Beyond Eden Read Online Free PDF Page A

the fish closer for inspection. “It’s a mudfish.”
    “Eww, throw it back!” she screeched in horror. “We’re not drunk enough to eat that.”
    “True,” Danny agreed, still mumbling past the cigarette. He easily unhooked the fish and threw it back. “You’re still ahead. Two bass for you, nothing but shit for me. I’m keeping you around for the fish.”
    Eve thought that was funny, her mind going to dirty, unholy places. “For the fish,” she crackled, dropping her pole and falling back to laugh harder. “That’s wrong, wrong, wrong!”
    “Evie Girl?”
    She gasped, spinning around so quickly she would have lost her footing if someone hadn’t surged forward and caught her and it wasn’t Danny either. His reflexes were as dimmed as hers.
    “Whoa, you’re fast.” Eve blinked heavily as she looked into stunned, bright blue eyes. Fear, lust, expectation, they all collided together as she stared into the eyes of the boy she had loved her entire childhood. She swallowed hard, forcing her breathing to steady and her voice to remain light. “We didn’t hear you get here. Hey, Paul Guy.”
    “Eve.” Paul stared down at her, his eyes wide and stunned as unreadable emotions flashed in them. His face was still tan, his lips lush and delicious looking. He swallowed
    hard, blinking several times and then shook his head as if to clear it. “This is a shock. What’re you doing here?”
    “What?” She frowned, still staring up at him longingly as his big, strong hands held her waist. He was wearing a black suit and a gold silk tie. She would never have guessed Paul was made to wear a suit, but he was. She reached up, running her hands over his large shoulders lovingly because she couldn’t resist touching him. Her heartbeat thundered in her ears and what seemed like a whole lifetime of memories that had him in them flashed back at her. His sandy-blond hair was cut short in an expensive, executive-type hairstyle. He was shorter than Danny by several inches but much broader. Even underneath his expensive business suit it was obvious he was extremely muscular, far more so than he was when she had left. Like Danny and fine wine, Paul aged nicely. “I see you’re still yummy.”
    Danny snorted, coughing out smoke as he tried and failed to take another drag of his cigarette. “Look who I found wandering aimlessly down the grocery store aisles looking for vanilla ice cream.”
    Eve grinned impishly at Paul. “All the better for you to lick.”
    “I’m jealous,” Danny said, frowning at both of them. “I haven’t gotten an offer that good all night and I was the one who fed you and diligently refilled your wineglass.”
    Eve blew a kiss at Danny before she turned back to Paul, whose arms were still around her waist. “Baby, what kinda lawyer are you?” She looked at her wrist, frowning at it for a moment before she reached for her beer resting on the balcony. After two bottles of wine, Eve and Danny’s fine tastes had been dimmed considerably. She took a long drink and mumbled against the rim of the bottle, “It’s past eleven.”
    Paul snorted, giving her a handsome, boy-next-door grin that made her heart flutter. “How much have you had?” he asked, frowning at the bottle in her hand. “And I got news for you, Evie, that ain’t wine. No matter what this asshole tells you.”
    Eve pulled back, looking at her bottle of beer with mock indignation. “No shit?”
    Paul laughed, the sound warm and masculine, sending a small shiver shimmering down her spine as more memories of him assailed her.
    “No shit,” he said, his blue eyes dancing in amusement as he looked down at her. Eve didn’t miss the way his gaze flitted over her body. “You’re a very nice surprise. I thought you were still in New York. When’d you get home?”
    “Mmm,” Eve hummed, pushing away from Paul to take a deep breath. She wavered and realized she was actually quite drunk. She was unable to deal with the sudden rush of