Heartland Read Free Page B

welcome shock to his heated flesh.
    That’s when he’d seen her.
    She was emerging from the woods maybe a hundred yards downstream. Her hair, the longest he’d ever seen, hung down her back in a shimmering wave. It glistened in the sunlight like tangled threads of purest gold. Her face was that of a Viking maiden, its structure and her coloring more than adequate hints of her Scandinavian ancestry. She was tall, her slender and tanned legs extended from hips that curved enticingly. She moved with an easy, unselfconscious grace, totally unaware of the tempting picture she presented.
    She had bent down to remove her shoes, then curled her toes into the cool grass. Then she’d flung out her arms, as if to embrace the world, her face turned up to catch the sun. Steven’s breath had caught in his throat and he’d waited, God help him, to see what would happen next. Would blouse and shorts follow the shoes? Would she join him in the water in naked abandon? He felt as though he’d stumbled into the Garden of Eden, caught between innocence and sensuality.
    Still clothed, she had waded into the water to her knees, laughing like a child. He thought he’d never seen a woman so beautiful or heard a sound so delightful.
    Perhaps if she hadn’t been moving directly toward him, he would have kept his silence and carried the memory away like a rare and special dream. But she kept getting closer, and enchanted as he was, he hadn’t wanted to cause her any embarrassment. He’d finally spoken, his voice a husky whisper, lacking its usual self-confidence.
    â€œHello.”
    Startled, she’d turned at the sound. She stared at him, and he’d seen then that her eyes were an amazing shade of gray-blue, like the morning sea touched with a fading beam of moonlight. He also realized for the first time that she was young. Though there were strength and maturity in her face, he guessed she was still in her teens, certainly no more than twenty.
    She’d glanced along the shore then and seen his hastily discarded clothes. Instead of embarrassment, a teasing smile had flashed across her face.
    â€œI don’t suppose you want to come ashore so we can have a proper introduction,” she said.
    He’d frowned with feigned severity. “You know perfectly well if I come ashore right now, there would be nothing proper about it.”
    She’d laughed at that, a sparkling, clear sound. “Don’t scold me. You’re the one skinny-dipping in my stream.”
    That’s how it had begun, amid taunts and laughter and smoldering sensuality. He’d tried to stay away from her, especially after he’d learned she was only eighteen. But even at that age, Lara was a lady not easily ignored. Experienced as he was at evading the tender wiles of women, he’d been no match for her total lack of guile. With a touch both innocent and captivating, she’d lured him onto what he’d thought was no more than a merry-go-round of mild flirtation, only to discover it was as wild as any roller-coaster ride he’d ever taken. She’d been mysterious and elusive, eager and bold by turns. Never knowing what to expect, he’d awakened each day with a glorious sense of anticipation.
    In time, though, it had had to end, but the leaving had been painful, worse than any he’d ever experienced before. Now here he was back again, risking the same emotional maelstrom. He took the package he’d brought to the back porch and left it in the same place he’d left other gifts before.
    With a last wry glance in the direction of the house, he set off for home, hoping he wouldn’t have cause to regret the gesture. Though she’d seemed tamer somehow today, the spirited Lara he remembered so well was quite capable of throwing it right back in his face.
    * * *
    Thump!
    A fine mist of flour filled the air as Lara slammed the bread dough down on the kitchen counter. She flattened the