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When she turned to head up the stairs, he caught hold of her hand.
“Yes, Dylan?” she asked.
“I want to kiss you good-night, Charm.”
As if she needed to kiss him, too, she turned to him and his arms went to her waist to pull her closer. He leaned forward and so did she. The moment his tongue captured hers, shivers passed through him. He figured it would not have been so bad if she hadn’t seemed just as greedy.
Suddenly, she broke off the kiss and took a step back. “I need to go.” Then, without saying anything else, he watched her race up the stairs.
Seventeen
When was the last time a guitar was played and a song sung beneath Charm’s bedroom window? Never. No one had ever serenaded her before. Yet it was happening now. Getting out of bed, she slid into her robe before walking over to the window. Pushing aside the curtain, her breath caught. Dylan had a Stetson on his head, and he was wearing a Western shirt, jeans and boots. He looked like a cowboy.
Sliding up the window, she smiled down at him. “What are you doing?”
He grinned up at her. “I’m serenading you awake. You were supposed to meet me at eight.”
She turned to glance at the clock. It was after nine. Looking back out the window, she said, “I’m so sorry. I didn’t set the alarm and overslept. I’ll be down in a minute.”
“No rush. Eat breakfast first. I left it warming for you.”
That was thoughtful of him. “Thanks. And thanks for the serenade. I loved it.”
Charm closed the window. Grabbing items she needed, she quickly moved toward the shower. She had intended to wake up before eight but those hot dreams of Dylan had pushed her into a deep, relaxed sleep.
It didn’t take her long to shower, dress and eat the delicious breakfast Dylan had left for her. When she walked out the front door he was there, with his guitar over his shoulder. The look in his eyes let her know he liked her outfit as much as she liked his.
“So what’s the plan for today?”
“First thing is milking the cows. Have you ever done that before?”
He had to be kidding. Of course she hadn’t. “No, but I thought that sort of thing was done by machines,” she said, following him off the porch toward the barn.
“Usually it is, but we’re not a dairy. There are just a few cows, like Molly, that we prefer milking the old-fashioned way.”
Dylan’s legs were long and he’d adjusted his stride so she could keep up with him. She appreciated that. When they reached the barn, she was amazed how neat it was. She smiled when she saw Ren and waved. Then Dylan introduced her to some of the other guys who worked at the ranch. It didn’t take long for him to show her the proper way to milk a cow. It felt funny at first but then she got the hang of it. A couple of hours later they had milked four cows.
“What’s next?” she asked, proud of her accomplishments for that morning.
Dylan smiled. “I’d like to show you more of the property and then we’ll have a picnic by the lake.”
A picnic sounded nice and she told him so.
“Glad you like it. I told Hazel to have a picnic basket ready at noon. It’s probably been prepared by now.”
It had been and when they returned to the main house, just like yesterday, Hazel met them the moment they walked up the steps. Dylan quickly moved to relieve Hazel of the huge basket. “Is this lunchanddinner?” he asked, grinning, letting both women know how heavy the basket was.
“No, but knowing how beautiful that spot is by the lake, I figured you two would want to stay a while.”
Although Charm smiled at the woman’s words, the last thing she wanted was to stay a while anywhere with Dylan. But she had a mission to accomplish. To do what she needed to do meant taking advantage of every opportunity for them to spend time together.
“I think Hazel has the right idea,” Dylan whispered while they walked toward his SUV. “You’re going to love this spot.”
Charm had a feeling she would. So far she’d liked every place Dylan had shown her on his ranch. A part of her wished things had been different and she didn’t have revenge on her mind.
She stood by the vehicle and watched him put the basket in the back and when he returned to her he pulled her into his arms. A part of her wanted to resist him, but when he drew her closer, her body went willingly and eagerly. At that moment her mind and body were in turmoil.
“You okay, Charm?”
