Read Second Song Cowboy (Second Chance) for Free Online Page A

the door and bolted the lock. She turned and her gaze met his, a glimpse of surprise marring her features. He swept his hungry gaze over her tousled curls, swollen mouth, and fresh-faced beauty. “Did you hear that?” she asked.
    “Not really.” He shrugged and leaned his upper body against the headboard. He didn’t want to snoop.
    “All good things must end, unfortunately.”
    “You have to leave now?” He glanced at the clock on table. Eight-thirty. A sliver of disappointment swished through his stomach. He knew she’d leave, that was the unspoken agreement. Spending the night with April had only been a means to an end, to salve the deprivation of intimacy.
    He was fooling himself .
    He’d slept with April for something far more than a need for sex. He’d thought of her often over the years, and like anything good, a man could never forget completely.
    Now reality settled in.
    He watched her dig in the open suitcase on the chair, throwing things over the side. “I have a plane to catch. My manger expected me to be ready by now. But, I forgot to set a wakeup call. I was a little preoccupied.” She turned, clutching an armload of clothes to her chest while holding the sheet tight against her body. Didn’t she realize he’d seen every bit of her amazing body? Her green gaze jetted across his nudity and her tongue swept across her bottom lip. Yeah, their thoughts were on the same page. His dick twitched and came alive, but Dante knew it’d be a waste of effort. The beautiful lady was heading out the door, and by the looks of it, without any time for an encore.
    “You’re just as sexy in the morning,” he said.
    “I must look a wreck.” Her cheeks turned rosy making him want to kiss her even more, and not just on her lips.
    He shook his head. “Not even close.”
    “I should get ready.” She took a step toward the bathroom.
    With the pride of ten men , he needed to make this as easy as pie. He was good as throwing walls up when the need arose. “I guess duty calls,” he said, hating the disappointment that he couldn’t mask, but if she caught the leakage of his emotion, she didn’t show any sign. She seemed anxious to send him on his way.
    “Last night was great,” she said. “Better than great.”
    His heart pitched. “Maybe you could take some time away, come and visit?” What was he doing? What happened to making this ‘easy as pie?’
    Her gaze narrowed. “That’s a sweet offer, but…”
    “But what?” He scooted to the edge of the bed and placed his feet on the floor.
    “We knew last night would be all that we had.” She averted her eyes.
    “I’m not asking for your hand in marriage, April. I thought you might like to see the old farm. Visit your grandpa’s grave. You probably haven’t been—”
    “ I get enough grief from my manager. I don’t need you doing the same,” she snapped.
    He blinked. “Yeah, how could I mention your grandpa, right?” He stood, grabbed his boxers and jeans from the floor and dragged them on. “How could I think he was important now when you didn’t even bother with him while he was alive?” Shit! That was unnecessary. He opened his mouth to apologize, but before he could say one word, her gaze narrowed.
    “How dare you! How could you say that to me? You know nothing about what my relationship was like with Gramps.” Her lips thinned.
    Anger shot through him. “The hell I didn’t know. I knew enough. You were so busy that I stayed with him when he got sick. I took him back and forth to the doctor. I even worked his farm. I guess fame makes a person forget those who loved them,” he said as he slid into his shirt.
    “ Do you want an award? Maybe you should have called and told me he was sick? How was I supposed to know?” Her voice shook.
    He tore his hand through his hair. “ He was your family, sweetheart. If you’d been interested in what was happening with him you’d have known he was dying.” Sitting in the chair, he shoved his