How to Marry a Matador (Exclusive Sneak Preview) (22 page)

“How about if we just call it an appointment,
then? An arrangement between associates to go and see some art.
Besides,” he added temptingly, “I know who serves the best chile
rellenos in town.”

It was patently unfair of him to play the
food card. Gwen absolutely adored chile rellenos, almost as much as
she was starting to adore this man. “It’s a deal,” she said,
smiling broadly.

Dan walked Gwen back to the inn, night sounds
singing around them. He’d really jumped in headlong with this one,
but Dan couldn’t completely blame himself. With her lovely looks
and warm and charming personality, Gwen had led him right to it.
He’d been having such a good time with her at dinner, he couldn’t
bear having the evening end. The only remedy for that was to
suggest seeing her tomorrow. He didn’t have much going on at the
gallery, and what was left to do Megan could take care of.

Dan stole a glimpse of Gwen strolling beside
him in the moonlight and wished for a moment that things weren’t
transitory. But they were, and he’d need to remain aware of that.
Just because they’d planned to spend the day together didn’t mean
they’d have to become any more involved than they already were. He
liked Gwen, dammit. She was sensitive and sweet, and he felt good
when he was around her. Dan hadn’t felt this good about himself in
a very long while. He decided it was time.

They got to the exterior patio door of Gwen’s
private suite, and she opened her purse to withdraw the key, her
cheeks still aflame.

“I had a really great time tonight,” she
said, beaming up at him and feeling very much as if it had been a
date.

“Me too,” he said, stepping a fraction of an
inch closer. Sea-blue eyes washed over her, threatening to pull her
under. And boy, did she want to get swept away. “I’m glad you
agreed to see me tomorrow, even if it’s just an arrangement.”

Gwen sensed Dan could rearrange her heart
every which way, if she wasn’t careful. “I’m glad I’m seeing you
too,” she said, feeling the warmth in her cheeks.

“Ten o’clock work for you?” he asked, his
tone growing gravelly.

“Uh-huh,” she uttered, mesmerized by his
gaze.

He moved nearer now, his mouth just inches
away. “I’ll be damned if I don’t want to kiss you,” he said, his
voice a husky rasp.

And she’d be damned if she didn’t want him
to. “Dan…” she said, tilting up her chin and closing her eyes.

“But I won’t,” he said, snapping her back to
attention, eyes open. “Not now. Not here. Not like this…”

She started to speak as he brought his
fingers to her lips. “If ever I’ve seen a woman who deserves to be
kissed well, it’s you. But the timing has got to be right. You have
to be sure.” He cast a cursory glance at her wedding band and
backed away. “I need to be sure. Something tells me we’ve both gone
down a path neither of us wants to travel again.”

Gwen’s heart sank as her face burned hot. He
was right, and she knew it. Neither of them could risk foolishly
giving themselves away. It was only a kiss, but a kiss was often
the beginning. She was old enough to know that, and Dan clearly was
too.

Gwen couldn’t guess who’d broken Dan’s heart,
but he’d obviously been hurt just as much as she had.

“Good night, Gwen,” he said, shadows haunting
his face.

She watched him turn and walk away,
loneliness settling inside her like a large, heavy weight Gwen
feared she’d never shake.

She let herself into her empty room and cried
softly in the darkness, moonlight weeping in through slanted
blinds. If only she’d found a man like Dan ten years ago, maybe
neither of them would have had to live through these vestiges of
pain. But the past was long ago and should be forgotten, Gwen
thought, twisting the ring on her finger.

Perhaps meeting Dan now was a good thing, the
right thing for them both. Maybe they were meant to be stepping
stones, each of them strategically placed to help the other on to a
better life. They could be friends, confidants even, during her
short stay in Santa Fe. Maybe they’d each give the other someone to
lean on, somebody who really understood, for the first time in a
long time. That didn’t mean they’d have to start falling in
love.

Gwen sucked in a breath, praying it wasn’t
already too late. By the way her heart hammered against her chest,
she wasn’t sure.

****

End of Excerpt from

Santa Fe Fortune

****

Ginny Baird thanks you for reading her work

and hopes to hear from you soon.