The Bad Boys' Reluctant Woman Read Online Free PDF

you
today,” Bill said, stroking her arm. She tried not to vomit from his touch. He
was a total creep and a douche-bag.
    “Bill,” she said. One of her hands
held the cup of hot coffee while the other had her book. Neither looked like a
weapon, but she knew if the need arose she’d use them as one.
    “When are you going to give it up
and be with me?” he asked.
    “Never,” she said. He caught her arm
as she made to move away. “Let go of my arm, Bill.”
    “You’re playing hard to get. I get
it. You’ll fall for me. They all fall for me sooner or later.”
    Zoe turned around and glared at him.
“I’m not just some woman, Bill. I’ll never be yours, so back the fuck off.”
    She stamped on his foot. The action
made him curse and let go of her arm. “This isn’t over, Zoe!” he shouted to her
back.
    Ignoring him, she made her way over
to the swings and sat down. Several children ran over to her. She smiled at
them, then opened her book to read. Every now and then
she glanced up to make sure all the children were fine.
    Her fears were probably paranoia.
Living in the foster care system had given her world a massive wake up call.
    She placed her cup down on the floor
next to the swing. The time passed pleasantly. Her tummy began to growl with
the warning she hadn’t eaten.
    A dark shadow fell over her. Zoe
gazed up, fearful in case it was Bill coming back for another round.
    “Hi, Zoe,” Connor said.
    “Connor, what are you doing here?”
    He took the swing next to her. She
stared at him as the swing didn’t seem large enough to take on his weight or
width. “I made you something.” He handed her a cardboard box. Frowning, she
handed him her book, then opened the lid on the box he’d given her. There were
at least half a dozen cakes she could see in the box. The scent of chocolate
wafted up to her.
    Her stomach growled, which made
Connor chuckle. “I guess you didn’t eat anything before coming out to watch the
kids.”
    “How do you know that was the reason
I was sitting here?”
    “I just do. Eat up.”
    She lifted out a cupcake, tore the
wrapper off and took a bite. The cake melted on her tongue, and the frosting
was sheer heaven. Her moan alerted the children playing at the park. They
walked over. One by one, she handed each of the kids a cake.
    Zoe only got the chance to eat one,
but that was more than enough for her. She knew the calories would go straight
to her hips.
    “Did you make these?” she asked.
    “Yes.”
    “You’re amazing. I’ve never tasted
anything so good before.” She licked her lips as her mouth watered for another
bite.
    “Wait, you’ve got some right here.”
Connor ran his thumb at the corner of her lip. Her heart rate kicked up when he
placed the thumb with the little bit of chocolate frosting on it into his own
mouth.
    “Delicious,” he agreed.
    She smiled, tucking a strand of hair
behind her ear. “What brings you over here?” she asked.
    “I was worried about you. This is
not a great part of town.”
    “It is still part of Law Castle,
Connor. I’m fine here.”
    “I don’t like you here.”
    “You don’t get a say in how I live
my life. You don’t know me,” she said.
    “Because you don’t
give me or us a chance to get to know you.”
    Zoe took a deep breath. She knew
arguing with him would be useless. “Do Jake and Brent know you came over here
to bring me the cupcakes?”
    He shook his head. “They’re on
break.”
    She was a little hurt that they
hadn’t come over themselves.
    Connor reached over and stroked her
cheek. “It’s not because they don’t care, Zoe. They don’t know how to approach
you. You refuse to open up.”
    “Don’t worry about it. I won’t be in
Law Castle all that long.”
    “Why are you running away?” he
asked.
    Zoe stared at him. She saw the
conflict in his eyes. “I’m not running away.”
    “Bullshit. I know fear when I see
it. You’ve got nothing to be afraid of, Zoe. Jake, Brent, and I will take