Read Online Her Perfect Man by Nona Raines - Free Book Online

the hell should she care what my-friends-call-me Charlie thought? Who was he, Mr. Perfect?
    But he never claimed to be. So why did she feel on edge with him? And who, exactly, was she angry at? Charlie? Herself? The loser boyfriend whose name she’d long since forgotten?
    Why did he make her so nervous?
    When the waitress arrived, Kim asked for a plain iced tea—no alcohol for her, not for the next decade or so. They ordered souvlaki platters and fried calamari for an appetizer. Just as she handed the server her menu, she glanced across the street and saw Adam Vostek sitting at a table outside Hanover’s restaurant.
    Shit . She must have said the word aloud without realizing, because Charlie blinked at her in confusion. “What’s wrong?”
    “Nothing. I…I just…no.” She shook her head, her heart thudding sickly. What the hell? Did God have it in for her or what? What were the chances of something like this happening? It was crazy.
    Maybe not so crazy. Summit was not a huge city, and Second Street was home to plenty of cute shops and popular eateries, places people liked to congregate. But still. Shit.
    A horrible thought occurred to her. If she could see him, then he could certainly see her as well.
    Cursing under her breath, she dug around in her handbag and pulled out a pair of sunglasses.
    Charlie watched her, mystified, as she grabbed the wine list. Pretending to study it, she hid the lower half of her face.
    “Did you want wine?” His voice buzzed in her ears, muffled by her thumping heart.
    “What? No…I mean, maybe…it looks interesting.”
    But she needn’t have bothered with her half-assed disguise. Adam didn’t notice her at all. He was completely focused on the blonde sitting with him.
    Charlie hooked his finger over the wine list and pushed it lower, revealing Kim’s face. He no longer appeared confused. Now he looked irritated. “What’s going on? And don’t tell me nothing,” he added when she opened her mouth to deny it. “What’s with the Mata Hari act?”
    He twisted in his chair, following her gaze to zero in on Adam and his girl. “Do you know them?”
    “I know him,” she admitted, glum. She slid the wine list back in its holder. No need to be self-conscious. She could sit here naked, and Adam wouldn’t turn his head. He only had eyes for his date.
    “Oh.” The way he said that one word let her know he understood everything. “Old boyfriend, huh?”
    “I’m not sure.” The word boyfriend implied a certain level of romance that had never really been part of their relationship. “I don’t exactly know what you’d call what we had.”
    They both looked again at the couple outside Hanover’s. Adam was so engrossed in his partner that a bomb could go off and he wouldn’t notice. He’d never looked at Kim that way.
    Charlie’s lips were compressed and something flashed in his eyes. Anger, yes, and something else.
    Jealousy? Nah. Her imagination was on overload. No one had ever been jealous over her. No one had ever cared enough.
    “They look pretty tight,” Charlie observed. “Who is she?”
    “I don’t know her name. But I recognize her face.
    I found a picture of her once in his bedside drawer.”
    “Hmm.” He looked none too pleased at the information. Maybe because he realized just how close she and Adam had been for her to have access to his bedroom. “A guy holds on to a woman’s picture like that, he’s still hung up on her.”
    “Yeah, I know. I knew the minute I saw it.”
    When she found the blonde’s photo, Kim knew deep down she had no chance of a future with Adam.
    Why hadn’t she cut her losses then and just walked away? Because she was a true glutton for punishment. She had to wait until she got kicked to the curb.
    Charlie’s voice sliced through her memories.
    “Cut him loose, Kim. You deserve better.”
    That startled her. How did he know what she deserved ?
    “I’ve been cut loose,” she told him, her voice flat.
    “He took