Josie Day Is Coming Home Read Online Free PDF Page B

property. It was the key to
everything he needed. Not even a va-va-voom redhead was changing that.
    No matter how cute she looked kicking the shit out of his
front door.
    “Why is this locked, anyway?” she demanded.
“You’re right here! Nobody’s getting in without you knowing it.”
    He shrugged. “I can’t always see who’s here when I’m up
on the roof or out in the carriage house. Locking up when I’m working helps
keep away trespassers.”
    Her glare suggested she thought he meant her. Luke couldn’t
quite explain why he wanted to change her mind—or why he wanted to see her
smile at him instead.
    “I get quite a few. Mostly local teenagers who used to
use the place for keg parties. Before I got here.” Having revealed more
than he meant to, he frowned. “Ready to give up yet?”
    “I never give up.” She bent and rubbed her toe,
grumbling under her breath. “You probably changed the locks since Tallulah
had the keys made, that’s all.”
    Josie straightened, glowering accusatorially at him for an
instant. Then, as though fighting for patience, she swept her gaze over the
pine forest bordering the house’s neglected grounds. A thick carpet of
ponderosa needles buried what had formerly been a grassy lawn. Scrub oak
seedlings encroached on the old croquet turf. Weeds—always the first to sprout
when the sun turned warm—dotted the wide expanse like unruly cowlicks.
    Seeing the place through her disapproving perspective bugged
Luke in ways he didn’t want to consider. So he swung his attention back to
Josie instead…and was shocked to see tears gathering in her big green eyes.
    Considering what he knew of her so far, he guessed they were
tears of frustration, not sadness. Still, he felt sorry for her. Maybe he
should’ve shared the secret jiggle-turn-jiggle method of opening the front
door. She was only trying to do her job.
    Her chin wobbled. Her fingers clenched harder on her key.
She blinked—once, twice, several more times in succession, as though trying to
hold back the waterworks. If she wasn’t careful, her fake eyelashes would cause
a forty-mile-per-hour wind gust.
    “Hey, hey—” Alarmed, Luke covered the distance
between them in three long strides, his steps loud on the porch’s floorboards.
He touched her arm. “It’s not that bad. Look, who’s your boss? I’m betting
it’s Linda at Round the Corner Realty. I’ll tell her you browbeat me into giving
you a tour.”
    He reached past her to open the door.
    Sniffling, she whapped his arm out of the way. Then she
dashed the tears from her eyes and elbowed in front of him.
    “I can do it,” she croaked.
    “Okay.” He held up both hands in surrender.
Clearly, Josie wasn’t ready to admit defeat. “But it’s only fair you know
going in. I’m not changing my mind about selling the place.”
    “How could you? You don’t own it. I do.”
    He rolled his eyes. “Look, determination is all well
and good. But this is ridiculous.”
    She scoffed. Then she shoved her key in place one last time.
Luke didn’t even try to stop her. What was it with him? Sure, she was cute. But
cute didn’t compensate for crazy.
    Or did it? Reconsidering, he took one last look at the curve
of her hips. Maybe if she was just a little nuts…
    At that instant, he remembered what Josie had said a minute
ago—while he’d been distracted by all the cleavage on display as she bent to
rub her toe: You probably had the locks changed since Tallulah had the keys
made .
    He froze. Oh, shit. It was happening again.
    The lock clicked. For a heartbeat, Josie only stared at it
in apparent disbelief—right along with Luke. Then she pushed open the door and
breezed inside. Turning, she grinned in triumph.
    “Never mind. It looks as though I’ve got that tour
covered.” She dropped her duffel bag from her shoulder—the one he’d thought contained cheesy knickknacks for sale or real estate contracts—and slung it
possessively in the foyer. “Thanks,