Lone Star Winter Read Free Page A

hung it up entirely and started ranching full-time. I’d just come back from overseas when the fire was set. It was obvious afterward that I’d been careless and let one of Lopez’s men track me back to Wyoming. I’ve had to live with it ever since.”
    She studied his lean, stark profile with quiet, curious eyes. “Was it the adrenaline rush you couldn’t live with out, or was it the confinement of marriage that you couldn’t live with?”
    His green eyes glittered dangerously. “You ask too damned many questions!”
    She shrugged. “You started it. I had no idea that you were anything more than a rancher. Your foreman, Harley Fowler, likes to tell people that he’s one of those dashing professional soldiers, you know. But he isn’t.”
    The statement surprised him. “How do you know he isn’t?” he asked.
    â€œBecause I asked him if he’d ever done the Fan Dance and he didn’t know what I was talking about.”
    He stopped the truck in the middle of the road and just stared at her. “Who told you about that? Your husband?”
    â€œHe knew about the British Special Air Services, but mostly just what I told him—including that bit about the Fan Dance, one of their rigorous training tests.” She smiled self-consciously. “I guess it sounds strange, but I love reading books about them. They’re really some thing, like the French Foreign Legion, you know. A group of men so highly trained, so specialized, that they’re the scourge of terrorists the world over. They go everywhere, covertly, to rescue hostages and gather intelligence about terrorist groups.” She sighed and closed her eyes, oblivious to the expression of the man watching her. “I’d be scared to death to do anything like that, but I admire people who can. It’s a way of testing your self, isn’t it, so that you know how you react under the most deadly pressure. Most of us never face physical violence. Those men have.” Her eyes opened. “Men like you.”
    He felt his cheeks go hot. She was intriguing. He began to understand why Walt had married her. “How old are you?” he asked bluntly.
    â€œOld enough to get pregnant,” she told him pertly. “And that’s all you’re getting out of me.”
    His green eyes narrowed. She was very young, therewas no doubt about that. He didn’t like the idea of her being in danger. He didn’t like the idea of the man Luke Craig had sent over to look out for her, either. He was going to see about that.
    â€œHow old are you, if we’re getting personal?” she asked.
    â€œOlder than you are,” he returned mockingly.
    She grimaced. “Well, you’ve got scars and lines in your face, and a little gray at your temples, but I doubt you’re over thirty-five.”
    His eyebrows arched almost to his hairline.
    â€œI’d like you to be my baby’s godfather when he’s born,” she continued bluntly. “I think Walt would have liked that, too. He spoke very highly of you, although he didn’t say much about your background. I was curious about that. Now I understand why he was so secretive.”
    â€œI’ve never been a godfather,” he said curtly.
    â€œThat’s okay. I’ve never been a mother.” She frowned. “Come to think of it, the baby hasn’t been a baby before, either.” She looked down at her flat belly and smiled tenderly, tracing it. “We can all start even.”
    â€œDid you love your husband?”
    She looked up at him. “Did you love your wife?” she countered instantly.
    He didn’t like looking at her belly, remembering.He started down the road again, at a greater speed. “She said she loved me, when we married,” he said evasively.
    Poor woman, Lisa thought. And poor little boy, to die so young, and in such a horrible way. She wondered if the taciturn