Free A Glimmer of Hope: A Novella Prequel to Isle of Hope by Julie Lessman Page B

this much?”
    “ Very little steam,” he emphasized with a twist of his mouth, stripping his shirt off and handing it over.
    The shirt was still warm from his body, and between the faint scent of Obsession and the sight of his bare muscled chest, Lacey didn’t need a blanket to keep her warm anymore. Slipping into the shed, she stripped her tank and her jeans off and slipped on Jack’s T-shirt, which practically came down to her knees. Bundling everything into a ball, she carried it out to where he stood with his back to her, staring at the water with his hands on his hips.
    “I’m rea-dy,” she said in a musical tone, laying her wet clothes aside as she picked up the blanket, giddy at the thought of him holding her in his arms.
    He turned, and the minute their eyes met, Lacey swore she felt a jolt of electricity. “Wrap up in the blanket first,” he whispered, his voice husky and hoarse.
    “Yes, sir.” Her face deadpan, she took her sweet time while his gaze heated her skin like a laser. Once she had the blanket securely wrapped, she crooked her index finger, lower lip caught in her teeth. “Now it’s your turn, Brye,” she said softly, “to keep your future fiancée warm.”
    A lump ducked in his throat several times before he slowly moved forward, his expression so deadly serious, Lacey had to stifle a giggle. Swooping her up in his arms, he lowered into his chair with her on his lap, not even sparing time for a kiss. “So what happened with your dad?” he said quietly, instantly popping Lacey’s bubble of “steam.”
    She flopped against his chest with a heavy sigh. “Oh, just the basic demoralization. Temper detonation followed by crushing of one’s confidence, ruination of one’s day, and grinding anything good into the ground that he possibly can. You know, standard Ben Carmichael issue.”
    “And instilling bitterness?” Jack whispered against Lacey’s wet hair.
    She froze before she shot straight up in his lap, any steam she’d hoped for coming from her ears. “Oh, no, Jack, we’re not doing this ‘pray for those who persecute you’ garbage again, are we?” Temper flaring, she flung the blanket off her shoulders just to tick him off. “Why do you always take my dad’s side?”
    “I don’t take your dad’s side,” he said, jerking the blanket back up. He bundled her up like a mummy before cupping her face in his hands. “When it comes to you, he’s wrong, and I make no bones about it, but you’re the one I care about, Lace, the one I love with every fiber of my being. Which means, yes, I think your dad is a royal jerk, and yes, I’d like to lay him out, but that’s not what’s best for you .” He paused to catch his breath, chest expanding and contracting while his thumbs slowly skimmed her jaw. “And make no mistake, Alycia Anne Carmichael,” he whispered, the intensity in his eyes as warm as the touch of his hand, “you are my only concern here, that nothing he says or does will poison you with bitterness and anger.”
    He moved in so close, his breath teased her lips, the scent of Tootsie Roll fluttering her stomach. With a lingering caress of fingers to her cheek, he slowly swayed his mouth against hers, building to a heated kiss that left them both breathless. Pulling away, he tunneled his fingers into her hair to tenderly hold her head, gaze gentle. “Bitterness is a cancer, Lace, and in my world, if someone really and truly loves someone, why on earth would they feed that bitterness and help it to grow? I’m not going to do that, babe, because I love you too much, and I don’t want anything to hurt you. And trust me on this, Mike, your anger and bitterness toward your dad will hurt you far more than anything he ever says or does.”
    She huffed out a sigh to deflect the tears that pricked. “Why did I have to fall in love with a future minister?”
    His chuckle warmed her more than the stupid blanket he’d wound around her like a straight jacket. With a soft