Read Online A Little Slice of Heaven by Gina Ardito - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Gina Ardito
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sounding deeper and sexier, if that were possible.
Following the noisy click of the double locks, the door opened, and Gianna sucked in her breath. A sculpted chest, like hewn golden oak, filled her view. Kyle wore no shirt, just a pair of faded black jeans. They hugged his hips in a manner suitable for the male models on billboards towering fifty feet high in Times Square.
Water droplets trickled from his neck, nesting inside the tight curls of dark hair upon the broad expanse of flesh. Beneath the bare bulb serving as a light in the foyer, the slighter curls on his head, still wet from his morning shower, glistened.
“ Hi.” Amazing she got that one syllable out. Her tongue, dry and woolen as an old ski sweater, had swelled to ten times normal size.
“ Good morning,” he greeted her with a lazy grin. “Come on in. I’ll be ready to go in a minute.”
While she watched his back muscles ripple, he quickly strode down the hall toward the bedroom. Lord, he had more hypnotic motion in his upper body than the tide rolling in to shore.
Hugging herself to ward off the shivers, she stepped inside the apartment. A wave of unfamiliarity flooded her veins. Odd, since she knew this place as wholly as she knew her own home. This apartment came with the lease for the restaurant. How many times had she strolled these carpets, stood in this kitchen? Thousands. First, when her grandparents lived here, and then when her brother, Joey, had moved in. She’d hosted slumber parties in this living room as a child. Some of her happiest memories lived and echoed in the air.
Since Kyle’s arrival, however, the same old walls took on an originality she didn’t recognize, as if conforming to their new occupant. Photos of her family still hung where they always had. But now they looked out of place, encroachers on someone else’s private domain.
“ Do we have time to stop somewhere with a copy machine?” His voice halted her hand just as she’d reached to straighten a vacation photo hanging slightly askance.
While she’d been studying the atmosphere, he’d reentered the living room. The hunter green shadow-stripe shirt he’d donned enhanced the shade of his eyes and complemented his broad shoulders. God, those shoulders belonged on a superhero. Part of her wanted to play Lois Lane to his Superman, to wrap her arms about his waist and let him carry her away. Somehow, she knew his physique would shelter her from all the troubles in her world. Not just today, but every day of her life.
“ Gianna?”
He snapped his fingers near her eyes, and she snapped to reality.
“ Oh, right. A copy machine. I suppose we have time. Why?”
He waved the long green check like a banner. “I want to make a copy of this before we cash it.”
Heart filling with compassion for this devilishly handsome man, she smiled. How sweet! The paycheck obviously meant so much he wanted a copy for posterity.
“ I think that’s a wonderful idea. There’s a card shop near the bank. We’ll stop there to make your copy, and then cash the check.”
He glanced at the clock. “Are you sure we’ll have time?”
“ Mmm-hmm. Claudio and Sal will open today, so we can take a little longer. As long as we’re at Villa Mare by eleven-thirty or so, we should be fine.”
“ Great. Then let’s get going.”
He followed her, stopping to lock the apartment door, and then allowed her to lead the way downstairs and outside.
A light mist fell this gray October morning, and she tilted her chin to catch the moisture on her face. Early autumn was her favorite time of year. A sharp chill suffused the crisp air. Red, yellow, and orange leaves scattered over the blacktop parking lot like paints on an artist’s palette.
Gianna reached into her purse and fumbled with her key ring until she found the button to unlock the car’s doors. The moment the click echoed in the empty lot, a firm hand clamped down on her wrist, sending a ribbon of tingles up her arm.
“ If you
Following the noisy click of the double locks, the door opened, and Gianna sucked in her breath. A sculpted chest, like hewn golden oak, filled her view. Kyle wore no shirt, just a pair of faded black jeans. They hugged his hips in a manner suitable for the male models on billboards towering fifty feet high in Times Square.
Water droplets trickled from his neck, nesting inside the tight curls of dark hair upon the broad expanse of flesh. Beneath the bare bulb serving as a light in the foyer, the slighter curls on his head, still wet from his morning shower, glistened.
“ Hi.” Amazing she got that one syllable out. Her tongue, dry and woolen as an old ski sweater, had swelled to ten times normal size.
“ Good morning,” he greeted her with a lazy grin. “Come on in. I’ll be ready to go in a minute.”
While she watched his back muscles ripple, he quickly strode down the hall toward the bedroom. Lord, he had more hypnotic motion in his upper body than the tide rolling in to shore.
Hugging herself to ward off the shivers, she stepped inside the apartment. A wave of unfamiliarity flooded her veins. Odd, since she knew this place as wholly as she knew her own home. This apartment came with the lease for the restaurant. How many times had she strolled these carpets, stood in this kitchen? Thousands. First, when her grandparents lived here, and then when her brother, Joey, had moved in. She’d hosted slumber parties in this living room as a child. Some of her happiest memories lived and echoed in the air.
Since Kyle’s arrival, however, the same old walls took on an originality she didn’t recognize, as if conforming to their new occupant. Photos of her family still hung where they always had. But now they looked out of place, encroachers on someone else’s private domain.
“ Do we have time to stop somewhere with a copy machine?” His voice halted her hand just as she’d reached to straighten a vacation photo hanging slightly askance.
While she’d been studying the atmosphere, he’d reentered the living room. The hunter green shadow-stripe shirt he’d donned enhanced the shade of his eyes and complemented his broad shoulders. God, those shoulders belonged on a superhero. Part of her wanted to play Lois Lane to his Superman, to wrap her arms about his waist and let him carry her away. Somehow, she knew his physique would shelter her from all the troubles in her world. Not just today, but every day of her life.
“ Gianna?”
He snapped his fingers near her eyes, and she snapped to reality.
“ Oh, right. A copy machine. I suppose we have time. Why?”
He waved the long green check like a banner. “I want to make a copy of this before we cash it.”
Heart filling with compassion for this devilishly handsome man, she smiled. How sweet! The paycheck obviously meant so much he wanted a copy for posterity.
“ I think that’s a wonderful idea. There’s a card shop near the bank. We’ll stop there to make your copy, and then cash the check.”
He glanced at the clock. “Are you sure we’ll have time?”
“ Mmm-hmm. Claudio and Sal will open today, so we can take a little longer. As long as we’re at Villa Mare by eleven-thirty or so, we should be fine.”
“ Great. Then let’s get going.”
He followed her, stopping to lock the apartment door, and then allowed her to lead the way downstairs and outside.
A light mist fell this gray October morning, and she tilted her chin to catch the moisture on her face. Early autumn was her favorite time of year. A sharp chill suffused the crisp air. Red, yellow, and orange leaves scattered over the blacktop parking lot like paints on an artist’s palette.
Gianna reached into her purse and fumbled with her key ring until she found the button to unlock the car’s doors. The moment the click echoed in the empty lot, a firm hand clamped down on her wrist, sending a ribbon of tingles up her arm.
“ If you
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