Heart and Soul Read Online Free Page A

some sort of trust. Until he had that, he really didn’t need to be touching her.
    But keeping his hands off of her was a tougher job than Mike had ever imagined anything could be.
    If she stayed so close, he was going to lose control and grab her. He’d been edgy all night anyway, and this was shooting his control straight to hell.
    Leandra shrugged. “I haven’t finished my drink yet. And I plan on having more than one.”
    Fuck. Tossing back the rest of his drink, he tossed the bottle into a nearby trash can and gave her what he hoped was a nonchalant smile. “I’ll be heading out then.”
    She cocked her head, studying him with dark eyes. “What’s wrong with you?”
    Mike forced a smile. “Nothing. I’m gone. Got work to do.”
    As he tried to brush past her, she shrugged. “Have fun.”
    But he hadn’t taken two steps before he spun back around, staring at her hungrily. Fun . . . have fun . . .
    Screw this. Keeping his distance when he’d been trying to get close to her for the past three months? Hell, the past five years.
    He’d lost count of how many times he almost went after her. He’d always stopped though, a quiet little voice telling him she still wasn’t ready. If he kept waiting to see that despair fade from her eyes, he’d die an old man without so much as kissing her.
    Approaching her, he had the small pleasure of seeing her eyes widen just a little as she fell back a step. “What? What’s wrong?” she demanded, and unless he was mistaken, she was suddenly a little nervous.
    Mike just kept moving toward her until she had backed herself into the wall. Lifting his arms, he caged her between the wall and his body, lowering his head to breathe in the rich scent of her skin.
    “You’re what’s wrong, Leandra,” he whispered, brushing his lips against the small tattoo by her eye. She hadn’t bothered to have it removed, that sign of what she had once been.
    Her hands flew up, pushing him back. Mike only moved back a breath, staring down into her face as he stroked his fingers down her jawline. “You’re what’s wrong,” he repeated. “I think of you. Night and day. All the time. Wondering . . .”
    Lowering his mouth, he brushed his lips against hers. She gasped, a soft, startled little sound, and her hands tightened into fists against his chest. Barely a heartbeat passed before she tried to shove him back, harder this time. Mike didn’t budge, but he did lift his head to meet her gaze. “And what do you think about? Ways to get back at me?” she demanded hotly.
    Mike smiled. “No. Ways to get to you.” Leaning into her body, he pulled her flush against him. He cuddled the throbbing length of his cock against her abdomen and whispered, “Ways to make you feel what I feel. All I have to do is look at you, and I ache.”
    He felt it—a slight tremor in her body just before she started to soften against him. Then her body stiffened and she shook her head. An odd light entered her eyes just before she lowered her lashes, shielding herself from him. “That is something that cannot happen,” she said quietly.
    “Why not?” he asked, sliding one hand down her arm and lacing his fingers with hers. Lifting his hand, he looked at their palms pressed together, her smooth skin, dark as chocolate, and soft; his own skin seemed even paler against the warmth of hers. “Because of this?”
    A frown darkened her face as she turned her head, staring at their joined hands. Finally, a slight smile appeared on her face, one that looked terribly sad. Gently, she tugged her hand from his and placed it against his left side, on the scar just below his heart. “No, Mike. That has nothing to do with it; this does.”
    She’d put that mark on him five years ago as she fired a bullet into his chest just before she kidnapped a child away from him. She’d been blind, fiercely protecting what she thought was right; she’d done everything in her power to keep that child safe. When she’d discovered