Read Online Bayou Heat by Georgia Tribell - Free Book Online

herself this was business, nothing more. “Nothing that’s
any concern of yours. Now can we please go upstairs to my apartment?”
    * * * * *
    Rob sipped from a glass of cold sweet tea and savored every
drop. He checked his watch and controlled the urge to cheer. Matt would be
arriving in exactly twenty-eight minutes and forty-two seconds. Then he was off
to have a very long talk with his partner.
    Leaning back on the couch, he tried to relax but found that
it was impossible. He was stretched tighter than spandex on a streetwalker.
Last night, he kissed Eris and then went home to fantasize about her.
    He couldn’t remember the last time a woman inspired his
imagination the way she did. Of course, she was so unlike the type he was
normally drawn to that his lack of sexual activity must be causing him to
hallucinate. There was no other rational explanation because he couldn’t be
attracted to a woman who changed her hair color on a daily basis.
    Lust could make a person do things they normally wouldn’t.
That had to be the reason he’d almost kissed her when he’d had her pinned to
the wall. It took all the willpower he could muster to step away from her when
he did. If he hadn’t, they might have pulled a Pixie in the hallway.
    Rob rubbed his face and knew he needed off this assignment.
He would see who he could swap assignments with, make the arrangements and then
tell LD. He couldn’t remember ever feeling desire like this and if he wanted to
keep his sanity and his company’s good name, he had to get away from her.
    It had to be some place far away because he didn’t think
Criswell would appreciate him sleeping with his granddaughter. Rob was quite
sure that wasn’t in their contract.
    The door opened to the bedroom where Eris had disappeared
after making herself a sandwich. She walked out wearing a long swirling dress,
which swayed with every step she took. She wore numerous bangle bracelets on
each wrist, a ring on each finger and earrings that dangled to her shoulders. A
purple wrap draped around her shoulders and black army boots on her feet
completed the outfit.
    “Hot date tonight?” The simple thought that she might have
plans with Matt, or any other guy, made him feel edgy and angry as hell.
    Bright green eyes turned to him. “No. And if I did, I’d be
canceling because I’m not into threesomes.”
    “What are you into then?” Rob couldn’t believe those words
came out of his mouth, but even more disturbing was the fact he really wanted
to know what turned this woman on.
    She stopped and studied the floor for a few seconds.
“Someone who doesn’t want to change me.”
    The words were barely whispered but he heard the pessimism
in her voice. He started to ask what she meant by that statement, but she
grabbed her purse and a sack and headed to the door before he got the chance.
He glanced at his watch as he retrieved his jacket and slipped it on. “You do
know Matt will be here in eighteen minutes?”
    “Fine, but I need to be at my parents’ store by seven. It’s
my night to close up the shop.”
    Rob stopped in his tracks and wondered where the boy was.
Even though the sun was still shining, it wouldn’t be for much longer and no
kid needed to be on the streets after dark. The thought of the kid coming home
to an empty place or staying out after nightfall brought back unwanted
memories. “What about your son? Is he meeting you at the shop?”
    Eris turned and looked at him as if he’d lost his mind.
“Son?”
    “The boy who was here when I brought you home.” He had to
work to keep from shouting the words at her. How could someone forget a child?
    “You mean Drew? He’s not my son. He lives on the first floor
and he doesn’t have the best home life.” She shrugged her shoulders and sighed.
“I let him come here when he needs a safe place to hang or when there isn’t any
food in his house.”
    “You do?” Rob couldn’t have been more shocked if she’d told
him she’d been