Free Against Her Rules by Victoria Barbour Page B

ordinary people.”
      “Wish
I could say I chose to stay here, but my sister made the arrangements. I’ll
have to ask her how she found out about it.” And thank her. And kiss her. And
maybe even give her the Dali original she loved that hung over his mantel.
      “Well,
I do have a website. Some people just stumble on me by chance.” She smiled.
“So, let me ask you a business question. What do you think of the cottage? I’m
debating adding more, but I’m not sure if this setting would be as good as the
inn itself.”
      “I
might be a bit biased, because I know the hard work you put into this cottage,
but I think it’s fantastic. The inn is beautiful, but very posh. This place is
more down to earth. Although, the bathroom is a little dingy.”
      She
blushed. “I know. I wasn’t aware until I took a look. That’s on the list to get
fixed.” She poured a cup of coffee and moved to the recliner, curling her legs
up under her. “Should I go all out, jacuzzi and all, or keep it simple?”
      For
the next hour they talked about the inn, and her plans for expansion. From
there they talked about how his drawings were going, and after that it was just
general chitchat. At some point he’d propped some pillows in front of the fire
and moved to the floor as she became more and more comfortable in the recliner.
      He
wished she would join him on the floor, but this was likely for the best. Had
she been down there with him, he might not have been able to focus completely
on the conversation. And he was loving talking to her. When she let her guard
down she was animated, funny, and completely open. She wasn’t trying to impress
him, picking her words carefully. Rather, she just talked from the heart. It
allowed him the same freedom. He knew this wasn’t the time to try anything
romantic with her. That would come later, of that he was sure. This was his
time to prove that he wasn’t a cad. That she could talk to him, openly and
honestly, and he’d listen. He made sure that when he laughed, it was a
laugh-worthy moment. Most surprising of all was that he was completely satisfied
with how these hours were spent.
      When
she finally realized it was getting dark, she seemed reluctant to get up from
the chair.
      “This
was nice,” she said.
      “Sure
was,” he said, although it was beyond nice. It was heavenly.
      “Are
you coming up to the house for supper?”
      “I
am if you can’t come down here to join me,” he said.
      “Well,
I’ll be eating around seven —if you want to join me. There might be some other
people there too, but you’re welcome to come.”
      She
was lingering in the doorway. Normally he’d think that it was an invitation to
be kissed. But he had started to doubt his instincts when it came to this
woman. It took every ounce of restraint he had not to lean down and cup her
face in his hands. Not to sample just one quick taste of her full lips. But he
managed it. How, he didn’t know. But there was an ache in his groin as he
watched her walk up the hill. He stood there watching until she was out of
sight. And then stood there a little longer, just to cool off. Not seducing a
woman was hard work.

Chapter
Eight
      H e
didn’t even try to kiss me, Elsie thought as she dressed for supper. Her
head cheered this event. But there was another, deeper part of her that felt
rejected. It was her own fault. She couldn’t decide what she wanted when it
came to Cam. If he tried anything sexual she lashed out, even without thinking.
And yet her mind was full of scenarios of how the afternoon could have played
itself out.
      She
wondered what was wrong with her. The afternoon was perfect. He’d acted just as
he should have. Polite, friendly, attentive, funny. Still, there were times
when she just wished he’d pull her down to the floor, tell her to stop talking,
and then silence her with his mouth. She wondered what it would feel like to
have so much man hover above her. Would she feel