Read Online Can't Say No by Sherryl Woods - Free Book Online

to make such a drastic change.”
    â€œI told you, I was bored.”
    Audrey should have known it wasn’t going to end at that. She’d given him an opening now and, like a dog worrying a bone, Blake was going to poke and prod into her past until he knew everything there was to know about her. Obviously he’d never read any of those etiquette columns about the rudeness of asking personal questions, although she’d never learned how to heed the columnists’ advice and avoid responding.
    â€œWasn’t there any room for advancement?” he persisted.
    She sighed. “I’m sure, if I’d stayed, I would eventually have done very well.”
    His puzzled gaze skimmed across her face, then his eyes locked with hers. “I’m missing something.”
    â€œWhat could you possibly be missing? A lot of people quit their jobs and go looking for something more exciting, more rewarding. That’s what I did. Harvey gave me a chance to try something I’d always wanted to do. No intrigue. Just a simple matter of moving on with my life.”
    Audrey mentally cursed herself the minute the words were out of her mouth. She’d practically provoked him into probing more deeply.
    â€œInteresting choice of words,” he said, exactly as she had feared her would. The man read subtleties more clearly than some people read the boldest headlines. “Did you literally make a move?”
    â€œYes,” she said tightly. With each new piece of information, he was getting closer to the whole story. It was not an ugly one or even a particularly unusual one, but it was not a time in her life of which she was particularly proud. She settled for giving Blake the bare minimum of information, the facts, but not the emotions behind them. He’d find the basics on her personnel record anyway. “I’d been living in Seattle.”
    â€œBut you wanted to get away from there, too?”
    â€œThe job was in California.”
    â€œI’m sure there are a lot of jobs in Seattle. Didn’t you like it there?”
    She glared at him. “Why do I have the feeling that we’ve gone beyond a casual get-acquainted conversation? Are you after something in particular?”
    He seemed startled by her outburst. “I just want to know you better. Since you don’t seem especially forthcoming with information, I’m just asking what I want to know. We can trade roles, if you like. You ask the questions for a while.”
    She knew she’d been reacting defensively, but Blake backed down so easily, it threw her off balance. The only questions that came to mind were far too revealing. She couldn’t very well plunge right in and ask the sort of thing she really wanted to know...if he’d ever been seriously involved with anyone or something equally provocative such as whether he slept in the nude. Who knew how he’d interpret those queries and what he’d feel free to ask in turn. She settled for the obvious.
    â€œWhy did you buy the vineyard? From what I’ve read it was failing. You were taking an incredible risk.”
    He grinned. “That’s exactly why I bought it. It was a challenge in something with which I’d always been fascinated. It was also in my price range. I didn’t have a lot of ready cash or a lot of experience. Banks weren’t going to give me a huge loan for what could be a disaster and I didn’t want to take on a partner. The company and I seemed made for each other.”
    â€œYou must feel very proud of the way it’s turned out.”
    â€œI do, but now that Marshall wines are counted among the best in California I’m looking for new challenges,” he said. His gaze lin gered on her face, then drifted lower. The look practically singed her with its suggestiveness and left her breathless. She shook her head.
    â€œYou’re looking in the wrong place,” she finally managed to whisper