Read Online Chasing the Runaway Bride by Susan Meier - Free Book Online Page A

“If I didn’t know better, I’d think you were keeping the file away from me.”
    Thank God for their feud. “I’m not.”
    He took a step closer. “Then give it to me.”
    Heat rose from her toes to her crown. He was gorgeous. Sexy. So hot she’d bet that if she did touch him her finger would sizzle.
    She took a step back. “There’s no reason for you to see it.”
    “Don’t be silly. I’ve been playing with the accounting software today, figuring everything out. You haven’t.” He took the step that separated them. Wiggled his fingers. “Hand it over.”
    “Come on, Cade—” She said his name slowly, hesitantly, and their gazes met. She’d never called him by his name before and, with him standing so close, the way it rolled off her tongue felt warm, intimate.
    She ignored it. “Do you really have to see it?”
    He took another step closer. When she stepped back, she met the filing cabinet.
    He angled his hand against the wall, effectively trapping her. “Might as well hand it over. You’ve got nowhere else to go.”
    The woodsy scent of his aftershave drifted to her.
    “Unless you’d like to finish yesterday’s discussion?”
    Telling herself to get her mind on the store and forget about him, about the way her pulse scrambled when he was this close, she swallowed. “Yesterday’s discussion was finished when we decided to work opposite shifts.” She sucked in a breath. “As for my mother’s file? She isn’t comfortable with you seeing her records.”
    “Now isn’t that interesting.”
    She wished he was talking about her mom’s file, but from his grin she knew he wasn’t. Her skin felt flushed. She couldn’t seem to control her breathing. Her eyes felt bigger than they should be. The day before, he’d said her eyes always gave her away. She couldn’t pretend having him so close didn’t affect her. She also couldn’t pretend she didn’t suspect he’d pinned her back here to push her. Into what, she wasn’t quite sure.
    “You’ve got to stop doing this,” she said.
    He grinned. “What? Wanting to see the file of one of my employees?”
    “Always standing so close.”
    He shifted a bit, just a bit, just enough that the fear of their bodies brushing against each other trembled through her. “Feels pretty good to me.”
    And, God, it felt pretty good to her. The shivery heat. The yearning to be kissed. The ache in her femininity.
    “It’s not right. I told you yesterday. We’re partners, and people who work together shouldn’t—” She refused to say it. Absolutely refused. “Shouldn’t…You know…”
    His grin grew and he inched closer. “I think I know.”
    “Me and you? Not a good idea.” She caught his gaze again. “Anything between us would ruin my name.”
    He laughed. “If we kept this a secret, neither one of us would have to worry about our name. Our reputation.”
    Her mouth fell open. So he’d thought about that discussion yesterday too? And his conclusion hadn’t been to run, but to keep whatever they did a secret? “Have you been away so long that you’ve forgotten how this town works?”
    He snorted. “Not hardly.”
    “Make one mistake and they talk about you. Make two and they feel like it’s their job to remind you.”
    He brought a finger to the little space between her eyebrows, then traced a line down her nose. “Does this mistake you made have anything to do with why the Nelsons quit?”
    “Yes.” Shivery heat blanketed her in need. The touch of his skin to her skin nearly set her on fire. Words failed her. But maybe that was a good thing. Did she really want to tell him she was a runaway bride? “But it’s not important.”
    “Fine. I’m not at all interested in your life, your troubles. Last night, I decided that would be the best way to handle this. You don’t need to talk. I don’t want to listen.” He ran his finger from her neck to the U of her tank top. “We’d just do. No discussions, just action.”
    When waves of