Hot Seduction Read Online Free PDF

Cody.
    Dawson turned fully around and said, “We all want the arsonist caught.”
    â€œI know that,” Ethan said. “I was talking about Mallehan having to stick around Northern Lakes in case the arsonist decides to strike again.” His huge hand grabbed Cody’s shoulder. “It has to be killing you to stay in one place.”
    Ethan was a ranger, too—in a vast national forest in the upper peninsula. He actually enjoyed living in the middle of nowhere and nothing, which Cody had often needled him about. With his bushy beard and long hair, the guy looked like a mountain man.
    Cody grinned and faked a shudder. “You know me.”
    Everybody thought they did. And Cody would have agreed with them until now. Now—with thoughts of a woman distracting him from the job that meant everything to him—he wasn’t even sure he knew himself.
    * * *
    â€œD O YOU HAVE a strong lock for your bedroom door?” Serena’s insurance agent asked.
    â€œI have dead bolts on all the doors,” Serena replied. “You know that. I thought you were already giving me a discount.” Not that she used them... She didn’t want to lock out a boarder who might have forgotten his key.
    â€œI’m not talking about protecting the house,” Fiona O’Brien explained. “I’m worried about you protecting yourself.”
    No matter how much she needed money for the house upkeep and property taxes, Serena had never risked her own safety or the other tenants’ safety by renting to someone unsavory.
    â€œI do background checks on all the boarders,” she said. When she’d rented to Stanley, she had also done background checks on Cody, since he was paying most of Stanley’s rent. In addition to no criminal record, he had excellent credit. “I’m safe here.”
    Tammy Ingles picked up a magazine from the old chest in the sitting area at the end of the kitchen. She waved it back and forth in front of her glistening face. Despite the heat, the beautician’s makeup was perfect, just like the artful curls in her colorfully streaked hair. “You’re not safe anymore.”
    â€œI might be in danger of melting,” Serena said. The repairman wasn’t able to come out for a few days, so she had no relief from the heat. Though it didn’t seem quite as hot in the house since Cody had left.
    He had been gone for hours. How long had the Hotshots meeting been? Or had the fire call kept him occupied?
    Or a woman?
    A pang of jealousy struck her heart. But she drew in a breath and reminded herself his seeing someone else would be for the best. She needed Cody’s money more than his fleeting attention.
    â€œYou have to stay strong,” Fiona said. “Don’t let him melt you.”
    â€œHim?” she asked. “I was talking about the broken air conditioner.”
    â€œBetter the AC be broken than your heart,” Fiona warned her.
    Her heart was breaking, but the lawsuit—not a man—was the cause. However, she hadn’t mentioned the lawsuit to her friends. There was nothing they could do to help her. Neither of the women had the kind of money she needed.
    â€œWhat are you talking about?” she asked Fiona.
    â€œCody Mallehan,” Fiona said. “Wyatt told me he’s moved in here.”
    â€œIs that why you two stopped in to visit?” She’d been happy to see her friends for a few reasons. She missed them. She was usually so busy with the house and her boarders that she didn’t get to see them as much as she liked. She’d also welcomed the distraction from her worries about the house and from her preoccupation with her new boarder.
    â€œYou don’t get to town much,” Tammy said.
    She didn’t get to town, but the town seemed to come to her—with the gossip her boarders and her friends brought back to her. A smile pulled up the corners of her mouth. “You’ve