Duchess Read Online Free PDF Page B

lighten up.” She wasn’t sure why his comments had bothered her so much. It’s not like she hadn’t dealt with critics before. It came with the territory. You couldn’t please everyone.
    “You mean Duchess.”
    Katie had forgotten her mother was still there.
    “What?
    “You mean Duchess doesn’t laugh at the death of soldiers. Because you were talking about Duchess, but you said ‘I.’”
    “I did?” She could get in big trouble if she slipped up like that in front of anyone else. “Well, of course I meant Duchess. Not that I make light of the deaths of American soldiers either.”
    “Was he cute?”
    Katie blinked. How was she supposed to keep up with her mother? The woman knew how to disarm her every time.
    “Who?” She hoped she could deflect the question and ignore the image of the tall, well-built man that came to her mind.
    “The fish ’n chips hater. Was he handsome or a bottom feeder?”
    “A bottom feeder? Mom, where do you get your slang? I’m pretty sure you didn’t use it right.”
    “So I take that to mean he was cute.”
    “Cute? I guess, in a he-probably-works-out-everyday sort of way.” She didn’t realize how much she’d noticed the biceps peeking out from under the sleeves of his T-shirt. Of course, she hadn’t had a date in two years, so any male would probably look good to her at this point. Not that she had time to look at men, much less date them. A heavy sigh escaped as she thought about what it would be like to have a relationship with someone besides a made-up pop diva. An intense longing ached inside.
    “Oh, I see,” her mother said with a soft smile and left the room. Katie wondered what just happened, but at least Shirley had stopped asking questions. Katie allowed herself to drop onto the couch again just as the doorbell rang. Pushing herself up, she got to the door right before her mother. She winced as she saw the topic of their conversation standing in front of her.
    “Can I help you with something, Mr. Chase? If you came back to insult Duchess again, you can leave now.”
    “Um, yeah, about that. I’m really sorry—I shouldn’t have said those things. Please accept my apology.” He flashed her a big smile, revealing dimples. Dimples like that should be illegal. At the very least, it was dirty pool. How was she supposed to think when all she wanted to do was reach out and touch his beautiful smile?
    “So you don’t think her music is brainless or that she makes a mockery of America?” Katie folded her arms across her stomach, hoping to hide the fluttering feeling inside.
    “I didn’t say that. I just shouldn’t have said it out loud.” His dimples were gone, but his lips twitched, and Katie had the feeling he was laughing at her.
    Before she could respond, her mother pushed by her and opened the door wider.
    “Carter?”
    Katie stared at her mother, who was pulling the tall, handsome man into a hug.
    “Shirley?” He seemed surprised as he took a step back. “What are you doing here?”
    “I live here.”
    “With Duchess?”
    “Well, with Katie. This is Duchess’s decoy house, and we’re really just the caretakers. Not a bad gig, huh?” She gestured for him to come inside. Katie had to stand aside or risk being pushed over by her mother, who shot her a glare.
    Chase came in and looked around. “Nice place.” He paused as his eyes settled on Katie. “How do you know Katie?”
    “She’s my daughter.”
    He looked surprised, but only said, “Oh.”
    “The real question, is how do you know my mother?” Katie crossed her arms again and clenched her teeth.
    “Relax, Katie,” her mother answered. “He volunteers at Veterans’ Aid, like me.”
    “Speaking of which, I didn’t see you yesterday. How am I supposed to get through a whole day without seeing your beautiful smile?” Chase said.
    “Oh, you know how to make me blush.” Her mother’s cheeks actually pinked. “I haven’t been feeling well, but I’m much better now.” She