Susan Mallery: A Christmas Bride: Only Us: A Fool's Gold Holiday / The Sheik and the Christmas Bride

“Daddy, kiss her.”

It seemed easier to give in than to explain—at least that was what he told himself. He bent forward and lightly brushed Rina’s mouth with his own. There was a quick explosion of heat, then she drew back and sidestepped away.

“Now where are we putting those dancing snowmen?” she asked.

Rina had never been much of a believer in signs, but she was starting to rethink her position. Within a few hours of having a conversation with her friend Jesse about telling Cameron how she felt about him, he’d kissed her. Sure, it had been because of mistletoe and in front of his daughter and his dog. Hardly the hot, I’ve-been-desperately-in-love-with-you-for-months kiss she’d been hoping for, but still. It was a start.

After quietly leaving a sleepy Kaitlyn in her bed, Cameron and Carina returned to the living room. Before Cameron could offer her a drink or suggest a movie, Rina decided she had to make her move. Telling him how she felt wasn’t anything she could imagine doing, but showing him... He’d broken the physical barrier tonight, and she wasn’t going to stop the momentum now.

So when he looked at her and started to ask, “Do you want to—” she was ready.

She put her hands on his broad shoulders, raised herself on tiptoe and put her mouth on his.

For a second he didn’t react. There was only the ticking of the grandfather clock in the hall and Noah’s sigh as she settled back in her bed. Then slowly, his lips moved against hers.

Rina released the breath she’d been holding and allowed herself to relax. She tilted her head and leaned into him. His hands settled on her waist. But the best part was the sparks.

They were everywhere: floating around, dancing against her skin, swirling through her belly and heating the most interesting parts of her body. Loving Cameron meant wanting him. She’d been aware of the desire lurking inside her, but it was a need without substance. She hadn’t known if they had that magical chemistry that would add passion to friendship. Until now.

Now she longed for him even more than before. Her breasts ached to be stroked by him. Her thighs trembled and hunger burned. When he brushed his tongue against her lower lip, she parted for him immediately. When he swept inside, she felt herself getting lost in the moment, in the burning need and the taste of him.

Strong hands pulled her closer. She melted against him, curves to his hard planes, female to his male. At last, she thought. They were both in exactly the right place.

CHAPTER THREE

CAMERON FELT DESIRE rising up inside him, threatening to overwhelm him. Reminding himself that his friendship with Rina was more important than any single night didn’t seem to be working. While some might say taking things to the next level made sense, he knew better. If he and Rina were friends, he would never lose her. To do more was to risk what they had and he couldn’t imagine his life, or his daughter’s, without her.

Carefully, he drew back. His resolve nearly crumbled when he saw the passion in her blue eyes and realized her mouth was swollen with his kisses. She was all lush curves and temptation. He could see her breasts rising and falling with every breath and, for a second, he didn’t think he was strong enough to hold back. Then he reminded himself what was at stake and he managed to contain himself.

“Sorry about that,” he said lightly. “I guess I got carried away.”

He hoped that was enough. That she would accept the words and everything could go back to the way it was before. Wishful thinking, he realized when she spoke.

“I kissed you,” she told him.

He nodded.

“You kissed me back.”

Another nod.

“Cameron, I want more than what we have.”

She laid him bare with her words. But what would happen later, to him and his daughter, if she tired of them and walked away? That had been difficult enough for him to go through once. He couldn’t risk Kaitlyn, as well.

He drew in a breath. “I like what we have, Rina. We’re friends. Good friends. I don’t want that to change.”

The passion in her eyes bled away, replaced by despair. “Thanks but no thanks?” she asked, her voice low. Tears glistened before she looked down. “Let me guess. I’m not your type.”

“You are. It’s not that I don’t want you, I do. I just want our friendship more. If we started dating then everything would get complicated.”

“Dating?” Her voice rose. “Dating? Is that what you think this is about? I’m in love with you, you idiot. I’m here nearly every night, sharing dinner with you, laughing with you, talking about our days. I’m crazy about Kaitlyn. I’m doing everything I can to show you that I’m exactly who you need, who you should love and want and you think I’m interested in a date?”

He couldn’t have been more surprised if she’d taken out a baseball bat and hit him on the head. Love? He couldn’t begin to figure out what that meant.

Rina stepped back. In a matter of seconds, she was shrugging into her coat and had her purse in hand. And then she was gone. He was left standing in the middle of his living room, not sure what had happened, but knowing it was bad.

Noah raised her head and looked at him questioningly.

“I haven’t got a clue,” he told the dog. “Not a clue.”

Rina spent most of the weekend working with the holiday adoption committee. She was grateful to be running from meeting to meeting, helping write up descriptions and speaking with prospective owners. Being busy kept her from thinking and not thinking was much easier than feeling the burning emptiness. But come Monday morning, life would get much more complicated.

Her weekday started as they always did, with her going over to Cameron’s house to get Kaitlyn ready for school. She almost cancelled, but didn’t want to disappoint Kaitlyn. Shortly after Cameron and Kaitlyn had moved to town, Kaitlyn had put in an appearance in Rina’s grooming salon. She’d thought the girl was charming and Kaitlyn had asked to spend time there...which had led to the official sitting job from Cameron. But Rina rarely thought of it as a job. Kaitlyn had become so much more to her than her boss’s daughter.

Still, Rina wasn’t looking forward to seeing the man who had rejected her and trampled her dreams with one carefully worded statement.

She let herself into the house, as usual. The smell of coffee filled the warm and welcoming home. After hanging her jacket on the coat hanger by the door and dropping her backpack on the table in the foyer, she squared her shoulders, drew in a breath and walked into the kitchen.

Cameron was already there. He was freshly showered, wearing jeans and a long-sleeved shirt. His gaze was steady, if a little wary, his eyes the perfect color of green.

She wanted to run. Facing him after what she’d said would take more than she had in her. Only she refused to be rejected and be a coward.

“I wasn’t sure you’d come this morning,” he said.

“We have an agreement.”

“I know, it’s just...”

She poured herself a cup of coffee. At least her hands weren’t shaking. “It’s what you said,” she told him. “We’re friends.”

Somehow she would figure out a way to make that okay.

“You’re not going to disappear?”

“No.”

His body relaxed. “Okay. Good. We can get back to where we were, Rina. I know we can.”

Then he was more sure than she was. But she would try. Because of his daughter. Because she wasn’t the kind of person to run from trouble. And because friendship was better than nothing.

“I have a spelling test on Friday,” Kaitlyn said with a sigh later that afternoon. “My computer checks my spelling for me. Why do I have to learn words myself?”