[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
. Her muffled sigh poured over him. Please just leave.We ve said everything that needed saying. The finality in her voice almost sent him to his knees. I haven t.Not by a damn sight.Open thedoor for me, baby. Something hit the door.Her head, he suspected. I m trying to make this easy for you. Fuck easy. We re too different.This never would have worked. Reed laid his palms flat on the door, his pulse kicking up a notch. Would have worked, Julie? Hope flared.Hope that he might have a chance. Did you& had you considered it? Us? For long moments, all he got was silence. Yes.I thought about how it would be a disaster.Ithought about how you would belittle the things that I consider important.Just like you ve done sincethe wedding started.All those events you ridiculed and made a joke out of? I planned them.It s what Ido.It s what I ll always do, Reed.I make things pretty.And you hate pretty. Jesus, pixie& please, stop. He pinched the bridge of his nose. I don t like hearing how I hurtyou.That I& would hurt you.I don t like it. To his utter shock, the door eased open.Julie stood framed by light, looking so fragile and beautifulhe stopped breathing, afraid he might interrupt that beauty.There was more, though.She had fire in her eyes, as if she d finally reached the end of her fraying rope.Damn it, he should have been there tocatch her when it snapped. Reed, if you came here to get me into bed, t-to prove some stupid point,you should know I ve already taken out a potted plant today and I m working my way up to somethingbigger.I Her gaze shot wide as it traveled down his body. Why are you wearing a tuxedo? Jesus, he was sweating.At least he d diverted her anger. The bet we made.At the scavengerhunt. He relaxed slightly when recognition dawned on her face, followed by confusion. I told you Iwon, which was true. His voice went husky, and he held out his hand. I wouldn t trade the prize thatfollowed for anything.But I consider making you happy the bigger win, Julie.I wanted to& show youthat. Julie stared at his outstretched hand for what seemed like an eternity.When she finally took it, cool,slim fingers slipped through his larger ones, locking them together.The stiffness in his shouldersrelaxed just slightly.He wanted to pull her into his arms, but judging from her wary gaze, it wouldsend her packing.It didn t stop the urge from gripping him.She looked stressed out.His body knewhow to relieve that stress.His nature demanded he distract her from her troubles the only way heknew how.But his brain, and yeah, his heart, told him it wouldn t work this time.Jesus, that scared the hell out of him.Reed did his best to calm the rising fear as they walked past the lobby area and wound downanother hallway.At the very end, he pushed open a heavy wooden door leading to the solarium he dfound earlier after his head-clearing walk.He breathed a mental sigh of relief to find it empty, savethe plush furniture and bookcases full of reading material.Rain pelted the glass ceiling, the reasonhe d specifically chosen this particular room to bring Julie.He closed the door behind them, lockedit, and watched her wander through the room, taking it in.Even he, who admittedly didn t know adamn thing about romance, could appreciate the atmosphere.Soft lamplight, the smell of leather, nosound except the falling rain.Even so, her stiff posture remained.He took a deep breath and waitedfor her to see the blanket and deck of cards he d laid out in front of the window.Julie paused at the edge of the flannel. What s this? I.uh& He crossed to her, sat down on the floor. I thought we could play go fish.Since it sraining outside and all. Reed could feel her staring at the top of his head, but he couldn t look up at her, instead busyinghimself shuffling the deck of cards he d purchased at the gift shop.Damn it, he d put himself out therewith this plan.It could very well be all wrong.Who s to say she wanted to remember her sister thisway? Doing something they, as sisters, had shared exclusively? Who s to say she wanted him to be apart of that? Reed braced for the worst, fearing her rejection.If she walked out now, he didn t knowif he d recover.So he waited.When she plopped down in front of him, shifting slowly into a cross-legged position, he couldn t prevent a tiny sigh of relief from escaping.When he started to deal the cards, Julie stopped him with a hand on his. Wait. Her voice sounded husky. I have to cut the deck.With my eyes closed.It s tradition. Okay. Their gazes locked for a heavy moment, before her eyelids slid down to cover the blue eyes hemissed immediately.She lifted the top half of the deck, nodding to indicate he should place the bottomhalf over it, which Reed did before taking back the deck.He didn t take his eyes off her the entiretime.Couldn t.She looked so incredibly soft sitting in the dim light, shadows cast by the swayingtrees outside playing over her face.With her dress spread out around her on the floor, looking likesomething out of a fairy tale, it took every ounce of Reed s willpower not to drag her across theblanket.As a child, he d never had quiet moments like this.It struck him then that while he d arrangedthis for her, to commemorate the anniversary of Serena s passing, it seemed to be filling some long-empty void inside him as well. You re not allowed to let me win.Serena always let me win. Reed thought for a moment. How do you throw a game of go fish? It all depends on the cardsyou re dealt. Julie picked up the cards Reed tossed in front of her. She d ask me for cards she knew I didn thave.Cards she already held, I suppose.I d tell her to go fish so many times, she d have her wholehand full after five turns.I d always run out first. She smoothed her hand over the blanket. I knewthe whole time, but I never said anything.I liked winning.Isn t that silly? Two girls sitting there,playing a pointless game when the outcome had already been determined? When her breath hitched on the last word, he knew she was rambling to hide her emotions.Again,he quashed the need to comfort physically and focused on what she d said. It s not silly.You wereboth giving each other what you needed.The game was just an excuse to accomplish that. Julie frowned, shook her head. I m the one who got to win.What did Serena get out of it? She got to spend time with you. Her eyes widened in a way Reed couldn t interpret.The reactionmade him want to backpedal.Make a joke.But he heard Colton in his head.Tell her what you rethinking, even if it sounds stupid.He cleared his throat uncomfortably. Why do you think she lovedthe rain so much, pixie? It meant spending time with her little sister. Chapter SeventeenJulie stared across the blanket at Reed, his words hanging in the air between them.A dozen thoughtsswam in her mind at once.I must not have been that terrible after all.If Serena suffered throughrainstorms and boring card games just to be with me.She d had no idea until this moment that mostof her insecurities stemmed from her distorted view of their times together.Her guilt had warped herpoint of view over the years [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]
zanotowane.pl doc.pisz.pl pdf.pisz.pl milosnikstop.keep.pl
. Her muffled sigh poured over him. Please just leave.We ve said everything that needed saying. The finality in her voice almost sent him to his knees. I haven t.Not by a damn sight.Open thedoor for me, baby. Something hit the door.Her head, he suspected. I m trying to make this easy for you. Fuck easy. We re too different.This never would have worked. Reed laid his palms flat on the door, his pulse kicking up a notch. Would have worked, Julie? Hope flared.Hope that he might have a chance. Did you& had you considered it? Us? For long moments, all he got was silence. Yes.I thought about how it would be a disaster.Ithought about how you would belittle the things that I consider important.Just like you ve done sincethe wedding started.All those events you ridiculed and made a joke out of? I planned them.It s what Ido.It s what I ll always do, Reed.I make things pretty.And you hate pretty. Jesus, pixie& please, stop. He pinched the bridge of his nose. I don t like hearing how I hurtyou.That I& would hurt you.I don t like it. To his utter shock, the door eased open.Julie stood framed by light, looking so fragile and beautifulhe stopped breathing, afraid he might interrupt that beauty.There was more, though.She had fire in her eyes, as if she d finally reached the end of her fraying rope.Damn it, he should have been there tocatch her when it snapped. Reed, if you came here to get me into bed, t-to prove some stupid point,you should know I ve already taken out a potted plant today and I m working my way up to somethingbigger.I Her gaze shot wide as it traveled down his body. Why are you wearing a tuxedo? Jesus, he was sweating.At least he d diverted her anger. The bet we made.At the scavengerhunt. He relaxed slightly when recognition dawned on her face, followed by confusion. I told you Iwon, which was true. His voice went husky, and he held out his hand. I wouldn t trade the prize thatfollowed for anything.But I consider making you happy the bigger win, Julie.I wanted to& show youthat. Julie stared at his outstretched hand for what seemed like an eternity.When she finally took it, cool,slim fingers slipped through his larger ones, locking them together.The stiffness in his shouldersrelaxed just slightly.He wanted to pull her into his arms, but judging from her wary gaze, it wouldsend her packing.It didn t stop the urge from gripping him.She looked stressed out.His body knewhow to relieve that stress.His nature demanded he distract her from her troubles the only way heknew how.But his brain, and yeah, his heart, told him it wouldn t work this time.Jesus, that scared the hell out of him.Reed did his best to calm the rising fear as they walked past the lobby area and wound downanother hallway.At the very end, he pushed open a heavy wooden door leading to the solarium he dfound earlier after his head-clearing walk.He breathed a mental sigh of relief to find it empty, savethe plush furniture and bookcases full of reading material.Rain pelted the glass ceiling, the reasonhe d specifically chosen this particular room to bring Julie.He closed the door behind them, lockedit, and watched her wander through the room, taking it in.Even he, who admittedly didn t know adamn thing about romance, could appreciate the atmosphere.Soft lamplight, the smell of leather, nosound except the falling rain.Even so, her stiff posture remained.He took a deep breath and waitedfor her to see the blanket and deck of cards he d laid out in front of the window.Julie paused at the edge of the flannel. What s this? I.uh& He crossed to her, sat down on the floor. I thought we could play go fish.Since it sraining outside and all. Reed could feel her staring at the top of his head, but he couldn t look up at her, instead busyinghimself shuffling the deck of cards he d purchased at the gift shop.Damn it, he d put himself out therewith this plan.It could very well be all wrong.Who s to say she wanted to remember her sister thisway? Doing something they, as sisters, had shared exclusively? Who s to say she wanted him to be apart of that? Reed braced for the worst, fearing her rejection.If she walked out now, he didn t knowif he d recover.So he waited.When she plopped down in front of him, shifting slowly into a cross-legged position, he couldn t prevent a tiny sigh of relief from escaping.When he started to deal the cards, Julie stopped him with a hand on his. Wait. Her voice sounded husky. I have to cut the deck.With my eyes closed.It s tradition. Okay. Their gazes locked for a heavy moment, before her eyelids slid down to cover the blue eyes hemissed immediately.She lifted the top half of the deck, nodding to indicate he should place the bottomhalf over it, which Reed did before taking back the deck.He didn t take his eyes off her the entiretime.Couldn t.She looked so incredibly soft sitting in the dim light, shadows cast by the swayingtrees outside playing over her face.With her dress spread out around her on the floor, looking likesomething out of a fairy tale, it took every ounce of Reed s willpower not to drag her across theblanket.As a child, he d never had quiet moments like this.It struck him then that while he d arrangedthis for her, to commemorate the anniversary of Serena s passing, it seemed to be filling some long-empty void inside him as well. You re not allowed to let me win.Serena always let me win. Reed thought for a moment. How do you throw a game of go fish? It all depends on the cardsyou re dealt. Julie picked up the cards Reed tossed in front of her. She d ask me for cards she knew I didn thave.Cards she already held, I suppose.I d tell her to go fish so many times, she d have her wholehand full after five turns.I d always run out first. She smoothed her hand over the blanket. I knewthe whole time, but I never said anything.I liked winning.Isn t that silly? Two girls sitting there,playing a pointless game when the outcome had already been determined? When her breath hitched on the last word, he knew she was rambling to hide her emotions.Again,he quashed the need to comfort physically and focused on what she d said. It s not silly.You wereboth giving each other what you needed.The game was just an excuse to accomplish that. Julie frowned, shook her head. I m the one who got to win.What did Serena get out of it? She got to spend time with you. Her eyes widened in a way Reed couldn t interpret.The reactionmade him want to backpedal.Make a joke.But he heard Colton in his head.Tell her what you rethinking, even if it sounds stupid.He cleared his throat uncomfortably. Why do you think she lovedthe rain so much, pixie? It meant spending time with her little sister. Chapter SeventeenJulie stared across the blanket at Reed, his words hanging in the air between them.A dozen thoughtsswam in her mind at once.I must not have been that terrible after all.If Serena suffered throughrainstorms and boring card games just to be with me.She d had no idea until this moment that mostof her insecurities stemmed from her distorted view of their times together.Her guilt had warped herpoint of view over the years [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]