Gateway to Heaven Read Free Page B

words…stunned by her visceral reaction to them. The seconds stretched. His gaze was glued to her mouth. His nostrils flared slightly when he inhaled, as though he’d caught her scent. A warm, swelling sensation expanded in her lower belly.
    She licked her lower lip in a nervous gesture. He blinked. His expression sobered. He straightened to his full height, as if he’d abruptly come to his senses. When he did, he effortlessly brought Emily with him.
    Megan trailed after them dazedly as Emily chattered away and Christian occasionally prompted her with a question. Jeff, their doorman, let them through the security doors. If she’d been completely tongue-tied by Christian’s audacious teasing about tickling her, then she’d been practically poleaxed by his lustful gaze. Men didn’t look at her that way. At least not men from St. Cat’s Parish. The sudden impenetrable veil that had seemed to drop over Christian’s gaze afterwards had made her reel with just as much confusion.
    More than likely, he was put off by her inexperience, her ignorance of how to participate in sexy, meaningless small talk, Megan reasoned as she watched Christian brace Emily so that she could push the “up” button on the elevator. She couldn’t help but feel a little defeated. Resentment seeped into her awareness. She’d never so objectively viewed her prescribed role or regretted it so deeply until now. Suddenly she longed to have the knowledge of how to attract a man like Christian Lasher, a man who exuded utter masculine confidence with every cell of his being, whose eyes gleamed with an incisive intelligence…whose sexuality was so potent it just might be addicting.
    Even her four-year-old niece was light-years ahead of her, Megan realized with self-disgust as she watched Emily hook her fingers behind Christian’s neck and unselfconsciously toss her blonde curls. Had there ever been a time in her life that Megan would have behaved in such a carefree way with a man, with so much innate trust and joy?
    If there had been, the memory had been crushed out of her consciousness long ago.
    “ Let me push, let me,” Emily exclaimed once they’d gotten on the elevator. Christian handled her like a seasoned pro, shifting his hand to support the little girl’s upper body when she flung herself forward to punch the elevator button. Afterwards, Emily used the same chubby finger that she’d used to push the button to test out the texture of Christian’s goatee.
    “ Emily, you are such a flirt,” Megan admonished with a roll of her eyes. Still, the honest part of her had to admit that she was a little envious of the privileged position her niece had. When the elevator door opened, Megan put out her arms. “Thank you. I can take her from here.”
    Christian walked off the elevator, giving her a quizzical look when she held the elevator door. “Which way to your place?”
    “ That one,” Emily answered enthusiastically as she pointed to a door down the hallway.
    Megan tried to remember if her condominium was reasonably clean as she unlocked the front door. She breathed a sigh of relief when she glanced around. Not perfect, but presentable.
    “ I like your place,” Christian complimented as he surveyed the open floor plan of the loft, the floor to ceiling east-facing windows, the inexpensive, but carefully chosen furniture and decorations. Megan wasn’t rich, by any means, but she was proud of the homey comfort of her condominium. He bent his long legs at the knee and set the duffle bag down on an entryway bench, then transferred Emily to his other hip before he began an unhurried inspection of her home.
    “ Thanks,” she murmured. She got the impression that nothing was left unobserved by him. She watched as he walked slowly through her living room, presumably on his way to look at the view of her floor-to-ceiling windows. He paused to glance at her book and music collection. He took considerably more time to study a rare bronze figurine