Sizzling Read Online Free PDF Page A

said with a smile. "Gloria
slept most of the night and woke up asking for you. I guess you made
an impression."

"Hopefully a good one."

"I
was going to take in her breakfast," Kristie said.

"I
can do that if you want to head out."

"That would be
great."

Five minutes later Lori walked in with Gloria's
breakfast.

"You're back," the older woman said. "How
unfortunate."

"I heard you were asking about me, so
don't pretend you're not happy to see me."

"I'm not
happy. I was asking in the hopes that you'd quit."

"No
such luck." She set the tray on the table. "We're going to
have to get you a hobby. Something other than being crabby. Maybe
knitting. Everyone's doing it."

Gloria ignored that and
poked at her pancakes. "I don't eat breakfast. I'll have some
coffee and nothing else."

Lori leaned close and lowered
her voice. "I have just two words for you, young lady. Feeding
tube. Don't make me get ugly. Eat and be happy."

"You're
a most annoying person."

"I've heard that. It's kind
of a point of pride with me."

Gloria stared at her for
several seconds, then passed over a section of the newspaper. "Did
you read this yesterday?"

"I don't read the
paper."

"You should. Women should be aware of what's
going on in the world. Which is not the point. Reid has moved in
temporarily. Obviously he's taking advantage of my weakened
condition. You'd think he was old enough to clean up his own mess,
but apparently not. Now he's dragged the family name through the mud.
He's a constant disappointment and embarrassment."

Lori
glanced at the headline and blinked. " Good in bed…not
so much? That's kind of cold."

"Apparently he
didn't please the reporter and she decided to tell the world. It's
disgusting. She's nothing but a slut, but heaven forbid we should say that. " She tapped the paper. "Read it. Learn from
it. My grandson has a way with women. Don't be one of the idiots who
falls for him and then gets her heart broken. I have no patience for
stupid women."

"You're warning me off," Lori
said, suddenly getting it. She grinned. "You're worried about
me."

"Go away."

For once, Lori did as
she asked, mostly because she wanted to read the article.

She
settled at the kitchen table and spread out the paper, then scanned
the first couple of paragraphs and winced. No guy wants to be told
he's not good in bed, especially in public and in print. That had to
hurt.

She almost felt sorry for Reid. While she had no sense
of his sexual skill, he had to have learned something with all his
experience. Didn't he?

The object of her speculation walked
into the kitchen, looking rumpled and exhausted. He'd pulled on jeans
and nothing else, his hair was mussed and he needed a shave.

He
was fifteen kinds of gorgeous.

Lori watched him as he crossed
the kitchen and poured himself a cup of coffee. His impressive
muscles flexed and rippled with each movement. He looked warm and
sexy and deep inside her stomach she felt the beginnings of a
quiver.

He glanced up and saw her.

"Morning,"
he mumbled, then left.

She didn't exist to him. Never had,
never would. Being attracted to him put her so far in the idiot camp
that she would never find her way out.

She was an
embarrassment to intelligent women everywhere. Worse, there wasn't a
damn thing she could do about it.
    CHAPTER
THREE
    LORI PULLED INTO her driveway a little after five. Her
neighborhood was light-years away from Gloria's street of gated
mansions, but Lori didn't mind. She loved everything about her
house.

Its two-bedroom, two-bath size suited her perfectly.
She loved the details of the Craftsman style, the built-ins, the
moldings. She loved that she'd painted every wall herself and had
done most of the remodeling without help. She loved the colors, the
garden, the porch, the way the house looked solid…and made her
feel safe.

She walked inside and breathed in the scent of
garlic. "You're cooking," she yelled by way of greeting.
"You're not supposed to be cooking."

Madeline
stepped out of the