Free The Sheriff's Secret Wife by Christyne Butler Page B

There was no way he would take her back to deal with her loser brothers. Of course, he hadn't thought much past that decision until they'd gotten to his front door. He'd found himself aiming twice to get the key in the lock as images of Racy's flame-red hair and naked skin against the dark sheets of his king-size bed filled his head.

Damn, it was hot in here.

He didn't know if it was the fire or the flannel pajama pants, an old habit from living with his family he'd broken once he'd moved out. Going from the shower to his bed naked had quickly become the norm.

Not tonight. Tonight, there was a sexy-as-all-get-out woman curled up in his bed. And not just any woman. His wife.

He'd thought he'd seen a flash of something—passion, maybe—in her eyes when he'd called her Mrs. Steele back in her office. But when she'd found her matching letter from the Nevada bar association, she'd looked more like she was going to be sick to her stomach.

Other than a strained silence or biting retorts, they hadn't discussed what they were going to do about the fact they were still legally married.

Gage grabbed the mail he'd dumped on the coffee table when he'd first walked in. He opened a heavy white envelope. A handwritten note fell from the card inside. He angled it toward the fire to read the delicate writing.
    Dear Gage,
     
    Since you're a member of the wedding party, you already have this information, but it's only fair you get an invite in case you want to bring a date.
    Yeah, right. Thanks to his work schedule and being a hands-on contractor for this place, the last time he'd been on a date was well over a year ago. Not counting Vegas, of course.
    Your friendship has always meant so much to me and now to Landon, as well. Thanks for being part of our special day.
     
    Love, Maggie and Landon
     
    P.S. I promise I won't pair up you and Racy!
    He crushed the note and tossed it into the fire. Rising, he walked around the end of the couch and stopped when he reached the glass doors that led to the two-level deck he'd put the final nail in last month. The storm clouds had blown away. A full moon shined down on the snow and reflected in the dark, glasslike surface of the lake.

He thought again about the last line of the note. You and Racy. Except for that lost weekend five months ago, there'd never been a "him and Racy."

No, that wasn't true.

Years ago, on a spring night, right here at Echo Lake.

A senior anxious for graduation, he'd come to the lake looking for some quiet time. What he'd found instead was sixteen-year-old Racy Dillon.

He closed his eyes against the memory, but it came anyway.

"Hey there."

She whipped her head around, a mess of red curls flying over her shoulder. Damn, she was pretty. Perched on a rock near the edge of the lake, her legs bare except for her once-white sneakers. Cutoff jean shorts revealed miles of skin, and a white collared shirt outlined her breasts. Racy Dillon had filled out with curves in all the right places early on.

So had her reputation, but he didn't believe half the stuff the guys boasted about her in the locker room. The other half? Well, she never seemed to be lonely.

"What the hell are you doing here?" She pressed whatever she was holding close to her chest.

He leaned against the closest tree. "Looking for some peace and quiet. Like you."

"Without your posse of hanger-ons?" She glanced around as if looking for a crowd. "Gee, I didn't know you could stand your own company."

Gage shook his head. Being the sheriff's eldest son and the captain of the football team, most of the kids spent more time sucking up to him than anything else. Not Racy. Last year, she'd called him out on a wrong answer in front of everyone in English lit, despite her being a freshman in an upper-level class, and she hadn't backed down since.

Neither did he. "Yeah, and you're here with your friends."

The pain in her eyes told him he'd hit his mark. "Get lost, Steele."

She turned away and went back to