Texas Proud and Circle of Gold (Long, Tall Texans #52) - Diana Palmer Page 0,117
as she hadn’t been before. That meant that the attraction was mutual. It made him feel a foot taller.
“Pauline wants to go down to Nassau for a few days with the girls. I want you to come with us,” he said abruptly.
She gaped at him. “She won’t want me along,” she said with conviction.
“She will when she has to start looking out for Bess and Jenny. Her idea of watching them is to let them do what they please. That could be disastrous even around a swimming pool.”
She grimaced. It would be a horrible trip. “We’d have to fly,” she said, hating the very thought of getting on an airplane. She’d lost everyone she’d ever loved in the air, and he didn’t know.
“The girls like you,” he persisted gently.
“I’d really rather not,” she said worriedly.
“Then I’ll make it an order,” he said shortly. “You’re coming. Have you got a current passport?”
“Yes,” she said without thinking.
He was surprised. “I was going to say that if you didn’t have one, a birth certificate or even a voter’s registration slip would be adequate.” He was suspicious. “Why do you keep a passport?”
“In case I get kidnapped by terrorists,” she said, tongue in cheek, trying to put aside the fear of the upcoming trip.
He rolled his eyes, let her go and walked to the door. “We’ll go Friday,” he said. “Don’t take much with you,” he added. “We’ll fly commercial and I don’t like baggage claim.”
“Okay.”
“And stop letting me kiss you,” he added with faint arrogance. “I’ve already made it clear that there’s no future in it. I won’t marry again, not even to provide the girls with a grown-up playmate.”
“I do know that,” she said, wounded by the words. “But I’m not the one doing the grabbing,” she pointed out.
He gave her an odd look before he left.
She could have told him that she didn’t have much to take anywhere, and she almost blurted out why she was afraid of airplanes. But he was already out the door. She touched her mouth. She tasted scotch whiskey on her lips and she was amazed that she hadn’t noticed while he was kissing her. Why had he kissed her again? she wondered dazedly. The other question was why had she kissed him back? Her head was reeling with the sudden shift in their relationship since the night before. Kissing seemed to be addictive. Perhaps she should cut her losses and quit right away. But that thought was very unpleasant indeed. She decided that meeting trouble head-on was so much better than running from it. She had to conquer her fear and try to put the past behind her once and for all. Yes, she would go to Nassau with him and the girls—and Pauline. It might very well put things into perspective if she saw Pauline and Gil as a family, while there was still time to stop her rebellious heart from falling in love.
* * *
Kasie’s seat was separated from Gil’s, Pauline’s and the girls’ by ten rows. Gil didn’t appear pleased and he tried to change seat assignments, but it wasn’t possible. Kasie was rather relieved. She was uncomfortable with Gil since he’d kissed her so passionately.
Pauline was furious that Kasie had been included in the trip. She was doing everything in her power to get Kasie out of Gil’s life, but nothing was going the way she planned. She’d envisioned just the four of them in the exquisite islands, where she could convince Gil that they should get married. He agreed to her suggestion about the trip more easily than she’d hoped, and then he said Kasie would have to come along to take care of the girls. He didn’t even mention boarding school, as if he didn’t believe Kasie had suggested it. Pauline was losing ground with him by the day. She could cheerfully have pushed Kasie out of the terminal window. Well, she was going to get rid of Miss Prim over there, whatever it took. One way or another, she was going to get Kasie out of Gil’s house!
They boarded the plane, and Kasie smiled with false bravado as she passed the girls with a wave and found her window seat. There was only one seat next to hers. She was watching the people file in while she fought her own fear. Seconds later, a tall blond man wearing khakis swung into the seat beside hers and gave her an appreciative smile.