Layers Crossed Read Online Free PDF Page A

slow
down. He’s in the conference room, so if you’re ready to meet your
next case, it’s all yours.”
    I threw my
arms around Julian, squeezing tightly. “Thank you. I love you so
much. I promise to do a good job and be the best that I can be.” I
didn’t even care I’d just quoted a military slogan. Julian held me
against him in the brotherly hug I’d adored since I was little, and
then I jumped right into Tristan’s arms.
    Lifting my
head up high, I picked up my iPad, saying, “Wish me luck. I am so
gonna rock this!”
    “You don’t
need luck, Em. You’ve got all the smarts.” They gave me a
synchronized wink and I chuckled. Even though they were in their
late thirties, my brothers still held the charm they’d had in their
youth. If I could only find someone as strong, resourceful, and as
kind as they were, my life would be set. And if this was true, if
they honestly trusted me with a serious case, I’d owe them big
time. In fact, I’d babysit whenever they wanted and would make
every effort not to roll my eyes again – ever. Ok, maybe I was
exaggerating – that was something I had no control over.
    Squaring my
shoulders, I stepped out of my office, heading toward my first
serious case at Cross Enterprises.

    C HAPTER 4
    Eric
    I nearly fell
off my chair when the door to the conference room swung open.
    “You!” she
said.
    “What the…” I
immediately stood up. I would have for any woman who had walked
into the room, as I was expecting Julian and Tristan’s sister to do
at any moment. Wait, was she their sister? Was Emma the
frivolous and rebellious girl I had been told about? Was she the
spoiled little brat? She sure hadn’t given me that impression three
nights ago. If this was her, this could be complicated, and I
seriously didn’t want to mess this up.
    And then the
door slammed shut. Was she mad? Why? Standing there in her slick
business suit, cut specifically for her beautiful shape, she looked
so hot, I wasn’t sure if I was dreaming. Had the room gotten hotter
and my pants tighter? Her yellow blouse underneath the black suit
matched her beautiful hair, which was up in a bun. Emma had that
‘hot office chick’ look patented without even trying. And why was
she standing there with her arms crossed over her chest, frowning
at me? What had I done? She was the one who hadn’t come back like
she’d promised. I’d been worried about her for days. Dreaming about
her every night since the evening we’d met, about caressing her
body, kissing her skin, savoring every piece of her flesh she had
to offer with my mouth, including the dampness between her legs
that drove me to relieve myself every night that she invaded my
dreams. Shit! I was getting hard already, and she’d barely spoken
to me.
    Emma lifted
her head up and walked forward with a stone-cold face. She pulled
her hand out saying, “Emma Cross. I’ll be working on your case,
Mr.?”
    “Waters. Eric
Waters. It’s nice to formally meet you, Emma.”
    Fuck! It was
as if we’d just seen each other for the very first time. Had she
swum in a pool of liquid nitrogen this morning and had ice cubes
for breakfast? She was acting as if I hadn’t seen her nearly naked,
or made a connection with the few words we’d spoken. She couldn’t
have dismissed me that quickly, could she? I’d felt it, and I knew
she had too. We were like two souls who’d found each other in weird
circumstances. Yet she was acting as if the connection we’d had
never existed. As she stood there, shaking my hand for longer than
necessary, the tightness in her neck and stiff shoulders told me
she was trying to hide her emotions from me. Was she actually
feeling something? Was there any way I could matter to her as much
as she mattered to me? I swear, if anyone ever found out this woman
brought me down to the level of a love-struck puppy, I’d never live
this down.
    “Please sit
down,” she said.
    I waited until
she took her seat across the table before