Nothing More Beautiful Read Online Free PDF

legs buckled, launching
me right into his lap, and I stared straight into his warm brown
eyes, petrified.

3
WHEN MACI MET HARRY
     
    O ur eyes were glued to each
other’s. My heart was running wild, pumping in my ear, and my
thoughts were so scattered, I couldn’t form a coherent sentence to
save my life. And underneath it all, as he held me in his sweaty
arms, which had swelled to the size of my head from exertion, I had
the supreme urge to kiss him. It was as though there were a
magnetic force pulling me to his lips. A spark permeated through my
body, alive with electricity from his touch. His face had a soft
innocence to it, hiding some inner darkness that his piercing eyes
gave away. His forehead soaked the tips of his thick curly brown
hair—hair that made me want to glide my fingers through it. But it
was those eyes that stirred me, attracted me, compelled me. They
were sweet and alluring, yet at the same time, cold and
distant.
    My vision had been blurry at best after the
car accident, and I couldn’t make out any of his features in the
distance, now it was different. Now he was holding me inches from
his face and my eyes took in all of his glory. He was so striking,
so appealing to the eye; there was no way I could look anywhere but
directly into his gaze.
    “Hi,” he said, somewhat brusque, breathing
hard.
    My face was already flushed, but now I could
feel the heat radiating from my cheeks and neck, my body afire.
“Hi,” I squeaked.
    He didn’t move to release me or set me back
on my feet, his left hand hugging my breast. “Are you all right?”
Care attended his tone, his concern genuine.
    Before I actually took the time to heed any
pain signals from my body, I nodded, my head whipping up and down.
“I—I was just wondering if—if you were done with the bench,” I
said, inventing some reason for my presence. I shifted and he
brought me to my feet, holding me still for a moment so that I
didn’t fall over before I regained my balance. He stood up and
displayed his magnificence from head to toe, and I slipped into a
dumbstruck stare, reveling in his gorgeous body. His well-defined
chest screamed at me to run my hands across the muscles.
    He surveyed the front of the room and the
row of empty benches, then smiled, his stunning white teeth
capturing my attention. “I—”
    “I guess not,” I interrupted, snapping out
of my paralysis and backing up. I had to escape before he realized
who I was, if he did at all. My eyes downcast, I noticed a cat’s
eye marble on the floor, the culprit behind my clumsy tumble. I
bent down and scooped it up. “Marble,” I laughed. “Sorry to bother
you.” I turned and bolted back to Danielle as fast as I could
without running. I could have won a speed-walking race. “We have to
go!” I whispered, but it bordered on a shout.
    “What happened?” she asked, slowing the
elliptical until she could hop off. “It looked like you fell.”
    “I’ll tell you at the bakery,” I said,
collecting my sweatshirt and water bottle. I didn’t wait for her,
hurrying down the stairs, passing the bulky man, whom I then
registered as the passenger from the accident. The beard that
draped from his chin dripped with sweat. The disgusting image made
me grimace as I charged on.
    I shot out of the front entrance and hit the
sidewalk, considering whether to walk the three blocks to the
security of my office or wait for Danielle. I rounded the corner to
the car. Danielle was sprinting to catch up. “What the hell, Maci?
What’s going on?”
    “I just want to get to the bakery,” I said,
short on breath. What happened? I wasn’t exactly sure
myself. I didn’t have the words to relate the unnerving
experience.
    “Maci?”
    “It was them,” I burst out, ducking into the
car.
    Danielle pulled out and drove north toward
Salmon Street. “It was who?”
    “Them—the guys from the accident.”
    “From Sunday?”
    I nodded. “Yeah. Them. It was the driver. I
almost asked out the