Long, Tall Texans_ Boone (Long, Tall Texans #35) - Diana Palmer Page 0,42

been jumpy since you walked in the door.”

She felt miserable, when she remembered what her mother had said about Hayes Carson’s brother. She would carry the guilt for her parents’ actions until she died. And Hayes was trying to look out for her, not knowing the truth.

“Come here.”

He stopped dancing, caught her hand and led her out the side door onto the dark patio, where only a strip of light from the room inside showed on the stones of the flooring.

“Tell me what’s worrying you,” he coaxed.

She leaned her forehead against his chest. If only she could. But Hayes was his friend. “It was Jock who called. He made threats. My father wants Mama to sell the house and give him the money,” she said heavily. “He’s got something on her, something he can use, if she doesn’t do it. She’s afraid of him.”

“What does he have on her?”

She groaned softly. “I don’t know.”

He tilted her chin up. “Yes, you do, Keely,” he argued, searching her eyes in the dim light from the patio windows inside.

Her eyes were tormented. “I can’t tell you,” she said sadly. “It isn’t my secret.”

His fingers caressed her chin. “You can tell me anything,” he said, his voice deep and soft and seductive. “Anything.”

He made her want to tell him. He was powerful and attractive. He made her blood run hot through her veins. She wanted to kiss him until the aching stopped. She couldn’t tell him that, of course.

She didn’t have to. Boone read the subtle signs of her body and her breathing and drew a conclusion. Slowly, so that he didn’t frighten her, he bent toward her mouth. “I should be shot,” he whispered.

His breath tasted of coffee. The exquisite feel of flesh against flesh in such an intimate way made Keely’s head spin. She’d rarely been kissed at all, and never like this. His skill was apparent.

But he seemed to lose control, just a little, as the kiss lengthened. His mouth grew quickly hungry. His arms contracted and riveted her to the length of his body, bending her into its hard contours. She stiffened helplessly at the intimacy, to which she was completely unaccustomed.

Boone lifted his head, surprised by her posture, by her reaction. She responded as if she’d never been held and kissed in her life; as if the demanding ardor of an adult man was unknown to her. And perhaps it was. He considered what he knew of her life from Winnie’s vague comments.

He let her move back, just a step, but he didn’t let her go. “It’s all right,” he said softly, smiling. He framed her face in his big hands and held it where he wanted it. His thumb gently pulled down her lower lip as he bent again. “All we have to fear,” he quoted amusedly, “is fear itself…”

It was different this time. He didn’t demand. He teased her lips, brushing them in brief little caresses that made her want more. His hands smoothed back her hair. They moved down her back, to the curve of her hips, and coaxed her closer. She shivered at the contact and for an instant his mouth became demanding. But when she stiffened, he relented at once.

It was like a silent duel, she thought, fascinated. He advanced, and when she hesitated, he withdrew. It was as if he knew the difficulty she felt, as if he was aware of how new and frightening these sensations were to her. He calmed her, coaxed her, until she began to relax and stop fighting the slow, steady crush of his mouth.

“That’s it,” he whispered when she sank gently against him. “Just don’t fight it. Don’t fight me. I won’t hurt you.”

She knew that. But it was still difficult to give herself over to someone who didn’t know about her past. She was terrified not of his exploring hands, but of what he might find if he persisted.

So when she felt his fingertips teasing just around the edge of her breast, she jumped and pulled back.

She expected an explosion. Once, just once, she’d given in to temptation in her adult years and agreed to go out with a salesman who came through town. He’d grabbed her in the car and she’d jerked away from him. He’d been furious, snapping at her about girls who teased. And then he’d forcibly run his hand over her shoulder and her breast. She could never forget the look of utter horror in his face. He’d pushed her away from