Page 50 of Winning Back His Wife
He smiled, a wide smile showing off straight white teeth and crinkling the corners of his eyes. He looked gorgeous. Even more so than usual.
She gripped her laptop. “I didn’t hear you come in.”
“That’s what happens when you’re concentrating.”
His tone teased, but he was right. She’d lost herself in her work and forgotten about everything else. She could lose herself in Cullen if she wasn’t careful. “I may be trying too hard.”
He stood next to her, looking over her shoulder. “Head hurt?”
His concern warmed her like a fleece blanket. All she’d wanted was to be special to him. But he cared about everyone’s well-being, not just hers. That was one reason he’d become a doctor. He’d mentioned Blaine as the other. She hadn’t understood why until last week. Cullen might not have been able to save his twin brother, but he was doing his best to save others. “My head is fine. The data is causing me problems.”
“Wrong?”
“Data is data. It can’t be wrong. But my interpretation might be off,” she admitted. “Things are inconclusive right now. I have a suspicion I may have started with too many preconceived notions.”
He leaned forward, putting his hand on her shoulder. His male scent wrapped around her. His heat enveloped her. “Why do you think that?”
Cullen sounded interested, as if he really wanted to know what she was thinking. Tenderness and affection and attraction exploded in her chest. She glanced at the graph, trying to ignore her racing pulse, the pooling of desire, the longing for connection squeezing her tight. “Well...”
The numbers and lines blurred. She blinked. Everything was still fuzzy. Her head didn’t hurt. It wasn’t her concussion. All she could think about, all she wanted to see was...
Cullen.
Her heart pounded as hard as the surf ramming against the coast of Hawaii’s Big Island.
Oh, no. She was falling for him.
Realization nearly bowled her over. Not quite the same explosive force of five hundred atomic bombs detonating as had marked the Mount Saint Helens eruption, but enough to send a chunk of molten lava crashing to the bottom of her stomach and taking up permanent residence there.
Sarah struggled to breathe. Whatever happened, she couldn’t fall all the way. That would be catastrophic.
“Sarah?”
“I—I thought my gut instinct was correct.” She forced words past the constriction in her throat. “I’ve been looking at data to support a hypothesis. Not looking at the data with an open mind.”
Similar to what she’d done falling for him.
He sat on the couch. “It’s not too late to go back over it.”
“I’m sure I can remedy this.”
Because she knew exactly where she’d gone wrong. Tucker wanted her back at the institute ASAP. He’d mentioned it again during their phone call this morning. She should have left by now. But she had stayed trying to work the data so she wouldn’t have to go back.
Talk about stupid. She could be the poster child for the movement.
“Sarah?”
“Sorry.” If she weren’t careful he’d think she’d suffered another head injury. “I’m...frustrated.”
She had a job to do. A responsibility to the institute. She’d messed up her analysis. Not to mention allowing her feelings for Cullen to...deepen.
“Hey, don’t look so sad. It’ll be okay.” He touched her hand. “Cut yourself some slack. You’re still recovering.” He rubbed her hand. His calloused thumb made circles on her skin, leaving a trail of heat and tingles. “You’ve been working too hard.”
Not hard enough. Sarah had become too distracted. She’d disregarded known facts and allowed herself to be caught up in a fantasy. Time to stop with the daydreams and focus on reality.
Cullen might not act the same as he had a year ago, but she hadn’t changed. Even if he was willing to give marriage another shot, the outcome would be the same. He would abandon her like everyone else in her life.
Sarah had to be strong. She squared her shoulders. “What are you doing home? I thought you would be at Timberline Lodge all day.”
Amusement twinkled in his eyes. “Look out the window.”
Big, fluffy snowflakes fell from the sky. “When did it start snowing?”
“A couple of hours ago,” he said. “Hughes, Paulson and Moreno are out there now.”
“Go join them.” And let her try to save face, do her job correctly and get him out of her head and heart again.
Cullen continued to rub her hand. “I can do that another day. I wanted to see how you were doing.”
A warm and fuzzy feeling trickled through her.
