Brazen by Bobbi Smith Page B

herself, flailing away at him, but
her efforts proved futile. Michael Donovan was one strong
man.
    They were both laughing as Michael got to his feet,
taking her with him. He held her tight, her back to his
chest, and controlled her with ease.
    "Take it easy, there. Calm down, little lady," he taunted,
grinning at her pitiful attempts to escape him.
    "Little lady?" she echoed. "I'm no lady!"
    "Don't I know it," Michael returned, still laughing as he
let her go.
    "Oh, you-"
    She spun around to face him, and in that moment as
she stood there before him, Michael caught a glimpse of
the woman she could be. Her hair had come loose and
was a tumble of dark, wet curls around her face and
shoulders, and her shirt clung to her like a second skin,
revealing the outline of her full breasts beneath the sodden fabric.
    Michael reacted as any normal, red-blooded male
would when faced with such a situation. He enjoyed the
view and reached out for her. Without saying another
word, he dragged Casey into his arms and kissed her.
    The touch of his lips on hers sent a jolt of sensual
awareness through Casey, unlike anything she'd ever
known before. She knew she should resist him, but right then, she wasn't really certain she wanted to move out of
his arms.

    Michael hadn't expected to enjoy Casey's kiss. The kiss
had strictly been on impulse, but it was an impulse he
was glad he'd given in to. Her response surprised him,
and he deepened the embrace, tasting of her sweetness.
    Casey shivered as his mouth moved over hers in a dominating caress that left her breathless.
    And then reality returned.
    It didn't matter that he had made her laugh
    It didn't matter that his kiss was exciting
    This was Michael Donovan!
    The thought was like ice water thrown on her.
    Casey jerked away from Michael and stomped up the
riverbank, desperate to put some distance between them.
She needed to be thinking straight when she dealt with
him, and she definitely wasn't thinking straight while he
was kissing her. She was mad at herself for having enjoyed
being in his arms, even if only for a minute.
    "Oooh you stay away from me, Michael Donovan!"
she ordered, scrubbing at her lips with the back of her
wet shirt sleeve. "Kissing is not part of our deal!"
    "You're right. It's not," he agreed easily as he, too,
climbed out of the water. "Pardon me for being so
thoughtless. You don't have to worry, though. For a minute there, I mistook you for a girl, but it won't happen
again."
    "Good! Hey, wait a minute." Casey knew she'd been
insulted.

    Michael ignored her and walked past her to get to his
horse.
    "I'll be in touch," he told her easily as he swung up into
the saddle.
    Casey was too upset even to look his way as he rode
off. She couldn't decide if she was more angry at Michael
or herself. She'd told Michael theirs was to be a marriage
in name only, and then he'd gone and kissed her! She
was going to have to make sure that it never happened
again.
    Upset and swearing under her breath, she mounted up
and headed home. She wondered what the future held
for her as Michael's wife. The thought sent a shiver
through her.
    Nick was down at the stable working with Tom when
Michael rode in. The two men took one look at him and
started chuckling.
    "How did your meeting down at the river with Casey
go?" Nick asked.
    "Better than the last time he ran into her there," Tom
said, grinning broadly. "At least this time she let him keep
his clothes."
    "You two are real funny," Michael told them as he dismounted and tended to his horse.
    "What happened?" Nick wondered.
    "I slipped."
    "I wish I'd been there to see it," Tom added.
    "How's Casey?" Nick asked. "Is she just as wet as you
are?"

    "She's wetter."
    Tom and Nick laughed again as Michael headed up to
the house. He was more than eager to get out of his wet
clothes.
    "Michael?" Elizabeth had seen him ride in earlier, and
she called out to him when she heard him come in the
house. "I need