Guardian Angel by Leanne Banks

to Kevin. On the other hand, she was having a hard time dismissing Trace’s strong appeal.
    â€œTime to go, Jason.” She turned to Robby. “It was nice meeting you. Your daddy’s very lucky to have you for a son.”
    Robby grinned. “I know.”
    She forced a laugh, tousling his hair. “I just bet you do. I guess I’ll see you at the next LAM meeting, Trace.”
    She wouldn’t meet his eyes, Trace noticed. She stood, looking as if she were ready to run. He knew he couldn’t stop her, couldn’t fight what stood between them until he found out what it was. But he could give her something to think about in the meantime.
    He stood too. “You’re forgetting something.”
    After wiping Jason’s chin, she finally looked at him. “What?” she asked, her voice edgy.
    He clasped her hand and pressed a coupon into her palm. Her hand trembled the way he predicted her body would when he made love to her.
    Her eyebrows drew together in puzzlement. “What’s this for?”
    He smiled. To make sure she understood him, he spoke with deliberate temptation and challenge. “Whatever you want.”
    Her cheeks flushed as she tried to shove the coupon back at him.
    â€œYou’re blushing,” he murmured:
    â€œI never blush,” she shot back, her embarrassment turning to anger. “I’m not fair enough to blush.”
    â€œWhatever you say,” he said.
    Talia was tempted to pick up her bowl of ice cream and dump it on his handsome head, just to wipe that insufferable grin off his face.
    She let the anger guide her. It was the only clear emotion in her bloodstream at the moment. Like a cornered animal, she struck out, going for Trace’s jugular.
    â€œThe only thing I want from any Barringer,” she said with lethal precision, “is money for my charity. They have nothing else to offer me.”
    She immediately felt like pond scum.
    Unable to meet Trace’s gaze, she clasped Jason’s hand and pulled him firmly to the door. Deliberately hurting Trace made her stomach churn with guilt and regret. But she had to make it clear there was no future for them.
    She was certain she’d dampened his ardor, hurt his ego, until she heard his taunting voice.
    â€œChicken.”

Chapter Five
    Not one word. That was exactly what she heard from Trace Barringer after Saturday night’s ice cream. Sometimes Talia wondered if instead of hearing him softly call her a chicken, she’d just dreamed it.
    It was a sad day when a Barringer called a McKenzie chicken and got away with it.
    Sadder still, her conscience chided, when it was the truth.
    She was beginning to feel like a very inept opponent in this battle for her…for her what? Virtue? She laughed out loud at the thought.
    She’d technically lost her virtue five years earlier during her one puny attempt at a serious relationship. Between helping Kevin recover from his ordeal and taking over the sub shop, there’d been little time for romance, and the young man had grown impatient with her responsibilities.
    It must not have been too serious, Talia had concluded, because when he’d called it quits, she’d felt more relief than regret.
    She just wished she felt no regret over Trace Barringer. But she had never been good at lying to herself. The blatant invitation Trace extended with his sexy voice and eyes was almost too tempting.
    So she spent the next several days trying to brainwash herself. She figured if it worked for governments and religious cults, it might work for her. Her best hope lay in the fact that Lung Awareness Month would be over in five weeks, and her ties to Trace Barringer severed. She carried out her daily activities while chanting “Just five more weeks,” and when that didn’t work, she listed Trace’s faults. He was arrogant. He had a bad memory. He was too rich, too well educated and too handsome. He had a smart mouth.