The Bartender's Daughter Read Online Free PDF Page A

lied?
    Sam had been head over heels in love with Lee , but she couldn’t think of any reason her sister would have been against their relationship. The mystery of it all was whether Michelle knew how serious things were between them or whether she was shooting into the wind, attempting to make Sam jealous over a crush.
    She needed to focus on the bar and work the rest out later. She wasn ’t ready to say goodbye to her father. Did that mean keeping Ray’s, running it like she knew what she was doing? She had been bred to take over the bar, had earned a degree in business at her father’s urging in preparation for it. She had left it though, as much as she had left her husband. The marriage might be over for good, but Sam was more than just a little hopeful at the thought of getting her father’s dream back on the rails.
    “ Sam?” She ran a few more steps before realizing that it was her name being called. The other runner had reached her and Sam stood straighter when she recognized the wide shoulders and long legs in front of her.
    Lee ’s red Helly Hansen hat covered his eyes. Hopefully he didn’t see her focus in on how his gray shirt, soaked through, stuck to his muscular chest. She forced her gaze up but not before she felt a fluttering in her lower stomach. The smirk on his face left her with no doubt he knew exactly the kind of reaction she’d had. Years ago, she had to sit and watch as women attempted every tactic to gain his attention. From numbers on cocktail napkins to full on physical warfare, the bar bunnies wanted nothing more than to take this bartender home. It would have been funny, if she hadn’t felt like he was hiding something from her or, at least, hiding her from the rest of his life.
    She spun the cap off the water bottle she’d been running with and took a sip, trying to compose herself before speaking.
    “ I guess you’re a morning person too.”
    He pulled his hat off and dried the sweat on his forehead. “Not really but I have to be if I’m going to get a run in before work. How are you?”
    “ Okay. I had a lot to think about. It’s all kind of overwhelming.”
    “ Listen, I was just heading back to my place. Come with me and we can talk.”
    She hesitated only a second. “Okay.” Turning around she walked back the way she had run with Lee beside her. She’d rather have this conversation when she wasn’t covered in sweat but she wasn’t about to delay it any longer.
    They walked in silence before coming up to a small white picket fence. She tried to get some control over her thoughts , but the sight of the three story yellow house scattered them into the wind. The house was stunning in its location and appearance. Situated directly on the bay, it was in a prime location for view and proximity to town center. Sam looked at the house and realized something wasn’t quite making sense about the man beside her. How did he move up from tending bar to owning a half share of the business and living in a house like this? Even rent should have been way out of his reach.
    Lee gestured for her to walk ahead through the gate. She stopped staring and gathered her thoughts for the questions she didn’t know how to get the answers to.
    She started with the easiest one. “How long have you lived here?”
    “ About a year.” He led her around the back and pointed to a pair of chaises. “Can I get you anything? Water? Coffee?”
    She shook her head and lifted up her water bottle , and he walked off through a set of glass doors.
    Taking a seat on one of the chaises, she still couldn ’t adjust to the fact that Lee lived here. It was simply charming, expensive but in a comfortable way. One thought was impossible to banish. He was her husband and she had no idea what he’d been doing these past two years.
    It didn ’t matter. She needed to talk to him about the bar. Once that was settled, they could handle their little marital situation. There had to be some way of annulling a marriage