Prince Charming Can Wait (Ever After) Read Online Free PDF Page A

stairs, she jogged down the cobblestone path toward the lake and into the merciful silence of nature.
    Clouds were thick in the sky, blocking the moon. The lake and the woods were dark, swallowing up light and life, like a soothing blanket of nothingness coating the night. She needed to get away from the world she didn't belong to, the one that had no place for her. Tears were thick in her throat, her eyes stinging as she ran. The stones were wet from the rain earlier in the day, and the cool dampness sent chills through her.
    She reached the dock and leapt out on the damp wood. Her foot slipped, and she yelped as she lost her balance—
    Strong hands shot out and grabbed her around the waist, catching her before she fell into the water. Shrieking in surprise, she jerked free, twisting out of range. The evasive move sent her off balance again, her feet went out from under her, and she was falling—
    And again, someone grabbed her. "Hey," a low voice said. "I'm not going to hurt you."
    Emma froze at the sound of the voice she knew so well, the one that had haunted her for so many sleepless nights. The voice she thought she'd never hear again, because he'd been gone for so long. "Harlan?"
    "Yeah."
    Emma spun around in his grasp, and her breath caught as she saw his shadowed face. His eyes were dark and hooded in the filtered light, his cheekbones more prominent than they had been the last time she'd seen him. Heavy stubble framed his face, and his hair was long and ragged around the base of his neck. He was leaner than she remembered, but his muscles were more defined, straining at his tee shirt. He looked grungy and real, a man who lived by the earth every day of his life. He exuded pure strength and a raw appeal that ignited something deep within her. She instinctively leaned toward him, into the strength that emanated from him. His hands felt hot and invasive where they clasped her hips, but she had no urge to push him away.
    Damn him. After not seeing him for a year, he still affected her beyond reason.
    "You're back," she managed.
    "Yeah."
    Again, the one word answer. He had never said much more than that to her, but she'd seen him watching her intently on countless occasions, his piercing blue eyes roiling with so much unspoken emotion and turbulence. She managed a smile, trying to hide the intensity of her reaction to seeing him. "Astrid didn't mention you would be here."
    "She doesn't know." Again, he fell silent, but he raised one hand and lifted a lock of her hair, thumbing it gently. "Like silk," he said softly. "Just as I always thought it would feel."
    Her heart began to pound now. There was no way to stop it, not when she was so close to him, not when she could feel his hands on her, a touch she'd craved since the first time she'd seen him. It had been two years ago, the day she'd walked back into her life in Birch Crossing. He had been leaning against the deli counter in Wright's, his arms folded over his chest, his blue eyes watching so intently.
    And now he was here, in these woods, holding onto her.
    His grip was strong, but his touch was gentle in her hair as he filtered the strands through his fingers. "You've thought about my hair before?" she asked. Ridiculous question, but it tumbled out anyway. And she wanted to know. Had he really thought about her before? Was she not alone in the way her mind had wandered to him so many nights when she hadn't been able to sleep?
    His gaze met hers, and for a second, heat seemed to explode between them. Then he dropped his hands from her and stepped back. The loss of his touch was like ice cold water drenching her, and she had to hug herself to keep from reaching out for him.
    "Tell Astrid I was here," he said. "I'm leaving again—"
    "What?" She couldn't hold back the protest. "Already? Why?"
    "I have a job."
    That job. That mysterious job. He had never told Astrid, or anyone else in town, where he went when he disappeared. Sometimes, he was in town for months, playing