Daring Her Love Read Online Free PDF Page A

the familiar thickening in his throat and turned his attention back to the incredibly sweet and beautiful woman beside him.
    “Tell me about your family, Kat. Are you close?”
    “I’m close to my parents and my younger brother, and Bree’s mom is like a second mother to me. We’re really close, too.” She smiled and added, “And Hugh’s father, well, he treats everyone like they’re his children.”
    “Hal Braden is an amazing man, that’s for sure. His love has pulled me through more times than I’d like to admit.” He realized what he was about to reveal and changed the subject. “So you and I are both headed to the Braden ranch?”
    “You’re staying there?” Her eyes were wide, but it was the excitement in her eyes he couldn’t miss, and damn did he like it.
    “Yes, I am.” I’m a lucky bastard.
    “Oh, no. We can’t. You and I…”
    “Relax. It’s not like I’m going to take you on their kitchen floor.”
    “Oh, God,” she said in a whisper. She separated their hands, lowered the arm of the seat between them, and held up her palm, staving him off. “Stay there. Just…stay there.”
    He was amused by her sudden nervousness. “Whatever you say.”
    “God, Eric. I had no idea you knew them, much less were staying with them. What we did was supposed to be a one-time thing. A last fling; then I’d go back to looking for Mr. Right, and—”
    “Whoa. What?” He cocked a brow.
    She covered her mouth and closed her eyes for a beat. When she opened them, the worry was replaced with humor. “Looking for Mr. Right.”
    “You’re looking for a husband ?” A trickle of worry skittered through him.
    “No. Yes. I don’t know. Not exactly looking , just…trying not to attract the wrong type of guys.”
    He scoffed. He was totally the wrong type of guy, and yet he couldn’t imagine walking away from her.
    “What? Is it wrong to want to be adored? To want romance? With flowers and wine and sweet words that make my stomach flutter?” She sighed dreamily. “I used to live like tomorrow may never come, you know, less discriminatory with the guys I dated, staying out until all hours. And do you know where that got me? Not far, that’s for sure. I had tons of great sex, but great sex doesn’t equate to true love, and in my case, it equated to a lot of lonely nights after the great sex.” She shrugged, smiling like she was amused by her life. “Ten years of working the same job, several years of night classes for a business degree that I’ve never used, and wondering why my life wasn’t going where I wanted it to, and then Brianna met Hugh and everything changed.”
    She could have been reciting the soundtrack to his life.
    “I took stock in my life and what I wanted out of it, and a year ago I told my boss, Mack, whom I adore, that I wanted more , and he totally got it. I mean, where was I going as a bartender and a waitress? I confessed my dreams, poured my heart out to him, because really, he is so much more than a boss. He’s always been like an older brother I could tell anything to. I admitted that I wanted to do something to help others, something exciting, breathing life into the dreams of others. And trust me, I know how stupid that sounds, but Mack connected me with his friend Shea Steele, a public relations rep to the rich and famous, and she’s been mentoring me in PR day in and day out. I’ve probably got more diverse experience than half the PR reps out there. It’s been a wild and crazy ride, but I’ve always tried to face my fears, and this was just one of a few that I hadn’t conquered. My dream of owning my own business.”
    “So, this trip?”
    “This trip is about breaking free. Starting over. I quit my job, and I’m going for it.” She leaned in close and whispered, “Like our hookup. My last bite of cake before my big diet.”
    He smiled, but inside he felt the burn of longing. He didn’t want to be a last bite of cake. He wanted to be the whole