Dancing in the Moonlight - Harlequin.com

184 DANCING IN THE MOONLIGHT
romantic. For a few moments, she stood alone in the
kitchen, listening to the music and swaying a little.
She pressed a hand to her chest, to the little ache in
her heart there, for all the slow dances she would have
to sit out the rest of her life.
Enough self-pity, she told herself sternly, and went
off in search of her mother.
She walked through the ranch house, surprised by
how warm and comfortable the place seemed. A family
lived here, she thought. Not the den of vipers she’d
always wanted to imagine. A family that loved each
other, at least judging by the photos lining the walls of
the hallway from the kitchen to the main living area of
the house.
She moved slowly past the gallery, seeing Daltons in
all kinds of situations.
She saw Seth in one, handsome and compelling, with
one arm slung around Marjorie and the other around
Quinn Montgomery.
In another, she saw Wade and Caroline caught in a
candid pose as they leaned on a fence railing overlooking
some of the ranch horses. She paused at that one,
struck by the tenderness in Wade’s harsh features as he
looked at his lovely wife.
The one that had her stop stock-still was of Jake
roughhousing with three children who must be Wade’s
from his first marriage. He had one little boy on his
shoulders, another younger one in one arm and a pretty
little dark-haired girl hanging on the other arm, and he
was grinning as if he would rather be right there with
those children than anywhere else on earth.