Read Online Knock, knock... by Dale Mayer - Free Book Online Page A

wreathed her assistant's face. "Oh, last night, huh? That's awesome. He's hot. What a great pair you'll make."
     
    Shay groaned. "Jordan, stop. We didn't go out on a date. We were at the hospital. Bernice passed away last night."
     
    Jordan gasped in horror.
     
    Shay nodded. "Exactly. Now just send him in, please."
     
    "Sure. I am so sorry about Bernice." Jordan went as if to leave, but not before winking at her. "You should still go for it. It's about time, you know."
     
    "About time for what?" Roman stood in the open doorway.
     
    Jordan gasped, her face flushing bright pink again. She shot Shay an apologetic look and raced out.
     
    "Nothing that pertains to you," Shay said smoothly as she stood up to face him. Drat . This man’s appearance could make the earth move, and she hadn’t even noticed because even from a distance, he'd already rocked her foundation.
     
    Sneaking a quick glance, she checked out his energy. Dark greens strode up and down over his body in a calm, controlled manner. That figured. The healer, the moneymaker and the cop.
     
    Gerard ran a huge company dealing with prosthetics and hospital equipment, things along that line, but he was getting old and needed help now. Roman told her he'd created Internet Security Corp after leaving law enforcement. Could he do both? Or would he sell his own company to help his grandfather?
     
    That Roman came wrapped up in the best damn package she'd seen in a long time was a bonus.
     
    Now if she could just reconcile that wall of his...
     
    "Take a seat." She motioned for him to step in further. "What can I do for you?" She sat back down and crossed her hands serenely in front of her and waited.
     
    "We didn’t finish our discussion last night."
     
    She gaped at him. "Really? You came to my office to ask me why I'm nervous around you? Scared of you?"
     
    "I don't want you to feel that way." He tilted his head, his gaze intent. "I'd like to ask you out to dinner and if you're nervous..."
     
    Oh boy. She hadn't expected that. Yet she should have. It was a natural step for the two of them to take, but…
     
    "I've surprised you." He grinned, a boyish smile that revealed the charmer. "Sorry."
     
    "Yes, you did surprise me," she hedged, not knowing what to say.
     
    "So just say yes." He paused. "Please. I've been looking forward to deepening our relationship from the moment I moved here. Saturday hardly counted."
     
    Flustered, she willed the heat wave to stop its climb up her throat. The intense silence grew thick as she felt Roman’s scrutiny. It took more will than she'd had to use in a long time, but she kept her smile firmly in place. Inside...was another story.
     
    She took another peek at this energy. Wow. His aura was contained. The energy circulated in a soothing manner.
     
    Then he smiled, and she was almost ready to forget about his shields. And that made him very dangerous. But she watched, fascinated as a slow dawning awareness of her on a whole different level took over his whole face. Shivers of delight whispered through her.
     
    "So what is your answer?"
     
    She stared at him, trying to figure out what to say. Did she want to go out with him? Yes. Should she? She totally should not. She opened her mouth to refuse, only to hear herself say, "Yes."
     
    "Good." He stood up. "Friday night?"
     
    She tossed her hair back and sighed. What had she done? "I don't know when Bernice's funeral is scheduled. It could be earlier than Friday, but if not––"
     
    "Let's make it Saturday evening so we're sure." He walked to the door. "I'll get back to you about the funeral arrangements."
     
    And just like that he was gone.
     
    "OMG. You're going on a date with him." Jordan practically danced through the room like a teenager. "He's gorgeous. Oh my. Where are you going and what are you going to wear?"
     
    Wear? She had no idea. Five days was a long time away. Anything could happen.
     
    ***
     
    Roman walked out of Shay's building and down the