Free Tears of the Renegade by Linda Howard Page B

than what we owe him! He’d jump at the deal, but you’d be losing a fortune. No, there’s no way I can let you do that.”
    â€œThere’s no way you can stop me,” she reminded him, giving him a tender smile. She’d gladly give up a fortune to keep her family intact and safe. Preston had his faults, as did Imogene, but she knew that they’d never turn their backs on her, no matter what happened. They weren’t easy people to know—the stiff-necked Blackstone pride and arrogance was present in abundance in both of them—but they also had aloyalty that went all the way to the bone. When she married Vance Blackstone, she had been taken into the family and guaranteed its protection. Preston had been a lifesaver for her when Vance died, pushing his own grief for his brother aside to comfort her and protect her to the best of his ability. Even Imogene, whose proud head had never lowered even on the day of Vance’s funeral, had helped Susan by showing her a gritty courage and determination that wouldn’t falter.
    Preston’s frustration was evident in his eyes as he glared at her. “I don’t like it when you use that soft, sweet tone of voice. That means you’ve dug in your heels and won’t budge, doesn’t it?”
    A sound in the outer office alerted them to the arrival of their secretary, Beryl Murphy. Knowing that they both had a lot of paperwork to handle, Susan got to her feet and used that excuse to escape to her own office, even though she knew Preston wanted to try to talk her out of letting Cord have the ridges. Blue fire was in his gaze as he watched her leave the office, but Beryl was already approaching with the first of the day’s crises, and he groaned in momentary surrender.
    Susan had a stack of reports left on her desk from the Friday before, and she dutifully began reading them, but before long she’d lost the thread of meaning as her mind worried at every angle of the deal she’d be offering Cord.
    She really needed to know the monetary value of the oil leases on the ridges before making a deal, but on the other hand, she didn’t want to wait before approaching Cord about it. Though he could file charges immediately, she didn’t think he would; he would wait, as much to worry everyone as to make up his mind. He probably had already made up his mind, she realized with a burst of panic. Should she wait, or should she tell him right away about the deal? Finally she decided to approach him immediately, before hecould take any legal action. If any formal charges were ever made, there would be no way of keeping them from becoming public knowledge, and that would hurt her in-laws enormously.
    The realization that she would have to see him, that day if possible, sent a chill down her spine. Just the thought of being close to him again made her blood tumble madly through her veins, whether in dread or anticipation she couldn’t say. The way he had kissed her the day before was still seared into her mind, and she couldn’t get the taste of his mouth from her lips, or rub from her skin the lingering sensation of the soft brush of his moustache and beard. He was a dangerous animal, but he appealed to her on a primitive level that she had never before suspected existed within herself. She wanted him, and her body’s longing made every meeting with him hazardous, because she wasn’t certain of her mind’s ability to retain control.
    But how silky his beard was! Not bristly at all, but soft and sensuous. Was the hair all over his body as soft as that? An image of his nude form sprang into her mind, and a wave of heat washed over her, forcing her to take off the suit jacket she was still wearing.
    My God, what was she thinking?
    It was useless to entertain daydreams of him. Oh, he’d willingly use her sexually, but for reasons that had nothing to do with being attracted to her personally. Her feminine spirit