Taming McGruff (Book 3, Once Upon A Romance Series) Read Online Free PDF Page B

her by holding her close, hugging her back.
    Warmth surrounded her. His fresh scent tickled her senses. The sensation of soft skin covering hard muscles seemed at odds with each other.
    But it was the feeling of being sheltered and cared for that stayed with her long after he pulled away.
    His strange mixture of gentleness and gruffness stirred something in her heart. Who was this man and what was he doing to her?
     
    ***
     
    A few minutes later, she found him in the kitchen, fully dressed now.
    “Coffee?” he asked as he poured milk into a bowl.
    “Can’t stand the stuff.” Her attempt at eliminating any awkwardness between them did gain a slight smile from him.
    “You’d be surprised at how it comes in handy some days.” He waved to the fridge. “Help yourself to Chinese leftovers or whatever else you can scrounge up.” Picking up the bowl, he went to the back door, unlocked the bolt, and then opened it. Bending down, he placed the milk on the back stair.
    “Do you have a cat?” Prissy followed him, sticking her head out the door to watch him.
    “No.”
    “So, you’re feeding what, may I ask?”
    “Cat.” He stood, turning to face her.
    Frowning, she stepped back as he moved toward her, and then closed the door behind him. “I don’t get it.”
    He sighed. “It’s not mine. It started showing up about a week ago.” He shrugged. “She’s expecting.”
    “Ah, how sweet. Little kitties.” She grinned at that tender side of him.
    A meow pierced the air. They both turned, peeking out the window in the back door. He let her move in front of him. “She’s skittish around people.”
    “You named her Cat,” she whispered, liking how his chest brushed against her back. Spotting the big orange cat licking at the milk made her smile.
    “What else is there?”
    “Tabby. Isn’t that what orange cats are? It can be short for Tabitha. What are you going to do with the kittens?”
    “She’s not mine, so they’re not mine.”
    “I think she may have adopted you, whether you like it or not,” she said, turning to face him.
    He scowled. Moving away, he muttered, “No one stays.”
    Priscilla’s heart tugged. Is that what he thought?
     
    ***
     
    Griffin James had two choices: call her a cab or take her home. Something in him had already decided. “Ready?” He nodded to her empty glass of juice and half-eaten toast.
    “I’ll clean up.”
    “No need.” He wanted her out of his house. She disturbed him, upending his usually solid blockade at letting people in. He’d already revealed too much. Priscilla King was too damn sexy and dangerous.
    She grabbed her pink tote bag and hopped off the stool. “Uh, do I get to ride in the Vette?” Her enthusiasm couldn’t stay contained.
    He nodded, trying to hold onto any shred of what she liked to call McGruff. He failed.
    A few minutes later, he directed her into the attached garage. The overhead motion detector light came on. She stopped short. He bumped into her. “No way! Tell me I’m dreaming.”
    What was she talking about? Before he knew what happened, she rushed to the blue tarp, pulling up a corner and trying to get a peek.
    “It’s a Harley, isn’t it? I saw one in a magazine once.”
    “Whoa, now!” He stepped between her and the bike.
    “Come on, let me see.” She shifted to the right to look around him, and then to the left. But it was when she reached out and put her hands on his waist that he caved. He had to stop her from touching him like that or any other way.
    “You can look,” he warned, gently, but firmly taking her hands off him. Within minutes, he rolled the tarp off.
    She tried to whistle. It came out in a sputter.
    He chuckled.
    “What do you call it? Black Beauty?”
    “Why does everything have to have a name with you?”
    Her pink flush and shrug sent a rush of heat through him. “I don’t know. I just like to. Names are important. They help define who you are, I guess.”
    “How so?” He never put much merit in a