Read Online Midnight Encounters by Elle Kennedy - Free Book Online Page B

mismatched. The paintings on the wall depicted bland landscapes and the occasional kitten rolling around in a garden. Frilly pink tablecloths and doilies that looked handmade covered every table in the room, and Ben had to blink a few times to be sure, but he thought he saw photos of Cary Grant and a young Marlon Brando hanging over the television set.
    The only item in the apartment that resembled anything modern was the steel drum sitting in the open-concept dining room, but he couldn’t quite figure that out either.
    When he finished his wide-eyed scrutiny, he glanced over and saw the humor dancing in Maggie’s green eyes.
    “C’mon, say it,” she taunted.
    “What?”
    “How tacky it is. We both know you want to say it.”
    He might’ve been living in Hollywood for the last ten years of his life, but he’d grown up in Ohio with a mother who’d instilled good manners in him. “It’s not tacky,” he lied, hoping his tone sounded polite.
    “Did you decorate it yourself?”
    Laughter bubbled out of her delicate throat. “Wow. Did you learn the art of bullshitting from the film industry or does it just come naturally to you?”
    “What? No, I think this place is really something.”
    She laughed again, louder this time. “Relax, Ben. I didn’t decorate it. My roommate, Summer, her grandmother owns this place. When she moved, she made Summer promise not to change a thing.” His ears perked. “You have a roommate?”
    Maggie’s amused expression quickly transformed into another frown. “Summer’s gone for the week—and she has a boyfriend. So wipe any notion of a threesome out of your head.” How was it humanly possible that she kept catching him off-guard like this?
    His nostrils flared as he pondered the best way to respond. Screw good manners. A remark like that merited nothing less than irate indignation.
    “You really don’t think much of me, do you?” he returned, steel in his voice.
    “I don’t even know you.” Apparently she was just as capable of steely tones.
    “You’re right, you don’t.” Eyes narrowing, he added, “The reason I asked about your roommate is because I wanted to make sure we’d be alone.”
    “Well, we are.” She crossed her arms over her chest and sighed. “So let’s just do this, okay?”
    “Do what?”
    “Let’s have sex.”
    “No thanks.” He unzipped his jacket and shrugged it off his shoulders. “So, should I sleep on the couch or is there a spare room?”
    “Excuse me?” She dropped her arms and let them dangle at her sides. “Did you just say ‘no thanks’?” He tossed his jacket on a nearby armchair. “That’s right, I did.” When he met her gaze, she had the gall to look confused. “You don’t want to have sex?”
    “Not when you act like it’s a chore.”
    Another sigh tumbled out of her mouth, longer this time, and lined with exasperation. “I can’t believe you. You’ve been flirting with me all night, taunting me with how we’re going to end up in bed together, and when I finally give in, you back out. Unbelievable!”
    Shaking her head, she stalked past him and flew into the kitchen. A large window had been cut out of the wall, so he could see her every movement as she pulled the fridge door open so hard the items on the shelves clattered against one another. Ben hid a grin, enjoying the way she grabbed a carton of orange juice and slammed it on the counter.
    She looked pissed and he loved it. Not that he got off on infuriating women, but this one deserved to have a few feathers ruffled. He was used to people assuming things about him, but Maggie was the first woman who’d ever openly challenged and criticized him. The first woman who acted like having sex with him was as appealing as a root canal.
    “Why did you ask me to come here when it’s obviously not what you want?” He knew he sounded angry, but what annoyed him more was the faint twinge of disappointment he heard in his voice. If anyone should be disappointed, it