Beauty and the Beastmaster - Linda Winstead Jones Page 0,16

noticed, but the younger ones took pictures at these town festivals, and those photos might find their way to the internet, one way or another. Damn internet.

“Come with me,” Silas said. “I’ll show you the ropes.”

Gabi tried to ignore that her heart skipped a beat. Had he read her mind? She’d just been thinking about him, wondering what she’d do if he ever asked her out again. She’d decided it was a thought she could not entertain, but she couldn’t deny that she was tempted. “I’ll think about it.”

Silas’s smile was a little crooked, and a little wicked. She liked it. “You do that.”

He stood, easing Mia aside and placing a hand on her head as he leaned down and did the same to Judge. “They’re a pair, these two. They should be there.”

And of course if Mia was there, her mother would have to be, too.

“We could start easy, before we plan to spend an entire day together,” Silas said as he reached the door. “Dinner, tomorrow night?”

The invitation took Gabi by surprise. Her response was an inelegant, “Uhhh…”

“Something early, before Mia’s bedtime and before Eve’s closes. It’s been a while. I think we need to try again.”

She hadn’t dated in years. Hadn’t wanted to, since she’d come to Mystic Springs. Her one date with Silas had been under protest. No wonder it had all gone wrong.

If she was honest with herself, she hadn’t wanted to have anything to do with any man since she’d found out what the one she’d married was really like.

Silas was different. Maybe he would be a complication; maybe he’d be a nice addition to this new life where she was effectively hidden away from the rest of the world. Would it be a date with Mia — and likely Judge, too — along? Yes, yes it would.

Well, it seemed so to her. Did Silas think it was a date? Was she making too much out of the invitation? She didn’t think so. The way he looked at her…

Life was simple. It was safe. She continued to tell herself that she was perfectly happy with no one in her life but her child. Most days she didn’t need or want anything or anyone else. But now and then, she wondered. Silas made her wonder.

Her body was telling her that it might not be such a bad idea to expand her horizons. Her brain was screaming run.

Secrecy had ruined her life, had turned her world upside down. Blake had lied to her about who he was, what he wanted. For too long, she’d protected him by covering up the truth. She’d protected him, until she couldn’t protect him anymore. These days she kept plenty of secrets of her own, out of necessity, but there was no need to add to the pile of lies.

She took a deep breath. “I’m not interested in a long-term relationship.”

Silas didn’t seem at all surprised. “Neither am I.”

“I’ll have dinner with you tomorrow night. One more date, if it can even be called a date, will probably be enough for both of us. We might not get along at all, beyond haircuts and bloodhounds.”

“We might not,” he agreed with a slow grin.

Oh, that smile. It was real, honest, and much too appealing.

She should say she’d changed her mind, she should turn down his offers of dinner and the spring festival, but one look at his face and she choked the words of refusal back. Silas Hollister was looking at her as if he wanted to eat her up. The big, bad wolf came to mind. His smile was honest, but his dark eyes were full of mystery.

For the past year, and more, she’d dedicated herself to being Mia’s mother. Nothing else mattered. She had no time for anything or anyone else. But when Silas looked at her this way she remembered that she was a woman, too.

Chapter 4

Gabi wasn’t exactly what he’d expected, when he’d told Jenna he’d play her game. She was more open than she’d been before, and he’d seen an intriguing mix of strength and vulnerability. He hadn’t noticed the strength before, but today he had. When she’d looked squarely at him and said she wasn’t interested in a long-term relationship, she’d had the fierceness of a tiger in her eyes.

Silas smiled a little as he drove away from downtown. That smile died long before he reached home. He could back off, tell Jenna he couldn’t do what she wanted, but she’d just assign someone else the