Bent Not Broken (A Cedar Creek #1) Read Online Free PDF Page A

stupidly and a little rudely.
    “Yeah, what?” Cindy, the woman I was reviewing the book she had read last with, asked impatiently. We were getting to the good stuff and she didn’t like to be interrupted.
    Tommy slid something towards me on the counter. When I saw what it was I couldn’t help but start grinning as well. I held out my hand to him, palm up.
    “Hand it over, honey,” I said conspiratorially, which he did immediately.
    Ah, an obvious, but nevertheless good choice.
    Looked like he was done with The Hobbit and moving on to Lord of the Rings .
    “Nice,” I murmured, still looking down at the book, “This will keep you busy for a while, big man.”
    I moved the book to its safe spot under my counter and looked up again. Tommy slid my bribe coffee closer to me, and I picked it up and took a whiff.
    Ah! The smell of the heavens.
    Both Bennetts chuckled and Cindy started giggling. My eyes shot up and I saw that all three of them had their amused eyes on me.
    “What?” I again asked stupidly.
    “Smell of the heavens. You’re funny. And a dork,” Tommy said, his eyes dancing.
    “I am not a dork! I just really like coffee,” I snapped at him in an attempt to cover up my embarrassment—and yes, dorkiness—at having spoken aloud without noticing. Why could I not stop making a fool of myself in front of this man?
    “No kidding,” I heard Cal say in his deep voice, which had a sexy undertone.
    Instant shudder.
    Dang it!
    “As I mentioned before, I also like home-made cookies. And chocolate. Not the dark stuff,” I kept snapping, trying to save face by giving attitude, “Maybe you should write that down.”
    “So noted,” Cal said with his amused eyes still on me.
    “Anything else I can help you with? No? Maybe you should let me get back to my review partner then. It’s rude to keep people waiting. See you later!” I was ignoring the fact that, as the owner of the store, it was even more impolite to talk to customers the way I was.
    I turned back to Cindy, whose eyes were also dancing and on me. My eyes grew wide, giving her the “Shut up!” look women had perfected since the dawn of time.
    Out of the corner of my eyes I saw Cal and Tommy turn around and walk towards the doors.
    “Told you. Cute,” I heard Tommy say to his dad.
    My eyes rolled up seeking patience.
    “Yep,” Cal answered his son.
    Seriously!
    When they had left the store and were out of earshot, I didn’t just use my eyes to tell Cindy to shut up. Thankfully, she let it go and we finished our chat.
    Now was now.
    Finally.
    Friday night.
    The store opened late on Saturdays and Sundays, which meant I could sleep in, which meant I could have more than just one beer, enjoy my hot bubble bath, and try to wrap my head around everything that had happened this week.
    When I took a bath I always had music playing. Depending on my mood this could range from Classic Rock to Heavy Metal. Today it was the latest kick ass Pearl Jam album. Since it came out a last year I listened to it on a regular basis. Sirens could compete with Black as the most romantic rock song of all times. But then, anything Eddie Vedder sang was great. His rough, but soft rock ’n roll voice could almost make me believe that true love really did exist. Not in the rainbow-glitter-unicorn-and-lollipop-way but in a way that was true and real.
    So here I was, lying in my bathtub, my last Sex Bomb bath bomb fizzing around me—yes, they made bath bombs that are called Sex Bomb —, trying to get my head together.
    Grant hadn’t called, which was good, but still, it made me feel a little empty inside. But there was nothing I could do about that. I was not good for him. It wasn't like I had deep feelings for him and was too scared to admit them. I wasn't in love with him, and I never would be. I liked him. He was a good guy and great in bed, but that was it. I would miss our time together, but not having him didn't make my heart hurt. At all. So that was good. That was