Read Online His Old-Fashioned Love (Old-Fashioned Series) by Laylah Roberts - Free Book Online Page A

been a bad idea. But it had felt so right.
    She stared up at him, her eyes glazed with heat. Brax fought the urge to take her into his arms, storm his way into her hotel room and take her.
    “Shit. If things were different…” He sighed. “I’m not ready fo r a relationship, Holly. I need to concentrate on my business at the moment. My last relationship ended because I was so busy with work that I neglected to spend enough time with my girlfriend. That’s not the type of relationship I want. I want to give my all and that’s what you deserve. I’m just not there yet. I’m sorry, honey. I hope we can be friends still.”
    Her gaze narrowed. “ I wasn’t asking for an engagement ring. I just thought we could go out on a few dates.”
    She turned away to open the door, but not before he saw the pain in her eyes.
    Brax groaned and grabbed hold on her arm, turning her back. “Holly, please don’t be upset. I just wanted to be honest with you. I really care about you.”
    “But not enough to invest any time in me.”
    “God, I’ve handled this badly.” He felt sick.
    Holly sighed. “It’s okay. I do understand. Sort of. But you’re talking like I wanted to move in tomorrow and have your babies.”
    He ran his thumb over his cheek. “ I’m sorry I overreacted and I’d love it if you’d still go out for dinner with me sometime. Please say we’re still friends. I couldn’t stand it if you went away angry at me.”
    Her shoulders dropped and she gave him a small smile that didn’t reach her eyes. “I’m not angry. You were just being honest.”
    Relief surged through him. “Come on, I'll walk you inside.”
    As they got to her door, she stilled and turned to him. “Are you still going to see Mason tonight?” She kept her gaze lowered and he wanted to demand she look at him. He couldn’t tell how she was feeling ; she had shut down on him and he didn’t like it. A big part of him longed to erase the last five minutes and start over. But she deserved to know how he felt.
    “Yeah, although he’ll probably be comatose by now.”
    “Be careful.”
    “Always. Sleep well. Lock the door behind you.”
    He waited until she was inside and heard the click of the lock before turning away.

Chapter Four
     
    Holly drove out to the building site around eleven the next morning, wishing she had taken the time for a second cup of coffee. Instead of going to bed as soon as she had entered her room last night, as any sane person would have, she had chased after Brax, following him to Mason Philips house. She would’ve completely lost him if it hadn’t been for her rental cars GPS.
    When she arrived at Mason’s house, Brax had already been there, knocking on his door. There had been no answer. She ’d waited until Brax had driven away before returning back to her hotel room.
    Pulling up to the construction site, Holly took a deep breath. She felt her exhaustion drift away, only to be replaced with nerves. She felt a bit awkward— she’d put herself out there last night only to be rejected. And it had hurt. But as she’d thought it over last night, she’d realized that Brax was actually attracted to her—that hadn’t been a lie. There was no way he could have faked the heat of his kiss.
    She’d lied a lit tle last night. She didn’t want just a few friendly dates. Her body went on fire every time he was around. But it was more than that. She enjoyed his company. He was funny, smart and caring. A bit overprotective, but she kind of liked that. Matt had never cared what she was doing or who she was with—except when she was with Derrick.
    One night , when Matt been home, she’d decided to stay out until the small hours of the morning without telling him. A foolish bid to gain his attention. All he’d done was complain about how she’d woken him up.
    So, maybe there was a part of her that hoped to convince Brax to change his mind. There was nothing wrong with that, right?
    There was no sign of Brax anywhere