Read Online Playing With You by Cheyenne McCray - Free Book Online Page A

he drove his truck into Prescott from his ranch Wednesday morning.
    “Thank you so very much, Mr. McBride.” Jan Tunstall sounded much happier than she had when she’d hired him for the job. She’d been devastated by what her ex had done. “I can’t tell you how grateful I am to have my heirloom jewelry back, more than anything else. It has all been handed down for generations and it means a lot. You are an exceptional man.”
    Garrett steered his truck into town. “I was just doing my job, ma’am.”
    “From the moment I hired you,” Jan said, “I knew you were the right man to get my jewelry and my share of the money back. Go ahead and run my credit card for the balance I owe.”
    “I’ll get an invoice to you.” He turned down Gurley Street. “Once you take a look at it, you can pay.”
    “Whatever works.” Jan had a smile in her voice. “Thank you again, Mr. McBride.”
    When she disconnected the call, Garrett found himself parked in front of Sweet Things. He frowned. He’d had no intention of going to the bakery, yet here he was.
    He looked in through the big plate glass window with “Sweet Things” painted in a curve from one side of the glass to the other with “bakery” beneath that. Near the door, in the lower left hand side of the window, the bakery’s address, phone number, and hours were also painted, but in small letters.
    For a long moment, he sat in his truck and watched Ricki through the window. She was so pretty as she polished the glass cases until they shone. She looked happy as she worked, a smile on her lovely face. She wore jeans and a white blouse beneath a bright pink apron. She moved so that her back was to him and he got a great look at her backside. Damn, but she had a nice ass.
    When he’d recovered Jan Tunstall’s jewelry, he’d compared it to the list he’d been given and everything had been there. When he’d picked up a beautiful antique heirloom wedding ring, he’d had a fleeting thought. He’d pictured a ring like that on Ricki—a ring that he’d just slipped on her finger. He dragged his hand down his face. Damn.
    What was he doing here? He should turn the truck around and head to his office now.
    Instead, he killed the engine then climbed out of his truck and locked it before heading to the bakery. Warm smells of baked pastries flowed over him and bells on the glass door jangled as he pushed it open.
    Ricki looked up and a surprised expression crossed her features as she smiled at him. “Hi, Garrett.”
    “Hey.” He made his way toward her. “How’s business today?”
    “Good.” She had a spray bottle of cleaner in one hand, a rag in the other. “Have a bit of a lull right now, but it’s nice to get a break on a busy day.”
    He had the sudden powerful urge to take her by her shoulders, draw her up close to him, and kiss her senseless. He had to remind himself that it was a bad idea. A real bad idea.
    “I thought you’d be gone all week,” she said.
    He shook his head. “Finished the job early.”
    She moved around the counter so that the cases were now separating them, as if she needed to put distance between them. That was probably a good idea.
    “The usual?” She started to open the case with the scones.
    He shook his head. “I’ll try something different.”
    She raised an eyebrow. “What, no blueberry scone?”
    “Thought I’d shake things up a bit.” He found himself smiling and she responded instantly with a smile of her own. He gestured toward a different case. “How about one of those éclairs? Are they as good as they look?”
    “Even better, if I do say so myself.” She laughed. “Anything else today?”
    Yeah, you. She had to be the sweetest thing in the shop.
    He shook his head to rattle the thought out and realized she thought he was shaking his head at her in answer to her question.
    She took an éclair from the case with a piece of waxed paper, and slipped it into a bag. She folded the top and went to the register.