Read Online Hot As Sin by Debra Dixon - Free Book Online

dryer. The red flannel shirt was unbuttoned and hung loose at his sides, the sleeves rolled up a couple of times. His T-shirt hinted at the hard muscles beneath it, and one hand was flattened against his abdomen. The turquoise ring andthe silver chain bracelet were back on his hand and wrist.
    “Emma, you’re not going anywhere until I’m satisfied.”
    “Satisfied about what?” she demanded, trying not to stare at his chest but not wanting to risk eye contact either.
    “That you can take care of yourself.”
    “I’ve done all right so far.”
    “Have you?” he asked with deadly calm. “Because it doesn’t look like it from where I’m standing.”
    She glared up at him. “Then maybe you need to back off.”
    Big words for such a small lady, Gabe thought. Although sorely tempted, he didn’t point out that she lacked the muscle to support her mouth. Nor did he mention that she was the one who’d come begging for help in the first place. Instead, he walked to the fridge and grabbed a two-liter Coke bottle. It was the closest thing to caffeine he could get his hands on at the moment, and he needed some time to think.
    Without bothering to offer her any, he uncapped the soda, upended the plastic bottle, and chugged the cold liquid, relishing the carbonation burn as it slid down his throat. When he finished, he carefully screwed the cap back on. Still undecided about what to do, he put the soda away and closed the refrigerator. He leaned a forearm against the cool door, hooked an index finger in his front pocket, and studied her. She hadn’t moved from her guard-dog position by the dryer.
    “Nope,” he said. “Distance didn’t help a bit. I backed off and you still look like something Wartdragged in and spit out on the rug. Darlin’, you’re definitely on the pale side.”
    Stung by his criticism, she said, “People
expect
nuns to be pale.”
    “But you’re not a nun, now, are you? And you’re dead broke. Do you mind telling me how you plan to eat regular if you walk out that door with no credit cards and no money?”
    “The same way everyone else does. I’ll get a job.”
    “Got a résumé? References? Skills?”
    Yeah, I have a million-dollar face
, Emily thought, but managed not to say it out loud. Endorsement contracts weren’t going to do her a bit of good when she stopped being Emily Quinn and became someone else.
    “That’s what I thought,” Gabe said when she didn’t answer. “No skills. Well, you didn’t look like the handy type.”
    “And exactly what is the handy type?”
    “Not you. You’re too smooth, too cared for.” He stared at her painted toes and ran his eyes slowly up the length of her legs.
    Emily felt uncomfortable even though she’d been looked at by men for most of her life. Skimpy skating costumes left little to the imagination, and she’d gotten over being shy about her body a long time ago, but the way Gabe looked at her was different. It was personal. He wasn’t looking at the skater, he was looking at her. Wherever his gaze lingered she felt warm, touched.
    “When I thought you were a nun,” he said, “the way you looked fooled me. I thought you had this delicate, nunlike quality about you. But that was before I got a good look at your body.”
    To her chagrin, she felt her nipples harden as his inspection stopped just below her shoulders. She clenched her teeth to keep from fidgeting. Good Lord! How could he do this to her from across the room?
    “Emma darlin’, you look like you’ve spent more time in the gym than you have on the job.”
    An indignant huff escaped her. He’d handed her a compliment and a complaint in the same breath. “I like to keep in shape.”
    He shifted to lean against the counter instead of the refrigerator and folded his arms. “Okay, so you work out. Have you ever worked?”
    “Yeah, as a matter of fact, I have,” she snapped. Ice skating was hard, grueling even. But his insinuation that she might be lazy wasn’t the reason