Snowbound Baby (Silhouette Romance) by Susan Meier Read Free Book Online

interested. Eventually, out of sheer boredom he would reveal a bit here and a piece there, and pretty soon, he would have confided his whole sordid tale.
    That sounded like the perfect wayto handle her challenge, so Zoe cast one more glance at sleeping Daphne. The baby appeared peaceful, but she wouldn’t be asleep forever. When she awakened, probably achy and miserable if she had caught a virus, Daphne would be whiny and weepy and Zoe would have to dedicate her full attention to her.
    Best to get into the great room now while she had some time and start making friends so she could get Cooper Bryant’s story.
    With one last peek at Daphne, Zoe left the bedroom and strolled into the great room. Cooper had pushed the two TV chairs out of the way and replaced them with the sofa where he currently lay watching television.
    “What’s on?”
    “Basketball.” He gave her a pained look that somehow made him look extremely masculine and sexy. “You’re not going to ask me to change channels, are you?”
    Telling herself to stop noticing how sexy he was, she glanced at the screen. Sports. She’d simply never found a way to get interested in them. But she wasn’t the type of person to begrudge another of his pleasure. Besides, letting him have this favor was a great way to begin showing him she was kind and trustworthy—somebody he could talk to.
    She smiled at Cooper, as one friend smiled at another. “No, you watch. I’m fine. I can play solitaire.”
    Without acknowledging her warm expression in any way, Cooper settled into the sofa and glued his gaze to the screen. He didn’t so much as grunt a thanks.
    Well, whatever. Part of gaininghis trust was not pushing for an answer when he didn’t believe any was required. She had to show him she accepted him as he was so he would feel comfortable telling her his big juicy life secret.
    She sat at the poker table and saw that her original solitaire game hadn’t been disturbed. She resumed play and within three or four moves realized that the game was lost. She gathered the cards and started again. Within a few plays, though, that game was lost, too. So she gathered, dealt and started again. Another loser. Another deal. Another loss. Deal. Loss. Deal. Loss.
    She squeezed her eyes shut. She didn’t mind being unlucky, but being unlucky while bored could drive anyone insane.
    She glanced longingly at the television, then at Cooper. Were his eyes closed?
    She slowly rose from the poker table and walked to the head of the sofa. Peering down, she confirmed that his eyes were tightly shut and realized he wasn’t watching the game. He was sleeping through the game.
    Unfortunately, he was also holding the remote. On his stomach. Right about belt level.
    After all the reactions she’d been having to him since he’d made his preposterous proposition, she wasn’t sure touching him in any way, shape or form was wise. But the man was sleeping and she wanted the TV.
    Studying the perfect male specimen stretched out before her, Zoe got another of those zings of attraction. He was solid man. Somebody who worked for his muscles, didn’t just work out. In his jeans and plaid shirt he was nothing but pure, unadulterated man. He was so gorgeous any woman would have reactions to him.
    Which meant she was perfectlynormal, and she shouldn’t be making a big deal out of simply taking the remote from his hand. Because it wasn’t a big deal. He was attractive and she noticed. So what? It wasn’t as if the remote was on his upper thigh. It was on his stomach. No big deal.
    Slowly, quietly, she reached down, loosely gripped the top of the remote and began sliding it from his hold. But before it was even halfway out, his free hand came up and clamped around her wrist.
    Without opening his eyes he said, “If you’re taking me up on my proposition, I want to be awake for that. Actually, I think I need to be awake for that.”
    Heart racing, Zoe snatched her wrist from his grasp and jumped back.