Debra Webb - In His Touch Box Set (Here To Stay, Up Close, Tempting Trace, Basic Instincts) Read Online Free PDF Page A

flung them on the floor.
    She grimaced when she saw the blood on her shirt. She craned her neck to see the cut in the mirror. A small gash marred her skin. Not too bad. She took a steadying breath and pushed back the sour taste that rose in her throat.
    She slipped into the welcoming warmth of the water and pressed her back against the cold porcelain tub. The gash stung for a moment. She sighed as the heat relaxed her tired body. Maybe if she stayed in here long enough, Nathan would just go away.
    ~*~
    Nathan heaved a disgusted breath and set the plate containing the ham sandwich and chips he had prepared on the kitchen table. The painters had gone, but the place still reeked of fresh paint. He opened the fridge and removed a can of cola. He closed the door, braced himself against the cool, white surface and squeezed his eyes shut. Why did she have to come back? After all this time, why didn’t she just stay gone?
    Seeing her again was like pouring salt in a wound that had never healed. In spite of everything, Nathan still wanted her. But he couldn’t have her. Wouldn’t have her. Not after the way she had hurt him. He’d rather be alone the rest of his life than take a chance on having his heart broken again by Paige Weston.
    He reached into a cupboard and retrieved the first aid kit Robert had kept in the same place for as long as he could remember. A smile tugged at his lips as he thought of all the skinned knees and elbows he and Paige had patched up on each other over the years. His heart twisted with the memory of her little tradition of kissing the hurt and making it all better. He shook off the thought and the feelings it evoked, then tucked the first aid kit under his arm. The sooner he stopped dredging up the past, the better off he’d be.
    Nathan trudged up the stairs and down the long hall that led to her room. He opened the door, stepped into the room and inhaled the steamy air and the scent of Paige. He closed his eyes and forced away the need that jolted his soul. He summoned up the courage he knew it would take to touch her and stepped closer to the closed bathroom door.
    “Are you ready for me to come in, Paige?” he asked, his voice hoarse with the need he couldn’t will away.
    “No, but since I know you won’t leave until you’ve done what you think you have to do, come in.” She pulled the door open and stepped back for him to enter the suddenly too-tiny room.
    Nathan moistened his lips and allowed his hungry eyes to travel over her. Clad in a long pink terry cloth robe, what little of her skin he could see glistened, dewy and smooth. She’d brushed her wet hair back from her face. Those big blue eyes were a definite threat to his belief that he could deal with her proximity and not lose his sanity. Her face had been scrubbed clean and looked fresh and much younger than her years.
    The day’s date hit Nathan like a blow to his midsection. He frowned and lowered his gaze. “I forgot that yesterday was your birthday.” He felt ashamed that he hadn’t remembered her thirtieth birthday. But why should he remember? They were nothing to each other anymore. He was probably less than nothing to her.
    “No big deal. Here.” She turned her back to him and dropped her robe off her slender shoulders. “Get it over with.”
    Nathan’s body ached as his gaze moved over the creamy, smooth expanse of her shoulders. He tried to breathe but it seemed near impossible. He set the first aid kit on the sink and hesitantly allowed his fingers to trace the outline of the small, ragged wound. She shifted then settled beneath his touch. His breath, shallow and uneven, was the only sound in the room.
    Nathan dabbed antiseptic on the injury, eliciting a gasp from her. “Sorry,” he muttered and quickly blew on the smarting flesh. She shivered. He clutched the sink with his free hand and squeezed until he felt certain the porcelain would crack. He willed the rush of need to retreat.
    “Better?” he asked. She