Challoner Bride Read Online Free PDF Page B

his line, Flynn
    thought savagely. He was the one who had been keeping things carefully poised on the brink between
    business and pleasure. He’d been doing it deliberately, using the resulting tension to attract his quarry. And
    now the quarry was using it against him. Hurriedly he sought for a way to recover his strategic position.
    „Don’t worry, Angie. The last thing I want to do is push you into something you don’t want.“
    „It’s not that I don’t want – “ she began urgently.
    „I understand.“ He smiled as he cut off her small attempt to explain. „No problem.“ Then he stepped
    forward and took her arm to guide her back through the moonlit gardens. He was okay now. Back under
    control. „A kiss overlooking the beach is the perfect finishing touch to the evening, don’t you think? What
    time are you going to breakfast in the morning?“
    She looked as if she wanted to say something else but couldn’t think of any way to get the conversation
    back on its original track. „About seven. Same time as this morning.“
    „Sounds good. I’ll see you then.“
    „You’re still interested in coming with me tomorrow evening?“ she asked tentatively.
    „How can I turn down such an easy assignment?“ He grinned as they walked back into the main lobby
    of the hotel. „A free meal and a cruise on the bay. Sounds great.“
    „I really do appreciate it, Flynn. I know there’s no logical reason to be nervous.“
    „But you are. Don’t apologize. There’s no need.“ He walked her into the elevator and down the hall to
    her second-floor room.
    When he halted in front of her door, Angie turned to look up at him with a questioning expression. „Good
    night, Flynn. And thank you. For everything.“
    He bent his head and brushed his mouth against her lips. „My pleasure. See you in the morning.“
    He forced himself not to linger over the kiss. Angie hesitated as if trying to decide what to do next, but
    as he just stood politely, waiting, she quickly turned the key in the lock and stepped inside the room.
    As soon as the door closed in his face, the politely reassuring smile Flynn had been wearing vanished.
    He swung around, then stalked down the hall to the elevator and punched the button.
    „Stupid, stupid, stupid.“ Leaning against the wall, arms folded, he muttered the words in a soft, disgusted
    litany. He’d been on the verge of risking everything for the sake of a night in bed with Angie Morgan. It
    made no sense. His entire goal hinged on keeping her trust and friendship. A little sexual attraction was a
    bonus to be used wisely. He’d almost thrown away the trust and friendship by trying to sweep her into bed.
    There was no doubt he would have taken a lot of satisfaction in making love to her, and Flynn was
    almost certain he could have made her enjoy the experience, too. But there was too much risk involved.
    Angie was right, she wasn’t a good candidate for a one-night stand. He might have been able to coax her
    into bed this evening, but he couldn’t know what her reaction would be in the morning. She might, indeed,
    wake up full of recriminations, just as she had suggested.
    Worse yet, she might have been so nervous around him that she would have retracted her job offer.
    Since he’d spent the past two days feeding her the notion that she would feel more comfortable with him
    along tomorrow evening, it would be a pity to scare her off now.
    „Sangrey, you’re a damn fool.“ The elevator doors slid open and Flynn stepped inside. The car was
    empty and he rode it up to the next floor thinking of Angie’s eyes. He’d been half-consciously trying to
    figure out what color they were and tonight it came to him. She had eyes the color of a peacock’s feathers.
    Dusk shrouded the bay the next evening as the launch cut through the water with a subdued roar. Angie
    sat in the back, her hair shielded from the breeze by a silk scarf. At the helm a taciturn man dressed in
    white trousers and