April's Promise (Forever Love Series) Read Online Free

it.
    Focusing
her attention on the music playlists, she said, "These are great!  I
forgot you like Coldplay as well as Blake Shelton and..."  Her voice
trailed off as she glanced up at him.  His gaze caught hers and held it, and
she felt her breaths become shallow and faster.
    She
could feel the electricity between them as surely as if tiny sparks were
stinging her.  Could it be her imagination?  Could she really see desire in his
eyes?
    Gabe
took a step away.  His voice was gruff as he said,  "I like a little bit
of everything.  Except jazz."
    April's
hand trembled as she gathered the ear buds along with the iPod.  Then she
crossed to the door and paused.  "I'm going downstairs to make myself a
cup of tea.  Sometimes that helps me unwind.  I'm sorry I've kept you up."
    As she
started down the hall, Gabe called, "April?"
    She
stopped and turned.
    "You
might want to wear a robe downstairs.  Some of the windows don't have
shades."
    Her
color heightened as she murmured, "I'll keep that in mind."  Instead
of continuing down the hall, she ducked into her bedroom.
    Closing
his own door, Gabe swore.
    He
hadn't meant to embarrass her.  But if she was going to stay, she couldn't go
roaming around like that...
    He
closed his eyes for a moment seeing her creamy arms, the few freckles along her
neckline, her soft fluffy hair caressing her nape.  He grew hard with desire.
    Opening
his eyes, warring with needs that he thought had long died, he swore again.
     
    ****
     
    Chapter
Two
     
    Dressed
for work in a white shirt and striped tie, Gabe entered the kitchen early Friday
morning before Stephie was up, the smell of coffee and bacon welcoming him. 
"You didn't have to make me breakfast," he said as he crossed to the
carefully set table.  April was supposed to be on vacation!
    "I
have to eat, too, don't I?" she asked with a smile.
    "And
you cook yourself a breakfast like this every morning?"
    Her
cheeks flushed.  "No, but this wasn't a chore, Gabe.  I like to cook when
I have the time."
    They
needed to set some ground rules or he'd feel as if he was taking advantage of her
kindness.  His gaze passed over her snug, worn jeans that fit her slender
figure as well as the red-and-white striped, long-sleeved knit shirt that
molded to her breasts.
    He
remembered kissing her years ago, touching her last night and her response to both—she'd
pulled away.  His gaze settled on her lips, perfectly pink without lipstick. 
"You're on vacation and you could be having fun somewhere."
    "How
do you know I won't have fun here?"  An impish twinkle danced in her eyes
and it was hard for him not to respond to it...or to the sweet garden scent of
her standing so close.
    "April,
whether you have fun or not isn't the issue.  What if I pay you?"
    She
brought a plate with strips of bacon and scrambled eggs to the table and set it
at his place.  "Don't be ridiculous."
    "I
don't want to owe you."
    The
silence between them seemed to stretch interminably until finally she said,
"You won't owe me if you look at my staying here as a gift."
    The
kitchen was alive with more than her offer.  There was a pulsing awareness that
wouldn't quit.  The tenderness in her expression, the curve of her cheek, the
inviting softness of her skin drew his hand to her face.  His thumb traced the
line of her chin.
    "It's
a special gift, April, and I'll accept it under one condition."
    "What?"
she murmured.
    "That
you take time for yourself.  That you spend evenings however you want.  I know
you still have friends in Cedar Corners.  I don't want you to feel tied to
us."  He dropped his hand before he slipped it under her hair to finger it.
    "It's
a deal," she replied softly.
    Why did
he suddenly want to hold her more than he wanted to breathe?  Calling on the
self discipline he'd honed for years, he gestured to her plate still on the
counter.  "Good.  Now we'd better eat before all this good food you
prepared gets cold."
    When
she moved away from him, he