Kara caught a reflection of herself in the mirror inside the wardrobe door and wished she had brought the long dressing gown instead of this one that barely came to her knees.  She remembered the hanger she still held and curiously opened it only to catch her breath.  He wanted her to wear this?Slowly she took it out of the protective cover and stared at it in shock.  The dress he had bought her would stop well above her knee and it had a tie over the right shoulder leaving the other bare.  It was black and tastefully sexy and she wondered if she should really wear this outfit.  But then, he had left her no choice in the matter.With a sigh, she hung the dress against the wardrobe door and started putting on make-up and doing her hair.  With her hair tied up in a style that kept it out of her face, but allowed delicate curls to hang around her face and to her back she finally turned to the dress with a sigh.  Staring at it for a few

Kara awoke somewhat, but even before she was fully awake, she became aware of a pounding headache.  She groaned as she pushed her face against the warmth in front of her.  For some reason the scent that came to her nostrils calmed her slightly, but the headache still lingered. With a shock she realized that she was snuggling against someone.  She bolted upright in bed and regretted it almost instantly when a wave of nausea came over her. Jumping from the bed she ran to the bathroom across the hall and threw up in the toilet.  With a groan she glanced down at what she was wearing and gasped.  What did she do last night?  She didn’t…?  The moment her stomach stopped its antics, she slowly got up and washed out her mouth and rinsed her face.  Gingerly she made her way back to the room, grateful that no one else seemed to be awake to see her.  Her head was pounding and she wished she could remember what she had done th

Kara was up early the next morning, even before the men while she poured over her books to see if she could make much sense of what her granddad had left her.  She had finished four cups of coffee and several cookies while she worked, before Brad even showed up.  The knock on the door brought her back to the present and she raised her eyes and realized that the sun had risen.  She left her office to answer the door and found a disheveled looking Brad standing in the living room while Thelma headed towards her study.  Kara had a moment of confusion, since she had not even heard Thelma come in that morning.  Had she been so consumed in what she was doing that she had not only lost time but also did not hear Thelma come in?  But she was quick to shake herself into the present as she smiled and stepped forward to welcome Brad after she greeted and thanked Thelma.  “Good morning, Brad.  Would you like some coffee?”  She

Seven o’clock Saturday evening, Kara was ready and just as she came into the living room, she heard Brad’s car pull up outside.  She had been a little late with getting ready, since she had lost track of time while training the horse and letting her mind wander on Matthew.  Something she just could not seem to stop doing for some reason. Kara opened the door and smiled welcoming at Brad as he came up the stairs in casual jeans, which was new to her.  She had always seen him in a suit, except at her welcoming party, but that had been a more formal look.  His gray eyes sparkled with humor, like they always did. He looked comfortable in the jeans and the checked beige button-up shirt he wore.  As he came to stand in front of her, he planted a confident kiss on her cheek, startling her slightly with the ease of the action; she was still not used to the ease with which people tended to touch others.  Then he glanced over her outfit with a smi

He was glad that this year was still warm at this time in autumn.  Matthew had gone riding when he could not get the picture of Kara kissing Brad’s cheek out of his mind.  He had wanted to shove Brad away and pull her possessively into his arms.  She was his.  In her anger and passion, in her laughter and tears; he wanted her to belong to him and no one else.Business on the ranch had kept him from visiting her, though he had wanted to before now, but he had forced himself to stay away when he walked into the house late in the evenings.  This time of year they all worked until late to get everything done for the winter.  She had things keeping her busy too and undoubtedly she was also exhausted when she walked into her house in the evenings. He knew with her situation she probably had more to do and more on her mind than he did.  And though he had considered offering her help he was not sure if she would accept it; she was