Stolen Son

Ella Mason knows Rafe Wallace is keeping a secret, but she doesn't care. For the first time since her son was stolen five years before, she's happy, thanks to the new man in her life.

Rafe hates lying to Ella, but what choice does he have? His agenda has everything to do with taking care of his son, and nothing can stop him from meeting it--not even loving Ella.

Excerpt

“This is getting to be a habit.”

“What is?” She handed him a bowl of pasta salad.

“Eating together.” He scooped pasta onto his plate. “First those scrumptious omelets, now salad and sandwiches.”

She started to panic. Was she coming on too strong?

“Ella, are those ham sandwiches on the plate you’re holding?”

She set aside her anxiety and said, “Yes, they are.” She handed him the plate of sandwiches. “What were you saying about eating breakfast and lunch together today?”

“I said it’s getting to be a habit.”

“Not a bad one, I hope.”

“No, indeed. It’s a pleasure, something I might be able to get used to. But I suppose I shouldn’t expect to eat like a gourmet every day while I’m working for you, huh?”

She blushed at his appreciative compliment about her cooking. “I guess not. That wasn’t part of our agreement.”

“No, but it would be a nice fringe benefit.”

The pink in her cheeks had to be deepening after a comment like that. She studied him hoping to determine if he were merely flirting or if there was some degree of sincerity in what he’d said. He was completely unreadable to her. She had no idea what he was thinking.

“What do you like to do besides teach, garden and cook?” He poured himself a glass of lemonade then he poured one for her.

She shrugged. “I don’t have time to do much else, but I do like to quilt and sew.”

He wiped his mouth with his napkin after taking a bite of salad. “Mm-hmm. Anything else?”

“I love to go horseback riding, listen to classical music and take a picnic lunch to the country where I can eat slowly and read all afternoon.”

He took another bite of salad and nodded thoughtfully. “I like the sound of that. We should do that together sometime.”

“I beg your pardon?” Startled by what he’d said, she nearly forgot to chew the chunk of ham sandwich she’d bitten.

“I’m being presumptuous, aren’t I? I shouldn’t have just assumed you might want to share one of your favorite pastimes with me.”

“No, that’s okay.” She took a calming breath. He’d just asked her on a date, hadn’t he? She took a minute to see if she could remember how to play the he-she game. “But don’t you think you’re too busy to take the time off?”

He smiled at her and sipped lemonade. “I’ll work overtime a couple of days so the woman I’m working for will give me a few hours off.”

She couldn’t help but return his smile.

He sat forward and tilted his head to one side. “It just so happens I have an acquaintance who lives a couple of miles from here who has some horses. He’s out of town this week and next, and he’s asked me to take care of his animals for him. If you’d like, we could go riding on Wednesday.” He leaned toward her. “Does that appeal to you at all?”

If only he knew how much she’d love an afternoon like he’d proposed. The idea of spending time riding again was a dream. Having the opportunity to get to know Rafe better was even more appealing.

She carefully tried to hide the internal enthusiasm about to explode through her pores. “A nice, long ride might be fun, and the day after tomorrow would be perfect.”

“Good. I’ll look forward to it.”

“I could bring a picnic lunch.”

“I was hoping you’d offer. If that lunch is as tasty as this one, I’ll feel like I’m enjoying the fruits of the Garden of Eden.”

She smiled at him engagingly. “Don’t worry. I won’t tempt you with anything that will get us into trouble.”