Fixer-Upper (Spinning Hills Romance 3) Read Online Free PDF Page A

at two in the afternoon.” Rosa raised an eyebrow at him. “You’re never here at two.”
    Johnny raised both his eyebrows right back at her. “I thought you didn’t believe in the meaning or purpose Ruby assigns to desserts. You’re forever going on about how it’s a marketing ploy to promote the gypsy theme,” he said as a slice of the now-ominous pie was shoved in front of him.
    “You know how I feel about listening to what our bodies crave. That is biology, not magic,” Rosa said with a haughty look.
    Ruby leaned over the counter with a conspiratorial air and the three women’s heads came together a little too close to his. Johnny picked up his mug and eyed them warily from above the rim.
    “The Aztecs were the first to discover the aphrodisiac qualities of chocolate, and the darker the chocolate a person requested, the more they desired another person. However . . .” Ruby paused and three pairs of eyes locked on him. “Dark chocolate cream pie is also high in sugar and heavy cream. These things combined mean that Johnny not only desires a woman, but he’s sweet on her, too, which means it has the potential to be serious!”
    Johnny sputtered. Despite all his knowledge and training, he had a wild moment when he thought Ruby really might have powers. It didn’t last. “Settle down, merry witches. You know how I hate to disappoint you, but I only chose the pie because I thought it would go well with my coffee.”
    Rosa shook her head. “Dark chocolate is bitter and doesn’t pair well with espresso.”
    “And the very fact that you’re willing to disappoint us instead of playing along means you’re trying to divert our attention. But it won’t work. If it isn’t your palate craving dark chocolate cream pie, it must be your soul longing for true love,” Sherry said with fake solemnity and very real mischief. Johnny threw her a look.
    Rosa drew away from him, her expression serious, her eyes not leaving his. She began tapping her long, red, rhinestone-tipped fingernails on the counter. Simple math told him the woman had to be in her mid-seventies, but with her form-fitting, dark red pantsuit; high zebra-striped heels; and long, thick dark brown hair, she exuded both the strength and vitality of a person twenty years younger. The tapping became incessant.
    “You saw my granddaughter yesterday.” Rosa’s formerly pleasing accent now sounded clipped and abrupt. “If she is the one who has you craving this pie, or anything else, I will gut your insides with these nails and have Marty bake them in that new wood-fired pizza oven he can’t stop talking about. Metaphorically, of course. You understand?”
    Johnny resisted the urge to fold his hands over his stomach. He could almost feel the sharp little rhinestones slicing it up. It took all he had to offer her his most irresistible smile. “I hear you.” Also technically true.
    “Don’t be so overly dramatic, Rosa.” Sherry came to his defense. “He said he only caught a glimpse of her, and he was out on a hot date.”
    He’d said nothing about his date being hot, but he wasn’t about to deny it.
    “And you can’t threaten to cut out his insides, you love him like a grandson,” Ruby pointed out.
    Johnny cast a hurt look Rosa’s way.
    Rosa turned to look at Sherry and Ruby. “Think about this grinning, angel-eyed, notorious heartbreaker here with any of your grandkids and let me know how it makes you feel. When I think about all the times he’s asked me for advice on letting some girl down easily . . .”
    “Oh! And the stalker-repellant perfume he’s always begging Holly to create,” Ruby added, mentioning her own granddaughter, who owned a micro-perfumery down the street.
    “And all the ‘it’s-not-you-it’s-me’ desserts he’s asked us to whip up.” Sherry studied him through narrowed eyes. Johnny stuffed a forkful of pie into his mouth and kept his gaze steady and wide. Experience had taught him to look innocent and say nothing