Read Online One Night of Scandal by Elle Kennedy - Free Book Online Page B

be able to put her skills to good use.
    Darcy was grateful for the reprieve, but although she made an effort to participate in the discussion, her mind was elsewhere.
    With two short sentences, Reed had succeeded in ruining girls’ night for her. Now, thanks to him, all she’d be able to think about for the next two hours was their impending meeting.

Chapter Five
    Reed didn’t get nervous often, but his hands were embarrassingly shaky as he parked his car at the curb a few steps from Darcy’s building. Through the windshield, he saw her sitting on the bottom step of her stoop, the light fixture above her head bringing out the reddish highlights in her wavy hair.
    He reluctantly slid out of the car and walked toward her, trying not to dwell on the appealing picture she made. Other than the night at the Krib, he’d never seen her in anything dressy. Usually she wore jeans and colorful tops, and he had to admit he preferred her casual style to the too fancy, too made up women he encountered at Sin on a nightly basis.
    It was funny—before he’d met Darcy, he hadn’t been drawn to the girl-next-door type. He’d preferred bold, confident woman who didn’t mind taking a walk on the wild side. A nice rack didn’t hurt, either.
    Darcy was confident, sure, but she also radiated goodness. A sweet, compassionate side he tended to shy away from. But although she was sweet, she certainly wasn’t meek . The woman challenged him like nobody ever had, and that only added to her appeal.
    “Hey,” he said gruffly, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Thanks for meeting me.”
    “Hey.” She rose from her perch, her hands dangling awkwardly at her sides, one of them clutching a folded piece of paper.
    “What’s that?” he asked.
    She glanced at the sheet as if she’d forgotten she was holding it. “Oh, just a memo from my landlord about some fire alarm and carbon monoxide inspection the building is doing next week. It was stuffed in my mailbox.”
    “Ah.”
    They both went quiet for a second.
    “Um.” Darcy fidgeted. “I’d invite you up, but…”
    The smartass in him reared his annoying head. “But you’re afraid if I come upstairs you’ll end up ripping my clothes off?”
    She rolled her eyes. “Well, aren’t we arrogant?”
    “Am I wrong?” He’d meant to voice the question lightly, just a little tease that meant nothing, but the words came out raspy and dead serious.
    She faltered, averting her gaze for a beat before shifting it back to his. She looked utterly resigned. “I want to say yes, but I don’t think you are. I never thought, not in a million years, that I’d be saying this, but…I’ve been picturing you naked ever since…” She trailed off, but they both knew what she was talking about.
    Her honesty didn’t surprise him. Darcy had been a straight shooter from the moment he’d met her. He got the feeling she always spoke her mind. Didn’t avoid a single confrontation, no matter how uncomfortable it may be.
    Normally he’d appreciate that, but learning that she’d been picturing him naked achieved the opposite result of what he’d come here for. He was supposed to tell her that what happened between them was a mistake. A mistake he didn’t intend on making again. But then she’d gone and said the word naked , and now his mind was overflowing with the dirtiest, filthiest images known to man.
    Reed cleared his throat, valiantly ignoring the merciless throbbing of his groin. “Look, I can’t pretend I didn’t enjoy what we did. I enjoyed it a hell of a lot. But…”
    “But it can’t happen again,” she finished quietly.
    “No, it can’t.”
    “You know, you really didn’t have to come all the way here for this. We could’ve had this talk over the phone.” She sighed. “Is there a reason you decided to do it in person and up the awkward factor by a hundred percent?”
    “That’s not the only reason I came. I hate to break it to you, but things are about to get a little