Read Online Mad, Bad and Blonde by Cathie Linz - Free Book Online

possible.
    “Faith is joining the company,” Jeff said proudly. “She finally saw the light and dumped that go-nowhere librarian job of hers.”
    Her father never had been thrilled with her chosen profession.
    “Now you just need to get Megan to do the same thing,” Jeff told his brother.
    “Megan loves her job.” He looked at Faith. “I thought you loved your job too.”
    “I needed a change,” Faith said.
    “I can see that.” Dave frowned. “You’ve changed.”
    Faith touched her hair. “Yes, I’m blonde now. Hair color and highlights can do amazing things.”
    Dave slowly shook his head. “That’s not all.”
    “You’re right. The stylist cut my hair as well.”
    “No, that’s not what I meant. It’s not just your change in appearance. It’s your change in attitude. The way you’re sitting in that chair with confidence.”
    Instead of sitting in the anteroom of the Gold Coast church shredding her lace handkerchief. Not that her uncle had seen her in that sorry state.
    “It’s a change for the better,” she said.
    “Absolutely,” her father agreed.
    Her uncle didn’t look as sure.

    “Is there a reason Faith West took an earlier flight than you did?” Vince demanded when Caine showed up in his office straight from the airport.
    “She was trying to aggravate me.”
    “From the look on your face, it seems she succeeded. You want to know how she spent her day today?”
    “Not really.”
    “The mild-mannered children’s librarian just quit her day job and has gone to work for our mutual enemy, her father. I told you not to underestimate her.”
    Caine couldn’t get over how much she’d messed up his mind. And in such a short time. Here he’d been feeling guilty for having slept with Faith in Italy when she was still vulnerable after being jilted by her ass of a fiancé. Caine hadn’t intended to take advantage of her. His attraction to her had taken him by surprise and continued to do so.
    And there Faith was, sneaking out on him in Positano, evading his surveillance, making him feel and look like a total idiot.
    Caine was not a man accustomed to making mistakes. Hell, he even owned the T-shirt—To Err Is Human. To Forgive Is Divine. Neither Is Marine Corps Policy.
    Had Faith been leading him on the entire time? Did she have some kind of hidden agenda of her own?
    It had been a long time since he’d been played the fool. She’d totally taken him in.
    “Now you look aggravated and surprised,” Vince noted.
    Caine immediately schooled his expression, putting his war face on.
    “Better,” Vince said approvingly.
    Caine had never been one to wear his emotions on his sleeve, and the fact that he’d shown them made him doubly angry. But he had his feelings under control now. And he’d keep them that way. Because he wasn’t about to be distracted by a sexy blonde with deception up her sleeve. She might have won their previous skirmish, but the war wasn’t over by any means. He was just getting started.

    Faith kept walking along Michigan Avenue as she checked her incoming call. It was her mother.
    “Hi, Mom.”
    “Your father just told me you quit your job at the library!”
    “That’s right.”
    “Why didn’t you speak to me before doing something so drastic?”
    “Because I knew you’d try to talk me out of it.”
    “Of course I’d talk you out of it. Why would you do a dumb thing like that?”
    “Gee, Mom, tell me what you really think.”
    “I’m sorry. It’s just that you loved your job.”
    “I loved Alan too, and that didn’t work out so well either.”
    “Did something happen at work? Did you have a disagreement with a coworker?”
    “No.”
    “With your boss?”
    “No.”
    “Jane Austen would never quit her job at the library.”
    Faith had forgotten that her What would Jane Austen do? philosophy had originally come from her mom. “Probably not. But I did.”
    “I don’t understand why.”
    “It was time.” Faith entered the Crate and Barrel