The Christmas Baby Bump by Lynne Marshall Read Free Book Online

about her pale legs, compared to his golden-bronze skin, made her wish she’d worn her tried-and-trusted jeans, but seeing the pleased look on his face as he stared at her changed her mind.
    He unzipped his wet suit and peeled it off his arms and down to his waist, revealing a flat stomach, cut torso, and defined chest. Just as Stephanie began to worry about what a guy wore under a wet suit, he tugged down the garment to reveal black trunks.
    Oh, my. Seeing so much of Phil Hansen was making her mouth water.
    He threw a pair of cargo shorts over the trunks, ducked his head into a T-shirt, and in record time slid into some well-worn leather flip-flops.
    “You ready?” he said, shaking out his hair.
    “Sure,” she said, completely under his wet-and-wild spell.
    “Oh, hey, wait,” he said, closing and locking the hatch. “I forgot something.” He took a step toward her, pulled her close, and kissed her.
    His mouth was warm and soft as it covered her lips ever so gently. They were nearly strangers, and this wasn’t how she did things, but she couldn’t manage to tear herself away. Shock made her edgy…at first. The kiss, like a calming tide, swept over her head to toe, smoothing and relaxing her resistance. She wanted more and pressed into his welcoming lips.
    When his hands went to her waist, she tensed again. Their heat started a mini-implosion over her hips, sending pleasant waves throughout her body. She wasn’t ready to touch him back, except for right there on those inviting lips. She inhaled the scent of ocean on his skin, and breathed deeper, tasting sea salt as she flicked the smooth lining of his mouth with her tongue.
    Their connection seemed to stop time. Her hands dangled at her sides, more out of concern about where it might lead if she touched his broad shoulders. Though she wanted to. She wanted to explore every part of Phil Hansen, but they were in public on a busy street. This was no time or place for a first kiss of this magnitude.
    Still, she didn’t move, kept kissing him, savored the sweet, tender, first kiss. A basic, female reaction flowed through her core, warming everything in its path from the tips of her breasts down to the ends of her toes. She hadn’t felt this kind of heady response since she’d first fallen in love with her husband.
    Her ex-husband.
    Okay, that put the hex on this kiss. Aside from the fact that Phil was a good kisser—restrained, not mauling;gentle, not immediately going for the touchdown—and aside from the fact that she liked how he felt—really liked how he kissed—the thought of her condemning and unforgiving ex ruined the moment.
    She broke contact and pulled back. He studied her up close as if reading her mind. He wasn’t rude or persistent. He knew they’d had their moment and now it was over, yet his probing stare let her know he understood something was up, and that he’d respect whatever the barrier was…for now.
    What she saw in the depths of his eyes unsettled her. Besides everything his kiss had done, from heating her up inside to sending chills over her skin, she could read in his look that it was only a matter of time before they’d be doing this kissing business again.
    The unspoken promise both thrilled and scared her.

Chapter Four
    P HIL had promised a world-class hot dog and he hadn’t let Stephanie down. They sat at a little metal table on the cement walk in front of a red-and-white striped awning on Cabrillo Boulevard. Still trying her best to recover from Phil’s kiss, she concentrated on eating the dog slathered in heart-clogging chili topped with cheese, and not the imposingly appealing man across the table…staring at her.
    “You said you started surfing at twelve?” she said.
    She could handle lunch with Phil. If she repeated it enough times maybe she’d believe it. Tell that to her pulse, which quickened every time she noticed new things about him, like how his sideburns were perfectly matched and at least three shades darker