Rocky Mountain Redemption by Pamela Nissen Read Free Book Online

when he left or returned.
    Studying his image again, she noted the way he stood straight and tall, almost out of Ben’s reach. He leaned away from his brothers, his arms folded stubbornly athis chest, while the other boys seemed to take comfort in Ben’s arms.
    Tucking the covers under her chin, Ben sat down on the chair next to the bed and sighed. “So, did you have siblings?”
    She picked at an errant thread on the quilt. “I was the only child born to my parents.”
    â€œSpoiled, then, huh?”
    She met his lighthearted gaze. “My upbringing was one of privilege, but little freedom to enjoy it. My mother died when I was five, and after that my father changed. Dramatically so,” she admitted, even still missing the happy, carefree way of life before Mama had died and her father exacted a strict existence for her.
    Ben gave a slight nod. “I’m sorry to hear that, Callie. That must’ve been difficult.”
    Swallowing back the familiar grief, she remembered just how difficult it’d been. To once delight in her father’s love and care, only to have it replaced with a gruff demeanor and emotional distance. Her father’s heart had been broken, of that she was certain. She’d often wondered if he’d been so fearful of losing her, too, that he’d hemmed her in so tight with his principles and rules that nothing ill could befall her.
    Only she’d been desperate to escape the confines of her father’s grief and frustration, and found ways around his stringent demands.
    That’s when she’d met Max and had fallen in love.
    The man had fairly swept her off her feet from the moment their gazes connected. He was handsome, witty and—glancing at the picture again—had a spirit of adventure that had been like honey to a bee for her. With the elegant brushstroke of words, Max had paintedpictures of places that had her yearning to break free from the colorless canvas defining her life.
    The moment her father had discovered she’d been stealing away to be with Max, he forbade her to see Max, drawing a hard, dark line of demarcation.
    She’d dared to cross it.
    It didn’t take long after they’d married for her to learn that Max’s charm and wit went as far as the door to their house. Inside their private life there had lived a man who seemed as different as night was to day.
    The guilt she carried from the way she’d left home had been nearly unbearable at times. It was as if her choices had set into motion a lifetime of sorrow.
    Ben cupped her chin and urged her focus toward him with a tenderness that loosed a shiver of comfort straight through her. “Do you think you feel up to a hot meal?”
    Her stomach growled as if on cue.
    â€œSay no more.” On a pulse-skittering wink, he crossed to a small table where he poured a glass of water. “You need to get your strength back so you’ll be ready for what’s ahead.”
    She frowned in confusion. “What do you mean?”
    â€œThe job…” He stood over her.
    She gave an almost imperceptible nod, her heart thudding against her ribs. He was giving her the job? As thrilled as she felt, she masked the excitement. “So you finally came to your senses?”
    His low chuckle warmed the room. “Let’s see…that wasn’t exactly how I was looking at it, but yes. I finally came to my senses.”
    Callie eyed him as he leaned down next to her. He supported her shoulders with one arm as he helped her to drink. When he gently laid her against the pillowagain, she savored the residue of cool moisture by licking her lips.
    His gaze fell to her mouth and lingered for a long, tenuous moment before he turned away as though embarrassed.
    She barely noticed, though, since she was already calculating how long she’d have to work to pay him back for her care. “I’ll work off my bill first. For the doctor services you’ve