Don't Tell Me You Love Me (Destiny Bay Romances~The Ranchers Book 6) Read Online Free Page A

time….”
    Her voice trailed off and he avoided her eyes. He didn’t want to see what they might reveal at the moment. He shrugged and looked around the crowded room, his gaze skimming the crowd but his mind totally on her. “I know what you mean,” he said, then looked back. “You can sense when I’m in the room with you, can’t you?”
    Her eyes widened for just a second. “Of course not. That’s ridiculous.”
    His wide mouth tilted at the corners in a cynical smile. “Yes you can. I know you can.”
    “How could you know a thing like that?”
    “I know because I can sense you, too.” Reaching out, he touched her arm. She jerked it away.
    “I can always feel you before I see you,” he went on. “It’s in the air between us. You can’t deny it.”
    She shook her head, making her beautiful hair swirl around her shoulders as it always did. “It doesn’t matter, you know. That we have this…this bond thing. It doesn’t matter.”
    “Of course not,” he agreed. “It only means we were made for each other.”
    Her eyes flashed. “Ridiculous,” she muttered again, looking away nervously.  
      “I’m not saying we’ll end up together,” he added, almost chatting with her. “I’m just sayin’…you can’t fight destiny.”
    “Oh yes you can.” She frowned at him.  
    “It’s strange being in this house again,” he added, speaking quickly before she had a chance to tell him to leave. “I keep expecting your father to appear around a corner any minute.”
    Her face softened and she almost smiled in return. “And yell at you for being in this house in jeans,” she said softly.  
    He shrugged again. “I always wore jeans.”
    “And he always hated it.”
    “It wasn’t the jeans he hated,” he murmured, turning away.  
    “What?”
    “Nothing.” He gave a grunt of exasperation and turned back. “I know you hate me because you think I caused your father’s heart attack.”
    She stared right back at him. “I know you caused it.”  
    “Cheyenne… .”
    “After all he did for you, how you could have treated him that way is beyond me.”
    She looked around as though she’d suddenly remembered they weren’t alone. “Come on,” she said, gesturing toward a secluded nook behind the stairs and turning toward it. “Back here.”
    She led the way, and it seemed to him that her perfume filled his head as he followed. She was beautiful, an angel. Two years had only made her more so. Her dress was tight in the bodice, pushing her breasts up and out in a way that made his muscles tighten. The skirt was a swirl of pastel colors, always moving and catching the light. He wanted to bury his face in her shiny hair and he was reaching out to touch her chocolate curls when she turned and caught him at it, stopping him with a stern look. She quickly looked behind him, making sure no one had seen them leave.  
    “Afraid to be seen with me?” he asked her lightly.  
    She threw daggers at him but didn’t answer. Instead, she looked him up and down. “I see you dressed for the occasion. My father would be livid if he were here.”
    He shrugged, unwilling to apologize for anything right now. He glanced down at his jeans. At least they were clean. And anyway, it was traditional. Hadn’t they just established that he always wore jeans in this house? “I didn’t get an invitation so I didn’t know the dress code for the evening. I was on my own in picking out my attire. And you know what that means.”
    She hesitated. “I would have invited you. But after the way you acted yesterday…”
    “I was wrong, okay? I know I was wrong.” He steeled himself and turned slowly to fully face her. He knew she was talking about the kiss. It seemed apologies were in order after all. “I’m sorry.”
    She bit her lip and stared out at the muted hallway lights. “Sorry.” That wasn’t a word she’d heard often from him. She looked at him, guarding herself. “Well, I’m glad you understand that