Western Ties: Compass Brothers, Book 4 Read Online Free PDF Page A

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    “I’ll answer. I swear I will, but it’s not that easy for me. We’re friends, Saw. But just because I’ve known you my entire life doesn’t mean I’m comfortable revealing my most secret desires to you. Maybe if you went first…”
    “I’ve missed you.”
    She frowned. “What?”
    “We used to be really close. I’ve missed talking to you.”
    “I wrote and called. We did lunch whenever you were home.”
    He frowned. “A dozen meetings, broken up by phone calls, emails and those damn letters from the kids don’t count. I missed hearing your voice, seeing your face every day.”
    He’d missed her. It was a sweet admission, one she hadn’t expected to hear.  
    Back in school, she’d spent more time with Sam because of their class schedule. She and Sam were in the honors courses, while Sawyer tended to excel at the electives—gym, shop class. Their paths simply didn’t cross that often during the day.
      Instead, she and Sawyer had found time to hang out after school. Sawyer had been a regular in the diner where she worked and on days when she was off, they’d stroll around Compton Pass or roam around his family’s ranch—just talking, dreaming about their futures.
    In some ways, she’d found it easier to hang around Sam. He was less intimidating, less threatening to her well-being. Not that she’d ever been afraid of Sawyer. He was just too…too…
    God. He was too everything.
    “I missed you too.”  
    Sawyer ran his finger along her neck, dragging it over her cleavage. Her eyes drifted closed, enjoying the warmth and sensuality of his simple touch. “Wanna know a secret?”
    “What?”
    “I always thought you liked Sam more. You two had a lot more in common than you and me.”
    She shook her head. “God no. I mean, Sam’s a nice guy, but…” She paused, trying not to insult his twin.
    “You don’t want nice either, do you, Leah?”
    “Of course I do.”
    He pinched her nipple. The rough touch was completely unexpected, yet it set off an earthquake of desire in her body. She threw her head back, hitting it against the door hard enough that she saw stars.  
    “Ouch.”
    Sawyer chuckled.  
    She narrowed her eyes. “That was mean.”
    He gently rubbed her scalp. “I know. Want me to do it again?”
    She laughed at Sawyer’s brash sense of fun. Her life had been too serious for too long. This time with him was a welcome reprieve, even if her expectations for the party had taken a dramatic turn from what she’d planned.
    “You like the pain?” he asked.
    She let her silence answer the question. Hopefully it would be enough and again she was grateful for the darkness. A natural redhead, she had the tendency to blush often. Heat crept to her face as she considered all the things she wanted.  
    She took a deep breath. “I have a tendency to attract rather weak-willed men.”
    Sawyer didn’t laugh, though she could tell he wanted to by his sardonic response. “I wonder why that is.”  
    “If you’re insinuating that I’m a control freak—”
    “Sam calls you a force to be reckoned with.”
    She sighed. “I’m sure he does. I’m tired, Sawyer. So freaking exhausted.”
    “Of what?”
    “I’ve been working since I was twelve. Do you know what I used my babysitting money for?”
    Sawyer shook his head.
    “It went toward paying the electric bill. As soon as I was old enough to wait tables with my mom, I started working at the diner. My mother insisted I was going to have a better life than her so whenever I wasn’t waitressing, I was studying so I could get a scholarship to go to college. I had two jobs while I was at the university. After graduation, I went to Compton Pass and started teaching. I’ve spent my whole life working, trying to take charge of my destiny, so I didn’t end up stuck in the damn diner forever.”
    Sawyer’s hands engulfed her waist. She wasn’t sure how that simple touch could convey so much, but it comforted her.  
    “I’m sick