Cookie Cutter Read Online Free PDF Page B

left with gawking front desk assistants and a Carter Blackwood, who’s still holding my cookie trays. I take them from him and set them on the counter.
    “Bake sale, Allison Alden. Fifth period.”
    One of the ladies behind the desk nods and takes a piece of paper, writes down what I’ve said and takes the cookies away, giggling with another assistant as they huddle together in the corner of the office. About me, no doubt. I smooth my hair and turn to go. Carter is trying very hard not to laugh.
    “What?” I snap.
    “That was priceless.” The delight in his voice is comparable to how I’ve reacted when the town’s Christmas tree lights up December twentieth every year. “She’s an animal. How did you even survive that?”
    I rub below the underwire of my bra and moan softly, trying not to pay too close attention to the contagious excitement behind Carter’s words.
    “I think she cracked a rib.”
    And now Carter has lost all control of himself. I’m about to tell him how rude it is to laugh at someone else’s pain when I notice the wall clock behind him.
    “Crap, I am so late.” I push past my perfect toothed, crinkled eyed, hard bodied neighbor and rush out of the office without another word to him.
    “Hey! Cinderella!” he calls out when I’m about two-thirds of the way to the car. I stop and turn around to see him holding up my purse.
    “You might need this later.”
    Not only is he smug about it but he makes no attempt to even meet me halfway. I stalk back to him and snatch my bag out of his hand. Then make my second attempt to get back to the car so I can finally get out of here.
    “You’re welcome.” The blatant cockiness I remember from the night before is back again.
    I don’t acknowledge him. He doesn’t deserve a thank you; this was all his fault anyway. Had he not given me that look that made my blood race and my knees buckle, I wouldn’t have choked on my own saliva. Gail wouldn’t have thought I was dying, consequently, nearly killing me via the Heimlich maneuver. I wouldn’t feel like I’d just done a million sit ups, and I most certainly wouldn’t be late for work the one day this week that my boss expects me to help him with the presentation he’s due to present in about two hours.
    That’s my story and I’m sticking to it.
     

Chapter 4. Carter
     
    I shouldn’t be smiling right now. What I should be is perturbed, annoyed, angry even, considering the side job I took on over at Spangler High School exactly didn’t pan out like I’d expected. What was supposed to be a simple repair job of the drama department’s stage turned into an all-afternoon affair. I ended up needing more supplies than I thought I would, so of course I had all the wrong tools and ended up losing money on the damn thing because I didn’t have the heart to tell a public school administrator that I needed more money to cover my costs. Despite my setback, though, I smile.
    Why?
    Two words. Iris Alden. She’s a pistol, that one. If the look on her face when I opened the school’s front door for her this morning wasn’t enough, the one she shot me when she left was. I felt kind of bad about her choking episode and all, but come on, that was priceless. So I smile while I pack my shit up. I smile as I leave the school for the night. I smile as I drive home.
    My bliss is disrupted as I pull up to the house.
    “Oh boy.”
    I catch the tail end, literally, of Paul the nudist as he rushes inside his home. I don’t know if I’ll ever get used to his love of being naked but I’m kind of rooting for the guy. Power to the people and all that. I have to remember not to mention I saw him in all his glory to Iris later on. If I see her that is. I probably won’t see her. Why would I see her?
    “Hell.” The garage door sticks when I go to pull it open. I need to get on the stick with installing an automatic door opener for this thing. Not too pricey for an upgrade but it does require a specialty tool which