Read Online BEAUTY AND THE BEST MAN by Maureen Child - Free Book Online Page B

time between Cheyenne and the L.A. office for years, but lately, she’d spent more time in Wyoming in order to be closer to her father—along with putting the finishing touches on her wedding. In fact, Kayla thought, Angie was just too busy.
    Not that Kayla had an issue with a woman loving her career or being good at it. She herself loved every minute of managing the gallery. But it seemed that lately Angie was letting her life slide by unnoticed. Heck, she and Evan were hardly ever together anymore and that worried Kayla. It worried her even more that Angie wasn’t worried about it. Used to be that Angie and Evan were inseparable, but those days had gone.
    She didn’t want to see her friend lose the man she loved because she’d been seduced by her own success. Okay, not a very feminist attitude, but everyone was entitled to their own opinion, right?
    Idly, she picked up her coffee, took another sip and stared out at downtown Cheyenne. The wind was howling, pedestrians were huddled into their coats and the sky looked ready to spill snow down onto a city that was more than ready for spring. But that was Wyoming weather for you. They could have snow clear into May and beyond.
    “But oh, please don’t,” she murmured. Having to deal with Matt Hollis was more than enough. She didn’t need a blizzard on top of it.

Two
    “Y ou don’t need me with you to listen to the band,” Matt protested even while Evan laughed.
    “This isn’t about the band,” Evan said after a minute or two. “You’ve been avoiding Kayla since you got back to Cheyenne.”
    “Not avoiding, exactly,” Matt argued, stopping outside the art gallery where they were supposed to be meeting Angie and Kayla. He’d known that coming back to Wyoming meant seeing Kayla again. But he had planned to do it in his own time. And he hadn’t wanted anyone else around for this first meeting.
    On the other hand, with Angelica and Evan both there, Kayla probably wouldn’t refuse to speak to him. Probably.
    “I’ve been busy. Hell, you work for Lassiter Media, too,” Matt pointed out. “You know how crazy busy we are.”
    “And yet,” his friend countered, “I manage to have a life.”
    “Not so much lately, from what I’ve seen,” Matt mused, watching Evan’s expression. “You and Angie don’t get a lot of time together.”
    Evan frowned a little. “She’s always been a fiend for work, but yeah. Since her dad’s health went bad, things have been more intense. And with us both spending more time in Cheyenne these days, she’s really focused.”
    “And yet, you’re not giving her grief over it like you are me.”
    Evan laughed and shook his head. “I don’t believe this.”
    “What?” Matt asked. “What’re you talking about?”
    “You’re actually stalling ,” Evan said, clearly amazed. “I’ve never known you to back away from anything, but you really are leery about seeing Kayla again.” Shaking his head, he said, “Just what the hell happened between you two, anyway?”
    Scowling, Matt shoved one hand through his hair and turned his face into the icy, gusting wind. “Long story and one I’m not interested in sharing, thanks.”
    “Touchy.”
    He glanced at Evan. “You have no idea.”
    “You don’t have to like her, you know.” Evan hunched deeper into his black overcoat in an effort to fight off the chill of the wind. “Just be civil.”
    Civil.
    Matt swallowed the bark of sardonic laughter crowding the base of his throat. He wasn’t going to have trouble being civil to Kayla. The hard part was going to be keeping his hands off her.
    For the past nine months, Matt had been in California, running the marketing division of Lassiter Media. He’d taken the promotion and the move to L.A. and considered it a plus that he could put some distance between himself and Kayla so that he could think clearly. If he’d stayed in Cheyenne, he never would have been able to sort out what he was thinking...feeling.
    Kayla had