KENNICK: A Bad Boy Romance Novel Read Online Free PDF Page B

    There had been seven applications in total. Some were
quite traditional. A hair and nail salon, a tattoo parlor, a cheese shop. The
last one had particularly interested Kim; there wasn’t another cheese shop
between Kingdom and Dover, and she knew that the richer towns nearby were full
of yuppies and well-to-do people who would probably come out just to pick up a
nice gruyere.

 
    The application to open a veterinary practice had
surprised her, but she thought it, too, would help attract business to the
town. She wasn’t quite sure what an “exotic grocery” was, but there was an
application for that as well, and it described a shop that would specialize in
imports of caviar, cured meats, wines and coffees, among other things.

 
    The only application that had made her pause was the
last in the pile: a strip club. She didn’t know if that one would make it very far past the Town Clerk, but deep down
she knew…it would draw money to Kingdom, too.

 
    She was excited. Even if they were gypsies, all of the myths and legends about the famous nomads
couldn’t be true. It was the modern day; they weren’t baby-stealing,
fortune-telling, swindlers anymore. Hell, there was even that reality show on
TLC about gypsies. And if they were so invested in opening businesses in the
town, they must have some idea about sticking around. Even if only for a year
or two, the amount of money that they could bring in for the town might help
stave off the swiftly-falling debt ceiling for another decade.

 
    She couldn’t wait to tell Mayor Gunderson and the rest
of the men. Especially that asshole Bob. This time, he wouldn’t be able to say
shit about a woman not contributing something meaningful to the conversation.

 
    “Gossip,” Ed said, leaning in slightly, a smile on his
mouth. Ed Kerry was probably the only openly gay man in the town’s upper
echelon of business owners and government officials, and he made no attempt to
hide his flamboyant side, much to Bob Talkee's quiet, but clear, disdain.

 
    “Bad gossip,” Mayor Gunderson cut in, a scowl on his
face, his mood changing quickly in that way only drunks and people with bipolar
disorder have.

 
    “Seems like we’ve got some new residents,” Phil
explained, taking a deep swill of his beer. “Gypsies.”

 
    “Oh,” Kim said, only somewhat unhappy that she hadn’t
been able to bring that revelation to the table. She also wasn’t happy about
the Mayor’s immediate attitude on the subject. She’d never counted him as much
of a bigot, but then again, they’d never had a gypsy invasion in town. At
least, not while she’d been alive and working for him. “I know. I met some of
them today.”

 
    “You did?” Ed asked, his interest peaking. “How did that happen? What were they like?”

 
    “Three men came by with some business applications,”
Kim said, happy to see that even Bob was listening to her with all his
attention. “They’re going to be opening about seven new places in town. And
they were – well, normal, I guess.”

 
    Normal and
God-help-me hot, she thought, blushing at her own mind. She hadn’t been
able to forget Kennick’s face, his impressive stature, the way his lips spread
in a grin that seemed damn inviting. It made her feel hot under the collar just
remembering it. She hadn’t been so immediately attracted to a man since high
school, when she’d fostered a raging crush on the school’s lacrosse star, Cal
Strongbow.

 
    “New businesses?” Mayor Gunderson sneered. “We don’t
need their dirty money.”

 
    Kim frowned. They sure as hell did need their money – dirty or not.

 
    “Actually, it all seemed pretty straight up,” she said
after taking a sip of her beer. “They completed all the applications
meticulously. And, honestly, the businesses they’re planning could do wonders for Kingdom. You know, a
veterinary practice, an importers, cheese shop.”

 
    Kim purposely left out the tattoo