A Most Shocking Revelation by Kristi Gold Page B

still has another twenty minutes, so it’s not burning.” He raised his gaze to her. “I can’t say the same for myself.”
    She saw the longing in his eyes and she almost fell victim to it. Almost walked back into his arms. Only through sheer resolve did she keep from doing just that. “I need to take a shower before dinner, if that’s okay.”
    â€œMe, too, so I guess we should head back.”
    At least he hadn’t asked to join her in the shower, although that image came to Valerie in fine detail. Very fine detail.
    After he gathered up some wood, refusing her offer to help carry it, they started back to the house, not a word passing between them until they were inside. Only then did Gavin face her. “One more thing you need to know about me, Val.”
    â€œWhat’s that?”
    â€œI’m a determined man and I’m going to do everything within my power to convince you to stay.”
    When he turned and headed toward the hearth, Valerie escaped into the bedroom. She used the closed door for support for a few minutes before she walked to the drawer to retrieve her journal. Her hands trembled when she put pen to paper, but writing her thoughts might make the situation seem less surreal.
    Gavin O’Neal offered me the use of his classic car, showed me how to chop wood and kissed me. An amazing kiss that I couldn’t begin to describe. It was wrong, but then, it seems everything I’ve done lately has been wrong. My inability to keep my cool, my questionable plan, my kissing the sheriff. Definitely wrong. Then why does it feel so right?
    The sound of clanging bells drew Valerie up the stairs to the loft. She took her time on the ascent, recognizing she should probably turn back around and go to bed. Dinner had been nice, even if a bit tense. That tension should be reason enough to avoid him. But the prospect of spending just a few more minutes inGavin’s presence kept her going, step by step, until she reached the top. Until she reached him.
    Dressed in a black T-shirt covering faded jeans, he stood with his back to her at the pinball machine on the far wall. His brown hair curled slightly at his nape, spurring Valerie’s vision of him as a curly-haired toddler who’d probably charmed anyone who’d crossed his path, even back then. He had captivated her from the moment he’d walked into the diner, delivering smiles and compliments as easily as she’d doled out coffee. She’d given him a lot of grief for self-protection, fearing that she would find herself lost to him. And she worried that was exactly where she would be heading if she stayed.
    But stay she did, turning her attention to his large hands, so strong and square yet very gentle when he’d held her. His forearms, covered in a fine veneer of golden-brown hair, had prominent veins threaded through them, enhanced by his movements as he worked the machine without mercy. Everything about him was blatantly masculine, and he made her feel incredibly feminine. Before she’d met him, that might have bothered her, yet she was beginning to welcome it. Welcome being in his presence, even if that defied good sense.
    Shoring up her courage, Valerie walked to the side of the machine, keeping her hands at her sides in an effort not to smooth the concentration from his face. “Are you winning?”
    He aimed his grin on her, a smile calculated to take her breath—and it did. “I am now.” Stepping aside, he asked, “Do you want to try it out?”
    â€œI don’t want to interrupt your game.”
    â€œYou won’t, so take a shot.”
    â€œOkay.” She shifted in front of the machine and gave the black plunger a solid pull. The silver ball pinged against the bumpers, and before she could slam it with the flippers, it slipped into the awaiting drain. “I’m not any good at this.”
    â€œYou just have to concentrate.” He moved behind