Vegas, Baby Read Online Free PDF Page B

her with him. And that brought about his third problem—Rio Laraquette had erected an impenetrable wall around her the minute she saw Naomi at his bedside.
    Getting close to Rio was crucial. The closer the better. Now that Naomi had interfered with his plans, he’d have to think fast and do some critical damage control to get his new partner back where he needed her, totally enamored and trusting.
    He had to get rid of Naomi, for both their sakes, and it wouldn’t be easy. The girl was accustomed to getting what she wanted.
    She stalked back into the room. The anger in her eyes tapered into desperation and sadness. He almost felt sorry for her. Naomi Thomas, for the first time in her life, probably wanted what she could not have. Him.
    “Naomi,” Eddie said. “Go home.”
    “I can’t.” Her coffee brown eyes were beginning to swim inside a pool of liquid anguish. Her body swayed, she was fighting the tears.
    “You have to.”
    “You need me.” Her voice elevated and tightened. “I need you.”
    “What I need is for you to go home, Naomi.” He kept his tone calm and even. He’d learned early on, matching her hysterics only encouraged her.
    “It’s her, isn’t it? You want me to leave because of her?”
    “You have to go home. I’m wrapped up in something dangerous here and I don’t want you involved.”
    She sucked in a shallow sigh, and said, “You do care about me.”
    “Sure, I care about you, Naomi. But like I told you weeks ago,” he said, “I’m just not in love with you.”
    That stung. He saw it in her eyes. They turned cold and hard.
    Eddie didn’t have time to soothe Naomi’s ego. He had a job to do, one that required getting closer to Rio. Much, much closer. Something he couldn’t do as long as Naomi was around.
    He said goodbye, shooed her out the door and hoped, for her sake, that she’d take his advice and return to Phoenix.
    Nurse Jennifer escorted Eddie downstairs in a wheelchair to where Rio was waiting in a 1961 red Corvette. He could appreciate the beauty of both the car and its driver. What man in his right mind wouldn’t approve of and admire a fully restored, vintage Vette? His father would have.
    Eddie didn’t want to start getting all sentimental now. He turned to Rio, who’d opened the passenger door for him. “Sure you don’t want me to drive…?” He let the words trail off onto a path of playful laughter.
    “Get in the car, LaCall.” Her voice was edged with control.
    He did as she instructed, but sooner or later he would finagle his way into the driver’s seat. Inside the car and out.
    She was mostly quiet while they drove to a quaint café downtown. She’d said she was hungry. Her silence was probably due in large part to Naomi’s sudden and unexpected arrival.
    People can’t help who they’re attracted to, but they do have control over their actions. Rio Laraquette might not want to admit it, but Eddie saw that she had a thing for him. Whether or not she’d act upon it was another matter.
    Lunch was going pretty well. Eddie was torn between the effects of the pain killers and his desire to eat. Rio talked about a lot of stuff, but the meds kept most of it from registering inside his mind. He thought of many things to talk about but couldn’t keep focused long enough to settle on any one idea. Olivia came to mind but it probably wasn’t a good idea to let anyone know his weakness. For now he’d keep Olivia right where she belonged, inside his heart.
    Some drunk guy stumbled and fell into a waitress carrying a tray full of drinks. Rio suffered the worst of it, getting soaked. It pissed Eddie off more than it bothered her.
    Maybe he reacted as such because he felt the need to save her , because he thought he owed her. But if he really wanted to impress a girl like Rio, he’d have to do better than yelling at an overworked waitress in an overcrowded restaurant.
    Rio had pummeled a guy to save Eddie’s life, a virtual stranger, but showed amazing