moved. Given the fact that in her befuddled state she'd chosen what could only be considered a pitifully ineffectual weapon, he nearly smiled.
"You expecting company?" he asked.
"Maybe. "
The moment she spoke, she winced, as if regretting
her candor.
"I see. And what's the plan, to smother him or bludgeon him to death?"
She rubbed at her eyes. "Very funny. "
As he applied himself to the task of snapping Jaimie's sleeper, he said, "There's no need to be jumpy, Maggie. If anyone tries to come in, he'll have to go through me to get to you, and I'm not going to let that happen. "
"I know, " she said softly.
The response caught him by surprise, and it meant more to him than he could say.
'So
BABY LOVE 8t
She cast him a shamefaced look and lay the pillow aside. "Reflex reaction. I was dreaming, and the noise startled me. "
Rafe could see by the taut set of her mouth that the dream still held her in its grip. Still crouched by the dresser drawer he had commandeered to serve as Jaimie's bed, he tossed a soiled wipe in the wastebasket, then rested his loosely crossed arms on an upraised knee. "A nightmare, I take it?"
She nodded.
"Care to talk about it?"
Her response to that was a negative shake of her head.
Seeing how upset she was, Rafe wished he could comfort her. But how? Even though she seemed to be starting to trust him a little, he'd still never met anyone who so stubbornly resisted accepting help. When left with no choice, she acquiesced, but he had a feeling she wouldn't, even then, if not for the sake of her baby.
"I have more than my fair share of bad dreams myself, " he admitted, "so if you're feeling embarrassed about it, don't. "
"You have bad dreams?" She fixed him with that lovely, brown-eyed gaze, her expression conveying relief that the conversation had shifted from her to him. "What do you dream about?"
Rafe's throat went tight. "My family, mostly. "
She bent her head and tugged at the corner of the pillowcase. "The car wreck?"
He'd never talked with anyone about that night, but there was something about Maggie—an indefinable something—that made him consider doing so now. Kin-dred souls. On the surface, it might appear that her wounds were mostly physical, but one look into her beautiful eyes told him she'd been emotionally battered as well. Shadows lurked there. Dark, shifting shadows— and a wariness of him that tugged at his heart. It didn't take a mind reader to determine that she had suffered, in her own way, nearly as much as he had.
82 CATHERINE ANDERSON
She needed a friend, perhaps desperately, and, he supposed, so did he. But before either of them could reach that point, they had to lower their guards. How could he expect her to trust him enough to reveal her secrets if he didn't have the guts to share some of his own?
"Yeah, " he said, his voice reminding him of a whetstone rubbing over a knife blade. "I dream about the wreck. It was my fault, and ever since, I've had to live with that knowledge. During the day, I can hold the thoughts at bay, but when I'm sleeping, the memories haunt me. "
In the amber glow of the bedside lamp, her eyes were luminous, and a golden nimbus shimmered around her tousled dark curls, making her look for all the world like an angel perched there. "Were you drinking when it happened?" she asked tremulously.
Rafe gave a humorless huff of laughter. He could see how she might think that. "I didn't start drinking a lot until after the accident. Booze, my panacea. " He felt suddenly embarrassed and ran a hand over his face. "No, I wasn't drinking. I almost wish I had been. Then maybe I could live with the decisions I made that night. " Blinking to bring the room back into focus, he said, "It happened the first part of October, just a little over two years ago. "
She curled her legs beneath her, leaned more heavily against the headboard, and tugged the sheet higher.
The droop of her thick eyelashes was a telltale sign of fatigue, yet he could still
"You expecting company?" he asked.
"Maybe. "
The moment she spoke, she winced, as if regretting
her candor.
"I see. And what's the plan, to smother him or bludgeon him to death?"
She rubbed at her eyes. "Very funny. "
As he applied himself to the task of snapping Jaimie's sleeper, he said, "There's no need to be jumpy, Maggie. If anyone tries to come in, he'll have to go through me to get to you, and I'm not going to let that happen. "
"I know, " she said softly.
The response caught him by surprise, and it meant more to him than he could say.
'So
BABY LOVE 8t
She cast him a shamefaced look and lay the pillow aside. "Reflex reaction. I was dreaming, and the noise startled me. "
Rafe could see by the taut set of her mouth that the dream still held her in its grip. Still crouched by the dresser drawer he had commandeered to serve as Jaimie's bed, he tossed a soiled wipe in the wastebasket, then rested his loosely crossed arms on an upraised knee. "A nightmare, I take it?"
She nodded.
"Care to talk about it?"
Her response to that was a negative shake of her head.
Seeing how upset she was, Rafe wished he could comfort her. But how? Even though she seemed to be starting to trust him a little, he'd still never met anyone who so stubbornly resisted accepting help. When left with no choice, she acquiesced, but he had a feeling she wouldn't, even then, if not for the sake of her baby.
"I have more than my fair share of bad dreams myself, " he admitted, "so if you're feeling embarrassed about it, don't. "
"You have bad dreams?" She fixed him with that lovely, brown-eyed gaze, her expression conveying relief that the conversation had shifted from her to him. "What do you dream about?"
Rafe's throat went tight. "My family, mostly. "
She bent her head and tugged at the corner of the pillowcase. "The car wreck?"
He'd never talked with anyone about that night, but there was something about Maggie—an indefinable something—that made him consider doing so now. Kin-dred souls. On the surface, it might appear that her wounds were mostly physical, but one look into her beautiful eyes told him she'd been emotionally battered as well. Shadows lurked there. Dark, shifting shadows— and a wariness of him that tugged at his heart. It didn't take a mind reader to determine that she had suffered, in her own way, nearly as much as he had.
82 CATHERINE ANDERSON
She needed a friend, perhaps desperately, and, he supposed, so did he. But before either of them could reach that point, they had to lower their guards. How could he expect her to trust him enough to reveal her secrets if he didn't have the guts to share some of his own?
"Yeah, " he said, his voice reminding him of a whetstone rubbing over a knife blade. "I dream about the wreck. It was my fault, and ever since, I've had to live with that knowledge. During the day, I can hold the thoughts at bay, but when I'm sleeping, the memories haunt me. "
In the amber glow of the bedside lamp, her eyes were luminous, and a golden nimbus shimmered around her tousled dark curls, making her look for all the world like an angel perched there. "Were you drinking when it happened?" she asked tremulously.
Rafe gave a humorless huff of laughter. He could see how she might think that. "I didn't start drinking a lot until after the accident. Booze, my panacea. " He felt suddenly embarrassed and ran a hand over his face. "No, I wasn't drinking. I almost wish I had been. Then maybe I could live with the decisions I made that night. " Blinking to bring the room back into focus, he said, "It happened the first part of October, just a little over two years ago. "
She curled her legs beneath her, leaned more heavily against the headboard, and tugged the sheet higher.
The droop of her thick eyelashes was a telltale sign of fatigue, yet he could still
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