2000 Kisses Read Online Free PDF Page A
Author: Christina Skye
“What are you doing?”
“A complex programming maneuver that I learned my last year at Cal Tech.” He cracked his knuckles. “Don't try this one at home, boys and girls.” With a nasty grin he shoved up his sleeves and took a furious kick at the base of the machine. “That certainly made me feel a hell of a lot better,” he growled. “Machines are like horses. Don't ever let them think they're in control or you'll live to regret it.”
After he shuffled out, Tess inserted her card and keyed in her access code, praying the machine hadn't been damaged. At the next prompt, she chose the option of one hundred dollars cash back.
More gears whirred.
A metal door opened, depositing five crisp twenty-dollar bills in the tray, along with her transaction receipt.
“So much for Armageddon,” Tess muttered.
Two young women stood behind her in line, waiting in obvious impatience. Clutching her receipt, Tess turned up her collar and headed outside. As the wind whipped up the street, she stopped to look at her account balance.
Her throat went dry at the string of numbers.
The very
long
string of numbers.
She stood frozen in shock According to the receipt in her hands, her balance totaled $1,005,56037.
Tess stared into the blowing snow, speechless with shock. A million dollars had been deposited in her account.
One million.
Which is how much Richard had cfropped on his last vacation.
Snowflakes drifted down as she clutched her receipt. Richard had said she'd brought in a huge amount of business and her cruise project had been wildly successful.
A generous bonus, he'd said.
A
huge
bonus.
Sweet heaven, she'd never have to work again—except that she loved her job and she didn't want to do anything else.
But she could relax.
Take a trip.
Buy some new clothes—no, buy a whole new
wardrobe.
She took fast, gulping breaths as giddy excitement bubbled through her.
One dream had come true. She was a success! All of her hard work had paid off.
Adrenaline pumped heady excitement through herbody. She felt as if she were soaring. Plunging her hands into her pocket, she stared at the giant sales signs around her, struggling to take in the sheer immensity of this moment.
Spontaneous
, she told herself.
Remember the resolution.
It appeared she wasn't the only person scanning the shop windows. Men and women alike were staggering out of stores, laden with bulging shopping bags. The prices must be good.
Tess stopped in the snow and danced from foot to foot.
A
million
dollars.
She, Tess O'Mara, had nine figures separated by a decimal point and a whole day with nothing to do.
She was going to be spontaneous, all right. She gave a husky laugh and tossed her scarf over her shoulder, determined for the first time in her life to act on sheer impulse.
She had never been on a shopping spree, never bought anything that she didn't particularly need or that wasn't on sale.
She shoved her hands in her pockets, studying the signs that blazed in every shop window, announcing millennium sales. Everyone seemed to be open with an eye toward cashing in on the day that came only once every thousand years, and a party mentality prevailed everywhere.
Even at her trendy corner hair salon.
Tess frowned, studying her face in a window. She fingered her straight, shoulder-length brown hair.
Her gaze flickered back to the bustling salon.
Spontaneous, remember.
She took a breath, forgot all about her grocery shopping, then sprinted across the street
“You're lucky I had an opening at the last minute,”
Vincenzo Amalfi, better known by his professional name of Vido, was forty-one and looked ten years younger in black spandex biker shorts and a neon Hawaiian shirt. He rocked back on his heels, frowning as he fingered Tess's hair.
“Three
months since your last cut?”
“Give or take.”
“I see highlights. Something that will really punch up your profile.” He pursed pursed his lips. “I see energy. I see intelligence.”
I
see
“A complex programming maneuver that I learned my last year at Cal Tech.” He cracked his knuckles. “Don't try this one at home, boys and girls.” With a nasty grin he shoved up his sleeves and took a furious kick at the base of the machine. “That certainly made me feel a hell of a lot better,” he growled. “Machines are like horses. Don't ever let them think they're in control or you'll live to regret it.”
After he shuffled out, Tess inserted her card and keyed in her access code, praying the machine hadn't been damaged. At the next prompt, she chose the option of one hundred dollars cash back.
More gears whirred.
A metal door opened, depositing five crisp twenty-dollar bills in the tray, along with her transaction receipt.
“So much for Armageddon,” Tess muttered.
Two young women stood behind her in line, waiting in obvious impatience. Clutching her receipt, Tess turned up her collar and headed outside. As the wind whipped up the street, she stopped to look at her account balance.
Her throat went dry at the string of numbers.
The very
long
string of numbers.
She stood frozen in shock According to the receipt in her hands, her balance totaled $1,005,56037.
Tess stared into the blowing snow, speechless with shock. A million dollars had been deposited in her account.
One million.
Which is how much Richard had cfropped on his last vacation.
Snowflakes drifted down as she clutched her receipt. Richard had said she'd brought in a huge amount of business and her cruise project had been wildly successful.
A generous bonus, he'd said.
A
huge
bonus.
Sweet heaven, she'd never have to work again—except that she loved her job and she didn't want to do anything else.
But she could relax.
Take a trip.
Buy some new clothes—no, buy a whole new
wardrobe.
She took fast, gulping breaths as giddy excitement bubbled through her.
One dream had come true. She was a success! All of her hard work had paid off.
Adrenaline pumped heady excitement through herbody. She felt as if she were soaring. Plunging her hands into her pocket, she stared at the giant sales signs around her, struggling to take in the sheer immensity of this moment.
Spontaneous
, she told herself.
Remember the resolution.
It appeared she wasn't the only person scanning the shop windows. Men and women alike were staggering out of stores, laden with bulging shopping bags. The prices must be good.
Tess stopped in the snow and danced from foot to foot.
A
million
dollars.
She, Tess O'Mara, had nine figures separated by a decimal point and a whole day with nothing to do.
She was going to be spontaneous, all right. She gave a husky laugh and tossed her scarf over her shoulder, determined for the first time in her life to act on sheer impulse.
She had never been on a shopping spree, never bought anything that she didn't particularly need or that wasn't on sale.
She shoved her hands in her pockets, studying the signs that blazed in every shop window, announcing millennium sales. Everyone seemed to be open with an eye toward cashing in on the day that came only once every thousand years, and a party mentality prevailed everywhere.
Even at her trendy corner hair salon.
Tess frowned, studying her face in a window. She fingered her straight, shoulder-length brown hair.
Her gaze flickered back to the bustling salon.
Spontaneous, remember.
She took a breath, forgot all about her grocery shopping, then sprinted across the street
“You're lucky I had an opening at the last minute,”
Vincenzo Amalfi, better known by his professional name of Vido, was forty-one and looked ten years younger in black spandex biker shorts and a neon Hawaiian shirt. He rocked back on his heels, frowning as he fingered Tess's hair.
“Three
months since your last cut?”
“Give or take.”
“I see highlights. Something that will really punch up your profile.” He pursed pursed his lips. “I see energy. I see intelligence.”
I
see
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