Read Christmas in Cowboy Country for Free Online

about the elderly residents who had flocked to Shep Connally after Chuck Pfeffer introduced the man.
    Call it a rude awakening for her and Marshall Stone.
    Annie wasn’t going to obsess over it.
    Not when he was this close to her and they were as alone as they might ever be. She turned to look at him, realizing that he was keeping the same respectful distance. But when his eyes met hers, she felt a much stronger connection.
    â€œAre you—going to be staying here in Colorado for a while?” The question hung in the air. She almost felt like someone else had asked it.
    â€œMaybe,” he replied.
    With a flash of chagrin, Annie guessed from the amused gleam in his eyes and her own sentimental rush of emotion that she had to be looking up at him as wistfully as a lovelorn teenager. Which was so not like her. And she certainly didn’t want to give him the impression that she’d dragged him into a doorway with the intention of kissing him. Still and all, it had been way too long since she’d kissed anyone. And there he was. Everything she wanted in a man and then some.
    Stone closed the distance between them with one long step and took her in his arms. Then he angled his head over hers, supporting the nape of her neck with one large hand and pulling her body nearer to his with the other. Gently but insistently, he brushed his lips against her cheek and pressed a kiss to her closed lips.
    She wanted him to. She sank her hands into his hair, loving the silky thickness of it.
    With an almost inaudible moan, she parted her lips. He deepened the kiss and strengthened his hold on her, sliding his hand from her neck to slowly caress her back. Up and down. The pressure of his hand was sensual and easy, but it soon intensified. The hand around her waist went lower too, rounding over the back pockets of her jeans in full appreciation of the curves beneath the snug denim.
    Soon both of his hands were well below her belt. Gently, he lifted her up by her behind so she could easily throw her arms around his neck and kiss him back just as hard, once her mouth was level with his.
    Annie was literally floating in air, her boots off the ground. The sensation was strongly erotic. She used her thighs to get a grip on him, clasping his narrow hips with the same muscles she used to ride horses.
    He might not be a cowboy, but he sure as hell kissed like one.
    Murmuring some interesting ideas in her ear about taking this as far as she wanted to go, Marshall pressed her back against the narrow wall, swiftly freeing his hands and helping her support herself by pressing into her. She tried to concentrate on staying up, but it was far from easy when those big hands moved to her breasts, circling both at the same time.
    He stopped and inserted an exploring finger between them, looking at her hopefully. “Front clasp?”
    Annie shook her head. Stone seemed a little disappointed, but he went back to what he’d been doing.
    A button on her shirt gave up and popped. He bent his head.
    Annie breathed raggedly, her mouth open against his, her body quivering with excitement, not quite believing that this was still only a kiss.
    The cool tile was a sharp contrast to the heat of the big, muscular body that had her pinned. They weren’t in plain sight, because there was no one on the street, but if anyone walked by, they could be seen.
    Annie almost didn’t care. The way he handled her—with tender care and a dash of roughness that conveyed the ultimate in masculinity—had her dazed and craving much more.
    Distantly, she heard the doors of the town hall creak. Men came out, talking loudly and joshing each other. She didn’t recognize the voices. Not anyone she knew. She couldn’t see them.
    But Marshall swore under his breath and released his grip, letting her slide down and out of his embrace. “That’s Chuck. Gotta stop. Sorry. I don’t want to get caught.”
    â€œExcuse me?” She