Silk on the Skin: A Loveswept Classic Romance Read Online Free PDF

long worktable. Both of them were eating their lunch.
    “They …” His voice trailed away as he watched Cass bring a steaming hunk of pink-tinged meat up to her lips and slip it into her mouth. Her eyes closed. A smile of pure ecstasy curved her lips as she savored the freshly cooked crab. The aroma of sweet shellfish permeated the room, and his stomach growled. Eyeing the two large and beautifully reddened crabs lying in splendor atop a plate on the desk, he decided he’d be damned before he’d miss out on a great meal like this. Then he remembered why he had come into the storeroom.
    “
Your
customers want to pay by charge,” he said, grinning evilly at the thought of his unexpected revenge.
    Cass opened her eyes and sat up. She gave the plate of crabs a look of obvious longing, then turned her gaze to him, her eyes gleaming with hope. “All you have to do—”
    “Forget it,” Dallas said, sitting down next to Jean. He crossed his arms over his chest. “I’d screw up the whole system like the guy in
The Man from the Diner’s Club.
”
    She shifted her gaze to her assistant manager.
    “I wasn’t the one who left the door open,” Jean said, not looking up as she picked out the meat inside a claw with a pair of long tweezers.
    “Two real humanitarians,” Cass said, rising. She took two steps, then pointed at the crabs. “Nobody touch these!”
    Dallas added his nod of agreement to Jean’s. He also crossed his fingers.
    As soon as Cass left the room, Jean handed him the tweezers.
    He chuckled. “What gave me away?”
    “Nothing. I just know a fellow liar when I meet one,” Jean said with a laugh. “Better get them before Cass gets back.”
    “Thanks.” He leaned over and picked up the plate. Expertly cracking open the shell, he discarded the inedible portions and proceeded to pick out the delicate meat. His first bite literally melted in his mouth, and he decided the crab was as fresh and delicious as the woman who had provided it. As he dug out a second portion he commented, “I’ve eaten my share of shellfish, but I’ve never seen anyone use tweezers before.”
    “They’re surgical tweezers,” Jean said, hopping off the table.
    “You’re kidding!”
    “Nope. Former nurse’s ingenuity. You should see what I use for dicing potatoes.”
    Dallas coughed. “I’d rather not.”
    Jean chuckled.
    They heard Cass’s voice before they saw her.
    “Seventy-five bucks. Not bad for being closed …” Her voice faded as she came fully into the room. She stared at the claw Dallas was holding, then transferred her accusing gaze to his. “You ate my crabs!”
    “Only one,” Dallas said in a casual voice. He picked out another piece and ate it.
    She narrowed her eyes as she stalked toward him. “They were my crabs, Dallas Carter. Mine. I got up at dawn to catch them. I cooked them—”
    “I cooked them,” Jean broke in.
    “I filled the pot and started the water,” Cass said, without pausing in her tirade. “Those two were mine. The last two”—she slammed her palm on the table for emphasis—“and you had the nerve to eat one of them!”
    “Sure did,” Dallas agreed, and ate a piece. He dug out a fresh bit and held it up. “Wanna bite?”
    “You bet!”
    She pulled the meat off the tweezers and ate it, then grabbed up the last crab and quickly broke away the shell. “I’ll let you get away with it this one time. Out of the generosity of my heart.”
    “You don’t have a heart where crabs are concerned,” Jean said.
    “Right.” Cass pointed a crab claw at Dallas. She held out her hand. “Tweezers, please.”
    He handed her the tweezers and watched as shegreedily took the meat from the shell. “Best catch in a while.”
    “Good enough,” Jean said. “It’s too nice a day to be inside, so I think I’ll take the afternoon off. Wednesdays are slow, anyway, and by the time you get around to reopening, Mary will be in. You can clean up the mess and fire me