Mike's Way Back (Finding Perfect) Read Online Free PDF Page A

Although he was fun to play with, she’d had her entertainment and it was time to let him off the hook. “You made yourself an easy target there, detective.” Taryn teased.
    “Touché.” He grinned and raised his bottle. “I can appreciate how you could see the humor in this.”
    Taryn smiled even bigger as she watched him struggle not to laugh. Seeing him squirm was almost the highlight of her day. The building she was going to help renovate was still at the top of that list. She bit her lip and jerked her shoulder, then took another drink.
    “Taryn Watts…I have a feeling you’re full of surprises.”
    “What do you mean?”
    “Well, one look at your attire and a person might think you were a high-powered attorney who goes for the jugular. In reality, you’re a very talented artist with a quick wit and a gorgeous smile.”
    Taryn felt the heat rush over her cheeks. Ducking her head, she tucked one side of her hair behind her ear.
    “See? Another turn, another surprise.”
    Narrowing her eyes, her brow furrowing, Taryn silently questioned him.
    “You my dear, can be quite bashful.”
    Just when her cheeks had cooled, they flamed again. She rolled her eyes, and just to avoid having to make eye contact, Taryn picked up where she’d left off. She continued to pack her work for the trip back to her hotel room.
    “I’ll take your hint,” Mike tipped his head at her slipping her drawings and notes into her laptop bag. “And I’ll raise you. It’s early yet. Can I possibly convince you to let me walk you around the square? Maybe show you a few of the shops that are still open?”
    When Taryn would have politely declined he continued. “From what I gather, you’re here to renovate one of the shops on the square. This way you could see a couple of others and get a feel for the area.”
    She had already been planning to do just that tomorrow. When working on a commercial space, it helped to have a sense of the community, so she didn’t develop an idea so far off the scale it would upset the rest of the town. Plus, she could see what the other businesses, which had recently been remodeled, had chosen to do with their spaces. Sometimes after seeing their ideas she incorporated them into her own plans.
    Both of them were now standing. With a tilted head and narrowed eye, she let her gaze drift down Mike’s body and slowly back up. Going anywhere with him was such a bad idea on so many levels Taryn didn’t even bother to count them all.

     
     
    Chapter 3
     
    He didn’t even realize he was holding his breath until she agreed, and then it came out with a whoosh. Covering it up with a cough, he bent down to unplug her laptop from the wall outlet. Taryn was unlike anyone he’d ever met. A striking beauty that made his breath catch. She had a wicked sense of humor, yet she blushed easily. Her work was important to her, but more so, it was obvious she was passionate about it. Mike could lose hours just sitting and watching her draw. The way she held the pencils to shade, blended it with some gray thing in her other hand, then sat back to assess her work—only to repeat the process over and over.
    “Ready?”
    Her smile brought him back to reality. A nice reality at that. Walking out through the door of Jenny’s, he placed his palm to her lower back. Even through clothing, the spark bit him. If he wasn’t careful, he would fall fast for the skirt, legs, and heels.
    Warning bells went off in his head. He’d done that once before, and lost.
    Mike hadn’t thought about his ex-wife in so long, it was hard to remember he’d ever been married. One sideways glance at Taryn, and he pushed his ex from his mind as the theme song from The Wizard of Oz ran through his head.
    Walking slowly down the wide sidewalk underneath the varied awnings, he smiled at the name painted on the storefront window. “Oh, here. I have to take you in here,” Mike said cheerfully pushing the heavy glass and wood door open to the bookstore.