Resisting Her Rebel Hero by Lucy Ryder Page B

almost climbed into his lap and rubbed her body against his. She licked dry lips.
    “What?” she asked huskily, her throat tight with awkwardness and a sudden baffling anxiety.
    “You want to see her?”
    Sam watched confusion chase wariness across Cassidy’s face until he gently handed over his precious bundle. She’d been instrumental in saving the infant and deserved to share the joy of that new life.
    Drawn by the subtle scent of her, easily discernible even over the antiseptic smells of the OR, Sam moved closer. He’d been immensely impressed with her ability and the efficient way she’d handled the crisis. She’d never once hesitated or panicked. Hell, he’d seen seasoned soldiers panic in less dire situations and had to admire how she’d kept a cool head.
    It had been touch and go there for a while, but the newborn was finally pink and glowing with life. Tiny hands were tucked against a petal-soft cheek and the infant looked, Sam thought, like a cherub praying. Huge dark eyes stared up into Cassidy’s face with such mesmerizing intensity that the hair on his arms and the back of his neck rose. It was as though she knew she was being held by someone...special.
    Her expression both delighted and enthralled, Cassidy gently touched a pink cheek and the tiny folded hands. “Look, Sam,” she breathed, “she looks like a little angel. Like she’s praying. Isn’t she the most beautiful thing you’ve ever seen?”
    For long silent moments Sam found his gaze locked on Cassidy’s face, unable to utter a sound. Her expression was one he’d never thought to see on her beautiful face—soft and sweet and glowing with uncomplicated delight.
    God , he thought painfully, she really is beautiful. And so much more than he’d thought. Swallowing the lump blocking his vocal cords, he finally managed a raspy, “Yeah. Beautiful.”
    Oblivious to his chaotic emotions, she continued to murmur softly to the infant, laughing when the little rosebud mouth opened in a wide yawn.
    Feeling like he’d been shot in the chest with a high-powered rifle, Sam forced his emotions under control and moved to untie her gown. He finally gave in to the urge to brush his lips against the long elegant line of her throat as he leaned forward to murmur, “You did great, Doc.”
    Goose bumps broke out across her skin and a shiver moved through her as she jerked away, her face flushing as she aimed an uncertain smile in his direction. At least he wasn’t alone in this unwanted attraction, he thought with satisfaction.
    “You too, Major,” she answered briskly, carefully avoiding touching him as she passed the infant back. She moved away jerkily, looking suddenly tired—and spooked, like she was ready to bolt.
    He tucked the baby into the crook of his arm. “Cassidy?”
    She paused in the process of pulling off the surgical gown and sent him a look over her shoulder, eyes wide and a little desperate.
    “Yes?”
    “You going to finish what you started earlier...before we were interrupted?”
    Immediately a wild flush heated her face and her eyes widened as though she thought he was suggesting they finish their interrupted kiss. Her mouth opened but all that emerged was a strangled, “Uh...”
    “I have another twenty-seven stitches,” he went on, grinning wickedly at the deer-in-the-headlights expression that flashed across her face. Her mouth closed with a snap and her look of furious embarrassment had his soft chuckle following in her wake.
    “Meet me in the ER in fifteen minutes,” she snapped, and Sam got the impression she’d considered punching the smile off his face. He was suddenly glad he was holding a newborn.
    Cassidy Mahoney, it seemed, was not a woman to be trifled with. And why that made his grin widen, he didn’t know. Maybe he was an idiot, or crazy, like his family believed.
    “What do you think?” he asked the infant staring intently up at him. The tiny girl blinked before surrendering to another big yawn, making