Up All Night Read Online Free PDF Page B

husky, “Hello?” Marco
glanced at his watch. Shit. It was after ten. He hadn’t realized. “Did I wake
you?”
    There was only a slight hesitation.
“Not really. I fell asleep watching some movie on TV.”
    He liked that Beth hadn’t asked who
was calling. He liked even more that she didn’t sound pissed or irritated.
“Hard day?”
    “A bit.” She sighed heavily. “We had
some kittens brought in today. They were in a really bad way. The vet managed
to stabilize and save three of them, but we lost the other two.”
    Now he heard sorrow in her voice and
beneath it anger. “I’m sorry. Who found them?”
    “A refuse collector. They were in a
rubbish bin. Thankfully, he heard one of them mewing.”
    Marco felt the anger rise in his own
chest. Okay. He wasn’t the world’s greatest animal lover, but he found it hard
to stomach that there were some sick bastards around who seemed to take
pleasure in letting defenseless animals suffer. “It’s good that you managed to
save three.”
    “That’s what I keep telling myself.
Have to think positive, right?”
    “Keep thinking those kitties are
destined to have a happy future now, pampered by some adoring owner who feeds
them fish, lets them play with balls of wool, and let’s them…well, whatever
else cats like to do.”
    She laughed, pleasing him. “What
about you? What’s your day been like?”
    “Better than yours by the sound of
it. Few staff timetabling issues, order that didn’t turn up.” He wanted to tell
her that he’d spent a large portion of the morning trying to book a stripper
for Ethan’s main stag night, but decided it was something he didn’t need to
confess to a woman he had the hots for.
    “I can hear voices, music. Are you
working?”
    “Slipped out for a minute. I wanted
to check if we’re still on for tomorrow.”
    There was another slight hesitation,
a moment of silence during which his heart stopped.
    When she answered in the
affirmative, he let out the breath he hadn’t been aware he’d been holding. “Great.”
He leaned against the wall, unwilling to let her go just yet. He liked hearing
the sound of her voice and he wanted to make sure some of the sadness had
dissipated before they said goodnight. He glanced at the bar through the crack
of the door. “What are you doing now?”
    “I told you. Watching some movie on
TV.”
    “So bad that it sent you to sleep.”
    She laughed. “That’s true. Perhaps
I’ll get ready for bed.”
    He thought about her stripping off
her clothes, climbing naked into bed, all that thick chestnut hair spread
across her pillow. “What are you wearing?”
    She laughed again, but there was
still a melancholy lilt to her tone. “Sweats.”
    “What color?”
    “Gray.”
    “Bet you look hot in those gray
sweats.”
    Another laugh, lighter this time.
“Hot wouldn’t be the word that springs to mind.”
    He had to close his eyes against the
image that filled his head. He envisioned Beth in tight fitting sweats that
showcased her soft, firm ass. “Do you have a hands-free phone?”
    “Yes.”
    Good. Now she sounded wary, but a
hint of humor edged around her reply.
    “Take it up to your bedroom.”
    She didn’t say anything, but seconds
later the background chatter went silent and he realized she’d turned off the
TV. There was a light rustling as she walked upstairs.
    “I’m in my bedroom.”
    Hell. He couldn’t believe he was
doing this. It wasn’t the first time he’d indulged in phone sex, but that was
usually after he’d enjoyed the real thing once or twice with the woman. Yet
here he was about to put himself through the misery of being out of touching
distance with Beth, while he instructed her to do to herself the very things he
damn well ached to do to her in person.
    “Sit on the bed.”
    Seconds later, “I’m sitting.”
    “Okay.” Shit, he had to take a
minute. His pulse had started to race and heat soared through his bloodstream.
“Put down the phone and take off