Read Online A Taste of Trouble by Gina Gordon - Free Book Online Page B

even been able to reach the top of the kitchen counter. I love you, Olivia. With icing on top.
    Austin, on the other hand, was a little less pleased. He looked like he'd just been slimed. His hair was plastered to his face with sweat, his T-shirt was covered in paint and dirt, and his jeans were caked with something that looked like grease. “You fucking better. Because this”—he pointed to his body where the evidence of his efforts stained his shirt—“is unacceptable.”
    “I told you it was a dirty job.”
    He gave her a look of disgust then returned to scrubbing the sink.
    The kitchen was almost spotless, and by the end of the day they would have this place ready for the electricians who were scheduled to show up tomorrow. She just had to make sure she spent her money wisely. She'd already made some calls this morning and completed a few applications online. Barring any unexpected tragedies, she should be fine. Liv hugged her arms around her body and sighed in contentment.
    “What is going on here?” Austin asked. Patti stared at her with the same confused look.
    “Huh? Nothing. Just happy about this place.” She knew that answer wouldn't appease them. There wasn't anything she could hide from her friends, at least not for very long.
    “You're pretty happy for someone who's been denied a bank loan,” Austin said.
    She hadn't yet disclosed her encounter with Jake at Sweet Creations . When telling her story about the bank loan, she neglected to mention that Jake had been there when she had gotten the call. She also neglected to mention that he asked her to a book launch. But with the way she ran out on him, she doubted he'd ever see her again.
    “I didn't start this process until I had enough money saved for a reason. I can do this.”
    “Happy? Positive outlook?” Austin glanced over at Patti. “Who are you and what have you done with our friend Liv?”
    Liv laughed.
    “Did you win the lottery or something that we don't know about? Or maybe you just got laid and that's why you're so happy. Or maybe—”
    “Hold it right there,” Patti interrupted. “I think the answer to your question is behind door number two.”
    Nervous heat spread across Liv's body and perspiration made its presence known on her skin.
    “She got laid?” Austin asked.
    “I didn't get laid.”
    “That would explain why you've been fluttering around here all day with this contented look in your eyes.” He folded his arms across his chest. “What happened?”
    “What happy person act?” Liv questioned. “I'm the same as always.”
    “No way.” Austin's eyebrows rose. “You got some, didn't you?”
    “Fine,” Liv huffed. “I saw Bud Man again.”
    Patti threw down her rag and got to her feet. “This is good gossip.”
    “Spill,” Austin demanded.
    “It was nothing. He came into Sweet Creations while I was working and…he walked me home.”
    “Any kissing?”
    Liv shook her head. “No kissing.”
    “No sex?” Austin said, his voice going up an octave in disbelief.
    “No sex.”
    Even without the sex, she couldn't stop thinking about Jake. She couldn't imagine what her mood would be like if he had made it upstairs into her bed. But these fantasies, the image of him etched in her brain, would go away. She had to push it away. The fantasies would stop once the bakery was in full swing, when she wouldn't have time to think of him.
    “Oh, Lord, help us all.” Austin's words jerked her out of her thoughts. “Look at that smile.”
    “What smile?” Now that he mentioned it, Liv did feel the pull of her cheeks. They sort of ached from the change in position.
    “Honey, you're glowing,” Patti said. “Start talking.”
    “I don't have any other details, other than…” The fact that she was a complete spaz and possibly ruined for a second time her best chance at some sex. “…maybe I might have ruined it, anyway.”
    “Surprise, surprise,” Austin muttered.
    “What do you mean, Liv? This would be a record,