Read Online California Royale by Deborah Smith - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Deborah Smith
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taken charge of the household bills—when her mother had enough money to pay them. When there was no money. Shea became adept at sidetracking creditors. By the time she was twelve, she knew how to make her voice sound like an adult’s when she spoke to bill collectors on the phone.
So now she felt certain that she could manage Duke.He seemed to be mellowing on the subject of the estate. He had made friends with Chip Greeson and Glenda Farrar. He had actually attended a yoga class, though someone told her later that he fell asleep in the middle of meditation. His mantra was
steak
.
Shea checked the cheese-and-cauliflower casserole bubbling in her kitchen oven. Tonight Alejandro would eat health food and love it. She would bring him one step closer to appreciating her lifestyle and the estate.
When he arrived, he gave her oversize white T-shirt and snug white jeans a devilish once over, then kissed her firmly on the mouth. In return Shea deliberately scrutinized his short-sleeved print shirt, jeans, and loafers with no socks, then kissed
him
firmly on the mouth.
“White wine,” he said grandly, and held out two bottles. “From a local vineyard.”
She took it, nodding her thanks while she sighed inwardly. Guests weren’t supposed to go traipsing off the estate grounds and buy wine. But she was determined to make tonight a peaceful interlude. “A little white wine never hurt anybody,” she told him. “Wine is not incompatible with a healthy regimen.”
“I’m so glad you approve,” Duke told her indulgently, and made a low bow.
Shea laughed. “You don’t care if I approve or not. You want to corrupt me.”
“Yeah, but you’re corrupting me too. I’d drink beer otherwise.”
He followed her toward an immaculate little kitchen, gazing around the cottage as he did. Through a door in one corner he saw her bedroom, and Duke noted that its atmosphere was decidedly sensual—lacy pillows and a plush, satiny bedspread. She had a huge antique bedstead with roses carved into the head and footboard.
Roses. Appropriate
, Duke thought with a smile.He could smell her roses-and-cream fragrance throughout the cottage.
The dining room and den of the small dwelling were filled with sleek, modern furniture. Pastel abstracts adorned the walls, and fat white pillows nestled on a fat white couch in front of a conical, freestanding fireplace. Bookcases held a collection of handmade ceramic vases. The bedroom floor was covered in creamy, thick carpet, but the rest of the cottage floors were shellacked hardwood dotted with rugs done in muted pastel colors.
“This place is as pretty and light as the inside of a flower,” he remarked as she poured wine into two crystal goblets.
“And you’re my invading bee,” Shea teased.
His dark eyes sparkled as he flashed her a sexy smile. “Bzzzzz.”
They ate at a small dining-room table decorated with a low glass dish in which tea roses floated in water. Besides the casserole, Shea had fixed bell peppers stuffed with rice and tofu, chicken covered in a light honey-and-sesame-seed glaze, homemade wheat bread, and kiwi fruit for dessert.
“I can live on it,” Duke observed with an appreciative nod as he finished a bit of kiwi.
Her voice was droll. “Why, thank you.”
“It’s great, Shea.
Bueno
. I don’t deny it. I wouldn’t mind trading real food for it every once in a while, though.” They sipped a second glass of wine and he continued, “There’s something I have to know about you. Something very intimate.”
“No more palm reading,” she warned.
Duke chuckled. “Nope. It’s about roses. You’re a rose freak,
querida
. Your perfume, your bedstead, your table decorations, the rose bushes outside this house. There must be a story. I have to know.”
Shea cleared her throat and looked down at her dessert plate, smiling tentatively and trying to ignore the pensive feeling that grew inside her. “I didn’t realize you noticed so much about me.”
As if I
So now she felt certain that she could manage Duke.He seemed to be mellowing on the subject of the estate. He had made friends with Chip Greeson and Glenda Farrar. He had actually attended a yoga class, though someone told her later that he fell asleep in the middle of meditation. His mantra was
steak
.
Shea checked the cheese-and-cauliflower casserole bubbling in her kitchen oven. Tonight Alejandro would eat health food and love it. She would bring him one step closer to appreciating her lifestyle and the estate.
When he arrived, he gave her oversize white T-shirt and snug white jeans a devilish once over, then kissed her firmly on the mouth. In return Shea deliberately scrutinized his short-sleeved print shirt, jeans, and loafers with no socks, then kissed
him
firmly on the mouth.
“White wine,” he said grandly, and held out two bottles. “From a local vineyard.”
She took it, nodding her thanks while she sighed inwardly. Guests weren’t supposed to go traipsing off the estate grounds and buy wine. But she was determined to make tonight a peaceful interlude. “A little white wine never hurt anybody,” she told him. “Wine is not incompatible with a healthy regimen.”
“I’m so glad you approve,” Duke told her indulgently, and made a low bow.
Shea laughed. “You don’t care if I approve or not. You want to corrupt me.”
“Yeah, but you’re corrupting me too. I’d drink beer otherwise.”
He followed her toward an immaculate little kitchen, gazing around the cottage as he did. Through a door in one corner he saw her bedroom, and Duke noted that its atmosphere was decidedly sensual—lacy pillows and a plush, satiny bedspread. She had a huge antique bedstead with roses carved into the head and footboard.
Roses. Appropriate
, Duke thought with a smile.He could smell her roses-and-cream fragrance throughout the cottage.
The dining room and den of the small dwelling were filled with sleek, modern furniture. Pastel abstracts adorned the walls, and fat white pillows nestled on a fat white couch in front of a conical, freestanding fireplace. Bookcases held a collection of handmade ceramic vases. The bedroom floor was covered in creamy, thick carpet, but the rest of the cottage floors were shellacked hardwood dotted with rugs done in muted pastel colors.
“This place is as pretty and light as the inside of a flower,” he remarked as she poured wine into two crystal goblets.
“And you’re my invading bee,” Shea teased.
His dark eyes sparkled as he flashed her a sexy smile. “Bzzzzz.”
They ate at a small dining-room table decorated with a low glass dish in which tea roses floated in water. Besides the casserole, Shea had fixed bell peppers stuffed with rice and tofu, chicken covered in a light honey-and-sesame-seed glaze, homemade wheat bread, and kiwi fruit for dessert.
“I can live on it,” Duke observed with an appreciative nod as he finished a bit of kiwi.
Her voice was droll. “Why, thank you.”
“It’s great, Shea.
Bueno
. I don’t deny it. I wouldn’t mind trading real food for it every once in a while, though.” They sipped a second glass of wine and he continued, “There’s something I have to know about you. Something very intimate.”
“No more palm reading,” she warned.
Duke chuckled. “Nope. It’s about roses. You’re a rose freak,
querida
. Your perfume, your bedstead, your table decorations, the rose bushes outside this house. There must be a story. I have to know.”
Shea cleared her throat and looked down at her dessert plate, smiling tentatively and trying to ignore the pensive feeling that grew inside her. “I didn’t realize you noticed so much about me.”
As if I
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