Sealed with a Kiss Read Online Free PDF

enthused.
    â€œNow I’ve just got to think of a way to make up the difference between my savings account and the cost of inventory.”
    â€œYou ought to consider selling some of the antiques Miss Miriam left you.” Lacey surveyed the room. “Your own auction house could find you a buyer, Rusty.”
    â€œFirst, promise you won’t call me that anymore?” Tara pleaded. “That name belongs to another lifetime, agreed?”
    Lacey nodded.
    â€œAnd second,” Tara continued, “I’m not interested in selling anything in this house.”
    â€œThis stuff is the only solid collateral you have.”
    Tara leaned elbows on the table and rested her face in her hands. “I don’t know what to do, Lacey,” she mumbled through her fingers. “If my grandmother thought for a minute I’d sell her things, she’d have donated them to charity herself.”
    Lacey shook her blond head in disagreement and thumbed through the will. “She didn’t have any problem placing restrictions on your ownership of the Elliott Building or Sycamore House. If she hadn’t meant for you to sell the antiques she’d have done the same with them. It says right here ‘to dispose of as she chooses,’ and that means she gave you her permission and her blessing to do whatever you have to do.”
    â€œWhat if I borrow against some of the most rare pieces? If I fail I can always sell them. But if my idea is a success, I’ll still have my grandmother’s things.”
    Lacey munched a potato chip and wiped the barbecue residue on her jeans. “Makes sense. Okay, let’s make a few calls and see who’s offering the best line of credit against collateral. By the time your inventory starts to arrive you’ll have the money to pay for it.”
    Tara felt a smile of relief curve her mouth for the first time since learning of her grandmother’s death. Already organized, she reached for her folder marked Stock and thumbed through the publishing printouts. Tomorrow she’d order books, place ads in surrounding counties for antique consignment pieces and begin the marketing research on coffee houses. Remodeling and advertising came next if she intended to meet the self-imposed grand opening in four weeks.
    â€œWhat’s going in on the first floor?” Lacey asked.
    Tara froze. She’d been so wrapped up in her own plans that she had no idea what Sam had in mind for the ground floor of the Elliott Building. She tried to recall their conversation. He had said he wasgoing to make the most of this opportunity, but she’d never asked him how he intended to do it. He’d agreed to anything she wanted to do and now she was committed to doing the same for him.
    â€œTara?” Lacey nudged her. “I said, what are Sam’s plans?”
    â€œHe didn’t tell me.” A chill ran up Tara’s spine at her vulnerable position. “But Sam knows this town and we’re right on the square, so it’s bound to be something conservative.” She hurried on, trying to sound convincing. “He may appear rough around the edges, but he comes from a respectable background. Surely he won’t do anything foolish and risk this chance to make something of himself….” Her speech faltered as she caught sight of her friend’s eyes rolling upward. “Would he?”
    Lacey took a short break from popping chips into her mouth. “Better hang on to your fancy pants, city girl. I think you’re in for a wild ride.”

Chapter Three
    â€œM otorcycles!”
    â€œNot just any motorcycles. The best American-made bikes ever.” Sam glanced up from the makeshift drafting table, savoring the moment and the site of Tara’s lovely face contorted in disgust.
    â€œIt doesn’t make any difference what kind they are. They’re all foul-smelling and noisy. You might as well sell kerosene and chain saws down