A Wedding in Apple Grove Read Free Page A

regaining her balance. Swerving to the shoulder, he threw the gearshift into park, cut the engine, and ran toward her as she lost her balance a second time. This time she pitched backward off the fence and into his waiting arms.
    She weighed more than he’d thought she would, but that wasn’t as much of a problem as the warning bells going off in his head as her curves brought his libido roaring to life. He opened his mouth to speak as she turned her head, and he nearly lost himself in the endless blue of her eyes. The sprinkling of freckles across the bridge of her nose captivated him, and they both laughed suddenly, for no apparent reason. He gently set her on her feet and noticed the bright green polish on her bare toes. It somehow fit the intriguing young woman.
    Irritation tangled with thoughts he had no business thinking. “You could have been seriously injured,” he ground out. “What were you thinking, pulling a stunt like that?”
    The imp’s head was even with his shoulder. She tilted back to look up at him. “I didn’t ask you to stop—”
    â€œYou could have broken an arm or leg.” It was his “coach” voice, he realized with some chagrin. He was here for a new teaching job, and he was used to being the boss. Kids, and their parents, respected his authority. Why was this disconcerting new acquaintance giving him a problem?
    She put her hands on her hips, giving him a measuring look, and he began to wonder if she was older than he’d first thought. He took in the swirl of pale green silk—but then remembered that some of the teenagers he’d taught dressed as if they were in their thirties. Looking for other clues as to her age, he focused on her face. The freckles hinted at youth, but he just wasn’t sure. He shook his head and demanded, “Does your mother know you walk on fences?”
    Her smiled slipped and tears filled her eyes. “She used to.”
    Now he’d gone and done it. It was obvious she’d lost her mother recently. “Can I call someone to pick you up?” He was reaching in his pocket for his phone when she brushed a strand of fiery silk out of her eyes. Damn him for noticing the color and texture of her hair. If she was a minor, the local law would be taking him out behind the first available barn and shooting him for harboring the kind of thoughts he was having.
    He had to put some distance between them. “Here,” he handed her his phone, but she shook her head, declining his offer.
    â€œI’m just taking a walk and I’ll be heading back to my friend’s wedding.” She tilted her head to one side and asked, “Are you driving through Apple Grove or staying on?”
    â€œMoving here. I’m Dan Eagan,” he said, holding out his hand, “your new phys ed teacher.”
    At her lilting laughter, he withdrew his hand and balled it into a tight fist. He didn’t like to be laughed at. While he searched for the diplomatic words to put her in her place, she crossed her arms beneath the breasts he was trying his best to ignore and said, “Well, Dan Eagan, you would have been a welcome addition to the teaching staff a dozen years ago when I was there. Mr. Creed didn’t have the high school girls’ hearts all aflutter, like I am sure they will be when you walk into class.”
    She smiled and he noticed the fine lines around her eyes and the maturity that comes with living life. He narrowed his eyes. “You’re not one of my students.” Relief speared through him.
    This time, she held out her hand. “No,” she agreed. “I’m Meg Mulcahy. Welcome to Apple Grove.”
    He clasped her hand in his and realized she’d known all along what he was thinking—and she seemed to enjoy the fact that he’d been caught off guard. In his book, he owed her… and payback was a bitch.
    He held her hand captive. “Well, Meg,” he