Because You Love Me Read Online Free PDF

“Cereal? No wonder you’re so skinny. She’ll have an omelet too. On us.”
    “Oh, you don’t have to—”
    Mark reached across the table and patted her hand. “We’re not letting you leave Wyoming without trying this omelet.”
    She laughed. “Well, in that case, I suppose I’d better relent.”
    Todd poured each of them a cup of coffee before heading back to the kitchen. She’d postponed coming down for breakfast, thinking she could avoid the rush. She thought her plan had worked as she’d had the whole place to herself for a few minutes. Funny, how the space had seemed large and cold when she’d been alone with only her sad memories. Now, with the James twins flanking her, the room seemed pleasantly crowded and decidedly warmer. For the first time in a very long time, fate was smiling on her.
    Mark leaned over and put his cowboy hat on the vacant table next to them. “Did you give any thought to our offer for riding lessons?”
    She tried to find a way to put them off without seeming rude. There was simply no way she could afford to pay for lessons even if Rodney agreed to it, which he wouldn’t. He’d gone off early this morning to find them somewhere else to stay, and he’d been very firm in his instructions that she “lay low”. There was a good chance he’d succeed in securing them a new hiding spot, and by afternoon, they’d be crawling into some other lonely hole.
    “I have a confession,” she said. Both men were looking at her intently. She was entranced by their similarities. They were mirror images of each other. It was almost unnerving.
    Matt grinned. She’d noticed yesterday that Matt had a slight cleft in his chin his brother didn’t share. It was her only clue in telling them apart. “They say confession is good for the soul.”
    “There’s a difference between wanting something and doing something.” She almost winced as she said the words. She wanted something—two somethings—but there was no way she could do anything about that desire. Mainly because she was running for her life, and secondly, who wanted two men…at the same time? It was ludicrous. “While the idea of being a cowgirl sounds like fun, I’m deathly afraid of horses.”
    The words weren’t exactly a lie. She’d nearly been run down by a horse-drawn carriage in Central Park as a child. The experience had stuck with her, and since then she’d given those carts, as well as police horses, a very wide berth.
    Mark shook his head in disbelief. “What? How can you be afraid of horses? They’re the most loving, gentle creatures on earth.”
    She shrugged. “They’re huge, attract flies, and their eyes are on the sides of their heads. I find that very unnerving.”
    Matt burst into laughter. “I’m not sure I’ve ever heard that excuse for a fear of horses, but you’ve got a point.”
    Mark gave his brother a warning glance that was more amused than annoyed. “Don’t encourage her. She shouldn’t be afraid of horses.”
    Bridget leaned closer. “I’m not sure it’s fear as much as I’m simply not familiar with them. The only horses I’ve ever seen were city creatures—police horses or ones hooked to carriages. The whole concept of getting up on one of those things isn’t a comfortable concept to me. I mean, if you want to know how to get from midtown to Canal Street on the subway, I’m your girl. You want to know the quickest route from point A to point B so the taxi driver doesn’t rip you off, ask me. Put me on a horse and I wouldn’t even know how to make the thing go. It’s not like you can put money in the slot and have it take off.”
    Matt chuckled. “Girl, you haven’t lived until you’ve ridden a horse.”
    “I’m fine with the subway and taxis, thank you very much. I prefer my modes of transportation to have wheels, not legs.”
    Todd emerged from the kitchen carrying three large platters. Bridget’s eyes widened at the sheer volume of food on her plate. “You expect me to eat