Read Online Breaking the Bachelor (Entangled Lovestruck) (Smart Cupid) by Maggie Kelley - Free Book Online

the island? Yeah, he was. Your brother landed me in this whole mess.” Not technically, since they’d skipped Jake’s small retreat and went to the Caymans, but still… “He’s probably loving this whole bachelor deal.”
    Nick shrugged. “Maybe you should call him…”
    “No thanks. I have enough trouble dealing with you.”
    “Another round, boss?” Joe asked from the far side of the bar.
    Joe was a twenty-two-year-old kid from Brooklyn Heights where Charlie ran his charitable foundation for at-risk families. Not much of a bartender, honestly, but he was eager—a good kid, and “at-risk” failed to describe his situation.
    “Two Sam Adams Winter Lager,” he said, raising two fingers. “Thanks.”
    Charlie understood difficult family relationships. His father never accepted the bar or the foundation as his life’s work. He’d walked away from his family’s financial empire and his father believed he’d taken that road because it was easy. Always the easy way , he’d say.
    Like life was so easy after his mom’s accident, when his absentee dad was more interested in money than in his young son. So, he’d ended up in Brooklyn, surrounded by Jane’s broken family, knowing he’d never live up to his father’s expectations. Sure, everything came so fucking easy.
    Nick walked back over and handed him a set of darts. “Listen, dude, you want to keep the best parts of yourself on the down-low to avoid getting hurt, fine, I get it, but you can’t do that forever. One of these days, you’ll be ready.”
    “Ready for what?”
    “You know what.” Nick choked back some of his beer, but failed to hide his amusement. “Until then, you don’t need my advice.”
    He took aim at the board and hit the first set of numbers in sequence. “I don’t?”
    “No, you don’t,” he said. “I’m your lawyer, not your therapist, so romantic advice is not included in my retainer. Secondly, she’s my sister, so talking about sex and romance is out of bounds.” Nick paused as a pretty redhead approached, right on cue.
    The woman smiled and zeroed in on her bachelor of choice. “Hi, Charlie.”
    He gave her a short nod. The attention from Jane’s jaw-dropping bet was looking great for his financials, but collecting all the single women in Manhattan wasn’t part of his plan. All he wanted was a little payback before he swore off dating for another six months.
    After a quick glance over her shoulder, the redhead held out a dog-eared copy of New York . “My friends dared me to ask if you’re as confirmed as the magazine says.”
    He shoved his hands into his pockets. Red was definitely attractive, all hazel-eyed and strawberry-blonde, but for the life of him, Charlie couldn’t shake a certain tiger-eyed brunette from his thoughts. The realization pissed him the hell off. There he was, standing in the back of his bar, a super-hottie flirting with him, and all he could see was his matchmaker’s face. Exactly why he needed to knuckle down and stick to the plan to kick her the hell out of his system.
    Nick clapped him on the shoulder. “He’s under contract right now to a certain Cupid.”
    She smiled, folded the right corner of the magazine, and handed it to Charlie. “Well, if you change your mind, I’d be happy to take you off Cupid’s hands. My number’s in the back.”
    Nick put a hand over his heart and let out a low whistle. “Hot damn, this is gonna be good.”
    “Maybe you need to consider a little matchmaking,” Charlie said.
    “Thanks, but no thanks. Love doesn’t suit me.” Nick threw his darts and hit the outer edge of the board. “Besides, you need to worry about yourself.”
    “What the hell are you talking about?”
    “Brother, you just let that sweet hottie walk away without buying her a drink—and you own the bar.” He jerked his head toward Red and Company and took a sip of his beer. “You got it bad, friend, no matter what you say, and if the object of your affection wasn’t my