Then Came You: A Prequel to The McPhee Clan Read Online Free PDF

the window, stood the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen. Golden hair like liquid sunshine, porcelain skin, angelic beauty that made his heart skip to a stop. Transfixed, his soul sighed as if in wonder, and when she laughed, he could feel it lilting inside him.
    Determination filled him now. He patted the horses, straightened up, resisting the tug of longing within. He'd been waiting all this time for her to notice him. For her to realize that the little things he did for her—bringing in wood, fetching water, making sure she had the most reliable horse on the ranch for her trips into town—had nothing to do with his job. But because he loved her.
    And that's why he would see her safely home. He would do everything he could for her, hoping one day she would take a good long look and see him differently, see a man she could love.

Chapter Three

     
    "Too bad the storm didn't hold off until sundown, the way you cowboys predicted." Maebry's teeth chattered behind her woolen muffler, trying to ignore the affect of Gil's presence as she swept snow off the wagon seat for him. "I'd have worn my winter long johns."
    "Me, too." He dropped down beside her, taking command of the reins. An abominable snowman would have been less snowy. White clung to him everywhere—the brim of his hat, his eyebrows, his muffler wrapped loosely around his throat. He gave the reins a snap. "I don't even have a horse blanket to offer you. Are you doing okay? You're not too cold, are you?"
    "I'm tougher than I look." Her spine straightened. She had to be. "Besides, we're almost home."
    "True, but that might be easier said than done." He pulled up his muffler one handed, as the wagon rocked forward cautiously in the heavy accumulation. The snow pounded down so thick and furious that you couldn't see the horses at all. "This is going to get interesting."
    "Keep high and center." She smiled against the scratchy wool of her muffler. "At least that's what Lawrence told me."
    "Funny." He leaned into the storm, as if to will them through. "Any more driving advice you want to give? It takes a certain skill to get a wagon stuck that badly."
    "It was the snow." Why did she always want to laugh when she was in this man's presence? It was a total mystery. She should be too frozen to talk, she should be upset about the wagon—she knew Maureen was going to have a fit if she heard about it—plus the fact that her attempts to thwart Lawrence's interest in her had backfired, making the whole situation worse. He'd offered to try to pay off Maureen! Craziness.
    "Sure, it was the snow. That was the reason," Gil teased gently. "It wasn't your driving."
    "Glad you understand." She smiled against her muffler, feeling her breath begin to freeze to the coarse wool. "The road was all white, so I couldn't see the mud."
    "A likely story." Humor rumbled through him, his chuckle warm as stove-top molasses. Caring resonated in his eyes.
    Caring.
    Honest and unguarded. Something she'd never noticed before.
    "You look cold," he observed.
    "Yes, as it's well below freezing." She tried to smile, but she wasn't sure her mouth was working properly. Probably because she was mesmerized by him. Surprised at the unexpected realization of how Gil felt.
    How he really shouldn't be feeling. Her chest ached with a strange sorrow. Because it was one thing to have a crush on a man when you knew your heart was safe. It was another to see that caring reflected back at you. She stared straight ahead into the storm, seeing only whiteness. It would have been better if she'd never seen caring in his eyes. Much easier.
    Somehow the fact that nothing could ever come of his feelings was worse. Gil knew that her life was not her own. It wouldn't be until she was almost thirty, too many years for a man to wait, even if he was interested.
    Best to pretend she'd never noticed the caring in his gaze. She bowed her head, stared down at her gloved hands. "I'm not cold at all."
    "Your teeth are chattering."
    "No,