Because You Love Me Read Online Free Page B

nodded noncommittally. “Thanks. That’s a nice offer.”
    “Here we are.” Todd handed her two aspirin and a glass of water.
    Rodney placed a firm hand on her lower back. For a minute, she expected him to pinch her in true sibling style. She could tell he was mad enough to. “I think maybe you should go back upstairs, Bridget, so you can lie down.”
    “Okay.” Great, she wasn’t looking forward to the coming eruption. She’d never seen Rodney lose his temper, but she could tell he was on the verge of it at the moment.
    Matt glanced at the kitchen door. “Guess we’ve put off the backbreaking reason we’re here long enough.”
    “Backbreaking?” she asked.
    “Matt and Mark came over to help us drag out the oven from hell. The replacement will be delivered this afternoon and I wanted a chance to clean up the mess. Little washing and touch-up painting and we should be right as rain. Dinner may be a bit late though, and I’m afraid lunch is just going to be cold-cut sandwiches.”
    “No problem,” Rodney said smoothly. “Need a hand with the stove?”
    Matt slapped Rodney on the back in a friendly manner. “Hell yeah. That fucker is ancient. Probably weighs a ton.”
    Rodney turned to her. “Go on up, Bridge. I’ll be there in a little while. Once we’ve sorted stuff out in the kitchen.”
    No doubt her protector intended to minimize the damage she’d done in terms of compromising their cover story. Climbing the stairs, she tried to summon a bit of guilt for messing things up. For some reason, she couldn’t do it. Foolish or not, she felt safe here. Her gut told her she could trust these people. It had been a long time since she’d experienced that. It gave her hope for the future. Maybe she wouldn’t always be frightened. Maybe the old Bridget was still inside, lurking, waiting for the right time to reemerge.
    Please let that be true.
    She had reached the door to her room when she recalled Matt’s tempting offer. She smiled and let herself pretend she really was on vacation. She may be a city girl, but she had no doubt she was more than ready to saddle up and ride with those cowboys. She could just imagine all the juicy daydreams she could conjure up in regards to the James brothers.
    Maybe her time spent in this room wouldn’t be so boring after all.
    For the first time in a long time, the downhill spiral of her life appeared to be changing direction. Yee haw.

Chapter Two
    The next morning, Bridget sat down for breakfast in the B&B’s dining room. As she’d expected, Rodney had given her an ass-chewing of epic proportions the previous afternoon. It was well deserved, but she was still smarting a bit from it.
    The only reason she had been allowed to come back out in public was because Rodney had determined Todd, Steven and the hunky twin cowboys were decent guys who didn’t have a clue who she and Rodney really were. Besides, as he’d said, the damage was done. There were now witnesses who could identify them to anyone who came looking. The four men would become suspicious if she suddenly took to hiding in the room. He’d decided it would be better if they went about their business as if everything were normal. However, he stressed she wasn’t allowed to set one foot outside the inn.
    So much for her riding lessons dream.
    Because of the mess she’d made, Rodney’s new goal was to find a secluded cabin to rent in the woods near Saratoga while they tried to piece together the clues in the remainder of the letter.
    Much to her chagrin, they would have to leave the B&B immediately. Bridget was loath to return to the solitary existence that had become her normal life the past few months. While Rodney was nice company, she hadn’t realized how much she’d missed people until yesterday’s flirtatious conversation with Matt and Mark. She was tired of being alone and lonely.
    Guilt pierced her heart with that thought. Lyle’s face as he lay dead on the cold warehouse floor flashed before her