Read Playing With Fire (Guarded Hearts) for Free Online Page A

met her in September. I'd tried to go home with girls after she told me we couldn't hang out anymore, but I could never go through with it. Before then, I definitely had my fair share of girls, but I never treated them like whores. I just never had a relationship.
    "What do you mean, Maddy? I know you're not a whore! I don't know who's telling you things about me, but it's not true! I haven't been with anyone since the first day I met you. I haven't wanted anyone else!" I got up and made my way over to her. I kissed her. She needed to feel how I felt about her.
    She pushed me away. "Carter, I can't do this." Her eyes betrayed her. She wanted me just as much as I wanted her.
    "Why not?"
    "I just can't right now." Shit, she was crying. I held her and walked her over to the couch.
    "I'm sorry I pushed you. I'll back off, I promise."
    She let me hold her for a few minutes, then got up. "I'm going to go to bed now. I'll see you in the morning."
    God, I hoped I didn't just blow it.
     
     
    Madison
     
    I woke up in the morning to the smell of bacon. Was I dreaming? I walked out of the bedroom and saw Carter in the kitchen...cooking. I didn't remember the last time someone made me breakfast. It had to have been before my mom died.
    I was just watching him move around the kitchen. He hadn't noticed me yet. He was so amazing. I didn't know what I did to have someone like him care about me. I closed the bedroom door and he turned around to look at me. He gave me his to die for smile. He looked so cute, I couldn't help but smile back at him.
    "I hope you like bacon and eggs. I made some coffee too."
    "Carter, that is so nice of you, thank you." I didn't think he understood how much everything he did for me meant. I walked over to him and gave him a hug. He tensed for a minute and I second-guessed myself, but then he wrapped his arms around me.
    He was probably scared to touch me after last night. I didn't know what had come over me, but I'd just heard Chris yelling in my head how he only wanted me to be his whore. "You know, I don't think anyone has ever cooked for me, at least not that I can remember."
    I saw a look of sadness cross his face. "Well, that's a damn shame. If you were mine, I'd cook for you all the time." He has no idea how much I wanted to be his. "It would be a very limited menu, and you'd have to sign a waiver saying if you got sick you couldn't blame me. However, if you were willing to take the risk, I'd do it."
    I laughed. He was so adorable. I wanted to cook for him too. Maybe I could help with dinner tomorrow. "You're too good to me. I'll have to make it up to you one night." I just realized how bad that sounded. I hope he didn't take it that way. I was really falling for Carter, but there was no way I was ready to do that with him.
    He put the food down on the table and then walked back over to the counter where I was still standing. "You don't have to make anything up to me. I do things for you because I want to, not because I want something in return." He kissed me on the forehead, then went to sit at the table.
    It took me a second to remember how to walk. I'd never had a relationship where someone didn't want something in return. I went and sat down next to him and started to eat. Damn, he could cook too? "This is really good."
    He looked up at me and smiled. "So, how about you? Can you cook?"
    Here we go. "Yeah, I actually can. When I was growing up, if I didn't cook, I didn't eat." I didn't know why I was always so honest with him. I trusted Carter, which was scary because I hadn't trusted anyone in a really long time. "Does your dad cook?"
    "No, not unless you count frozen meals." He started laughing and so did I. This felt so right and so normal. "Hey, I have an idea. We usually just do take out for Thanksgiving, but since you're coming home with me, would you want to cook? I could be your assistant."
    He wanted me to cook? With him? At his house for Thanksgiving dinner? I guessed it would be a nice way to