Kiss of an Angel Read Online Free PDF Page A

gentleness she’d used before.
    “You remember the sleet storm, right?” she asked.
    “Yeah. I got hit in the head just as the sky split wide open.” Her fingers probed an especially sensitive area and he winced and sucked in a harsh breath. “Hey, watch it!”
    “Sorry,” she mumbled, and continued on with a bit more care. “I was on my horse, Daisy, when I saw your body by the creek.”
    As a stall tactic, he had to admit her approach was original and quite effective. He turned his head slightly and found himself eye level with her breasts. He tried focusing on the nondescript material of her shirt, but his gaze kept straying to the collar, where the first three buttons were undone, granting him a more enticing view of creamy flesh and wisps of satin and lace.
    She shifted from one foot to the other. A gold pendant nestled between her breasts caught his attention. The piece of gold looked ancient, with a swirled design that was neither unique nor spectacular, yet he had the strangest urge to reach out and touch the medallion.
    Troubled by the lure of something so insignificant, he frowned and averted his gaze back to the slope of her breast, which only served to prompt fantasies in which he had no right to indulge. He closed his eyes, a low moan escaping him. Hell, what was it about this woman that made him want her so badly?
    “I’m sorry,” she said, obviously misinterpreting his aches and pains. “I wish we had some ice for your head. It sure would help ease the pain and take down the swelling.”
    “You’re absolutely right,” he said through clenched teeth. Except he needed the ice in his lap, not on his head! “Stop trying to distract me and quit avoiding my questions,” he growled, turning his head forward once again.
    “I’m not,” she replied, her fingers still touching and exploring.
    “You are.”
    “Don’t be such a grouch. I’m only concerned about you.”
    “Leave me alone. There’s nothing you can do about my head anyway.” She ignored him and pressed the swollen perimeter of his bump. Brilliant sparks of pain exploded in his head.
     He grimaced. “Dammit, Caitlan! Enough!” Grabbing her wrists, he jerked her away, pinning her with a scowl he hoped she’d interpret as intimidating. “Sit down.”
    Any woman with a lick of sense would have heeded his tone and expression and done as he ordered, but she only tossed him an indulgent look that made him feel like a small boy. “Are you always this bossy?”
    “I
am
the boss.”
    “Of this ranch?”
    “Yes.” He let go of her hands, enjoying too much the feel of her soft, warm skin and wanting even more to pull her onto his lap and kiss some compliance into her. A long, deep, lazy kiss ought to do the trick, he thought, then immediately chastised himself for entertaining the notion. He didn’t want involvements and entanglements with this woman, or any woman, for that matter. The tragic loss of Amanda and a bitter, loveless marriage had taught him that he had no emotion left to give. As soon as they arrived at his ranch house, she’d be back on her way to wherever she’d come from, and that’s exactly how he wanted things.
    She rubbed her wrists, as if branded by his touch. He saw the awareness in her eyes, a hint of confusion, and knew she felt the same sizzle of attraction he did. Looking away, she walked to the other side of the table and sat down in her chair.
    “I don’t even know your name,” she said softly.
    “J.T. Rafferty, and you’re doing it again,” he said, unable to keep his exasperation from his voice.
    “I’m just curious about you,” came her innocent reply.
    “Then we have something in common, because I’m more than a little curious about you. Answer my question, Caitlan.”
    “Which was?”
    A broken laugh escaped him, a cross between irritation and mild amusement. He rubbed the taut muscles at the back of his neck and sighed. If any other woman had dared to provoke him like this, he would have