Free A Tender Touch: A Donnelley Brother's Novel (Logan Point Book 4) by Alannah Carbonneau Page A

and my mind to relax as Luke moved us to the melody of the crackling fire.
    I don’t know how long he held me like that for, but when I was certain I couldn’t keep my eyes open any longer, Luke lifted me into his arms bridal style, as though he knew I was a mere moment away from slipping into the peace of sleep.
    He carried me down the hall to my bedroom, and he placed me into my bed, pulling the blankets up around me. I wanted to ask him to stay, but for the life of me, I could not form the words. I wasn’t coherent enough to understand the repercussions of those words, so I remained silent as he moved from the room, leaving the door cracked open behind him.
    And then I settled into sleep.

Chapter 8
    I woke up way too early the next morning, but my mouth was dry as sandpaper and the inside of my head felt fuzzy. Squinting, I pressed the small round button on the face of my iPhone and watched the screen illuminate. It was 5:26 a.m. and the sun was beginning to peek through the darkness of the night sky. I loved the early sun both spring and summer offered. In the winter months, I missed the sun with a fierceness I couldn’t explain - but right now, this morning, I dreaded its glow.
    Flopping back against my pillow, I replayed the evening’s events. I remembered coming home with Luke - and how he had been a perfect gentleman. Not once had he taken advantage of my intoxicated, needy state. Instead, he’d done all I’d asked with a kind gentleness I would forever remember and never take for granted.
    As I recalled the feel of his arms holding me close as we danced, I couldn’t banish the heat that formed in my lower belly and the emotion in my chest. Never had I felt so safe and secure in the presence of a man - never. Even in the days before my father’s abandonment, I’d never known the security I’d felt only last night in Luke’s arms.
    Shaking the thought from my mind, I pushed the blankets from my body and padded to the bathroom. Finishing my morning business, I brushed my teeth and swished mouthwash around my mouth as I struggled to kill the dryness left in my mouth from the wine I had consumed the night before.
    As I moved from the hall, into the kitchen, I paused in place as my heart began to pound unsteadily in my chest. The sight of Luke’s big body lying across the too short length of the couch stopped me dead in my tracks.
    He’d stayed the night?
    I took a moment to debate what to do from here. I knew he worked long days at the barn, but I didn’t know what time he normally went to the barn. Was he late? Should I wake him?
    Decidedly, I moved quietly to the pantry where I pulled the coffee pot and coffee from the back of the shelf where Kami had stored it when she’d put away my groceries the first time. I hadn’t opened the canister of coffee because I don’t drink the stuff, and Kami hadn’t been here early enough in the morning for me to bother making it for her.
    I set the pot to brewing and poured myself a glass of orange juice. After downing half the cup, I set it on the counter and moved to the living room where a large sleeping Luke was lying on my little couch.
    “Luke?” I spoke his name quietly, not wanting to startle him. I’d never woken a man and hadn’t been planning on doing so today. When he didn’t stir, I reached out to touch his shoulder. “Luke, wake up.”
    His eyes fluttered and he groaned. “What time is it?”
    “Almost six.”
    “Shit.” He pushed himself into a sitting position. “How are you awake?”
    “I don’t like to sleep in.” I replied honestly. The truth was that I’d never had the time to sleep in. If I didn’t have to sleep to keep a healthy mind and body, I would forego the action entirely. In my mind, sleeping was a waste of valuable time.
    “You’re the weirdest person I know.” He rubbed his brow. “You were up until almost one in the morning.” He peeked up at me through sleepy chocolate eyes and I didn’t bother expending any