Wounded Angel (The Earth Angels) Read Online Free PDF

at me. What’s more, I’m happy to pay you to do it. Anything that happens beyond that is up to you.”
    “Nothing will happen,” Ella said, her voice flat. On this, she needed to be very clear. “Not with me. Not ever. I’m...” Damaged beyond repair . “Not available.”
    A thundercloud moved across his face, extinguishing that wicked light. “I see. You married?”
    “No.”
    “Prefer women?”
    She snorted. “Unfortunately, no.”
    “Why unfortunately?”
    “They’re easier to understand. Or, if it comes to that, defeat in hand-to-hand combat.”
    He started to chuckle, then paused when he caught her expression. “You’re serious, aren’t you?”
    At last Ella relaxed her defensive stance enough to turn toward the doors leading to the lobby, only to find Jacob and Phoebe standing on the other side, their anxious gazes locked on them. A short breath burst out of her in an irritated huff before she could stifle it. Terrific. Nothing like the two of them slipping into full-on nanny mode.
    “I’m serious about a lot of things,” she answered belatedly while giving her babysitters the evil eye. “Mostly about taking care of myself.”
    “Yeah?” Nate moved to stand at her shoulder, his inky dark gaze following hers while idly crushing the empty water bottle down to the size of a hockey puck. “Looks to me like those two think you’re not too good at that particular task.”
    Damn, was it that obvious? “Well, they’re wrong. I can take care of myself just fine, and I can take care of you as well.” With a snap decision forming in her mind, Ella held out her hand to him so that everyone could get a good, long look at it. “If you’re crazy enough to pay top-dollar for me to beat you into a weak and quivering pulp, I would be stupid to stop you. You have yourself a personal trainer, Nate da Luca.”
    “I’ll do my best not to disappoint you.” His hand slid into the cradle of hers, and the shock of rough, warm flesh wrapped around her nerve endings like a magical spell. Though logic told her it was a mere shaking of hands, it felt like something else entirely. It was as though he seemed intent on holding a part of her like she was a precious vessel he wanted to revere. His fingers squeezed over hers, and while she could feel the sheer power housed within his grip, there was only gentleness in the fingers sheltering hers. His thumb brushed over her skin—a slow, deliberate caress that was an honest statement of a man who wanted to sample the texture of a woman he found to his liking.
    Who knew a mere handshake could communicate so much?
    With a fluttery breath, she retrieved her hand from his and took a cautionary step back, baffled by the racing of her heart. “Just one thing. I’m agreeing to this partly because I want you where I can see you. If you’re up to something, I’ll do my best to squash it—and you—into nothing. And if not, at the very least you’ll get all the training you can handle.”
    “Ella.” His low tone stopped her when she would have stepped away. “Are you always this cautious, or am I special?”
    He wasn’t just special. He was in a class by himself when his touch alone made her nerves go haywire. “I’m cautious.”
    “Any particular reason why?”
    “Because the world is up to its eyeballs in bat-crap crazy. Don’t tell me you don’t know that.”
    “Is there any other reason?”
    The thought of stripping off her shirt to show him her back went through her mind before she shook her head. That reason would undoubtedly make him run screaming through the city streets. “You must live under a rock if you think the average woman in this day and age shouldn’t play it safe.”
    “You’re nowhere near average. I’m just saying you seem to be a professional when it comes to being wary.”
    “I am a professional.” Though she had every intention of getting the hell out of there, the unexpected compliment stole her legs out from under her. Considering