, when he made the left-hand turn back into Bliss. Immediately, her gaze fell to the long, slender fingers gripping the wheel, even as the warmth of his touch continued to soak into her skin like a phantom caress.
    Again, she was struck by the way a man she’d known for only a few hours already knew more about her situation and her emotions than most of the people she interacted with at home.
    No. Not “home.” Boston wasn’t “home” anymore.
    “Thanks,” she said softly. “I’ll do that.”

F OUR

    B Y the time they arrived at Annie’s home, both of her children were asleep. Without being asked—not that Bronte would have the chutzpah to do so—Jace gathered Lily in his arms and carried her into the house. Bronte was startled when he walked right in, but then she remembered that Annie never locked her doors. She probably wouldn’t know where to find a key after all these years.
    It took several minutes for her to wake Kari enough for the teenager to stumble into the house. Bronte tried to guide her upstairs, but Kari veered into the living room and dropped onto the couch, pulling a folded afghan around her body. Bronte left her there and stumbled back into the entryway.
    Jace’s boots clattered on the steep treads. “I put Lily in Annie’s room,” he said with a hitch of his thumb in that direction. “Do you need help bringing anything in from your van?”
    She shook her head, slightly flustered. Here in the cramped confines of the hall, she became even more aware of his height, the width of his shoulders in his jacket, and the button-down shirt that hinted at a hard, flat waist and well-defined musculature. His shirt had been tucked into jeans that werebutter soft, and the narrowness of his hips was emphasized by a leather belt with an oval silver buckle.
    For several long minutes, her gaze hung there, focusing on the gold-tinted figure of a horse and rider. Inexplicably, a fluttering began low in her belly—a tingling of awareness that she hadn’t felt in a very, very long time. It spread through her body, branching out until it reached the tips of her fingers, so that they twitched with the need to—
    What? Reach out and touch a stranger?
    Her cheeks flamed and her gaze shot up to tangle with Jace’s. Unable to look away, she watched a montage of emotions march across his face—curiosity, confusion, then a recognition of her need. But when she saw the first spark of interest flare up in his eyes, she took a step backward, folding her arms protectively across her chest.
    But that was a mistake as well. Even though she refused to look at him, she could feel his regard shift to her breasts, and that fact alone—that for the first time in years, a man was staring at her chest—caused her nipples to immediately respond.
    Damnit.
He’d asked her a question. She should answer. Now. So that he didn’t feel the need to stay any longer.
    But for the life of