Read Online The Tycoon Takes a Wife by Catherine Mann - Free Book Online Page B
Authors: Catherine Mann
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I expect to leave more for my kids.”
“You want children?” She averted her eyes, setting her mug down.
“Damn straight, I do. A half dozen or so.”
She pushed to her feet abruptly, backing away, nearly stumbling over her bare feet. Eloisa grabbed the chair for balance. “I need to finish getting ready for work.”
What the hell had caused her quick turnaround? He’d been sure he was making headway and suddenly she was checking her watch, shoving on her shoes and scooping up her purse.
Maybe he’d hit a snag there by pushing too hard, too fast. But he wasn’t one to admit defeat. It was all about building on the progress he’d made, one brick at a time. He watched her rush around the town house, gatheringherself on her way out the door. And as she turned to wave goodbye, he realized.
She’d put on lip gloss.
He thought back to the evening before. She’d been stunning, silhouetted against the waterside, wind rippling her dress and lifting her hair. She had an unstated style and innate grace that proclaimed her timeless beauty regardless of what she wore.
And he was damn sure she hadn’t worn makeup last night or a year ago. Yet for some reason, she’d slicked on gloss today. Sure, it was a minor detail, but he found himself curious about every detail surrounding the woman he’d married.
They’d made a decent start in getting to know each other better today. Although they’d mostly talked about his job. And now that he thought about it, he didn’t know much about her career since she’d transitioned from being a student.
If he wanted to get closer to Eloisa, perhaps it was time to learn a little more about her workplace.
Six
E loisa perched on the second-to-top step of the rolling ladder, replacing two copies of The Scarlet Letter. They’d been returned by a couple of high schoolers who’d lost their classroom edition and had to check it out from the library in a panic before the test. And while work usually calmed her, channeling peace through the quiet and rows of books… Today the familiar environment fell short of its normally calming effect.
She placed the blame squarely on her husband. Having Jonah show up in her life again so unexpectedly was unsettling on too many levels. No wonder she was having trouble finding her footing. She’d contacted her attorney and it appeared Jonah’s claim was correct. The divorce hadn’t gone through after all. Her lawyer had received the paperwork just this morning, although hevowed he had no idea how Jonah had learned of her Medina roots.
The lawyer had gone on to reassure her he would look into it further. In fact, he planned to go straight to the source and speak with her father and brothers directly. If they didn’t have the information, they would need to be warned, as well.
She aligned the books and started back down the ladder. A hand clamped her calf. Gasping, she grabbed the railings to keep from pitching over backward. She looked down fast—
“Jonah,” she whispered, her world righting and narrowing to just him, “you scared the hell out of me.”
“Sorry about that. Wouldn’t want you to fall.” He kept his hand on her leg.
Eloisa continued down, his hand naturally sliding up for an inch, and another. Her heart triple-timed as she wondered how long he would keep up this game.
She descended another step.
His hand fell away. The heat of his palm remained.
Soft chitchat sounded from a couple of rows over, the air conditioner nearly as loud as the conversation. Otherwise, this section of the library was pretty much deserted this morning.
Eloisa gripped a shelf since the floor felt a little wobbly. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to take you out. Unless you have to do something with your sister’s wedding plans, in which case, I’m here to supply lunch.” He gripped the shelf just beside her, his body blocking the rest of the row from sight and creating a quiet—intimate—haven.
A lunch date? God, that sounded fun
“You want children?” She averted her eyes, setting her mug down.
“Damn straight, I do. A half dozen or so.”
She pushed to her feet abruptly, backing away, nearly stumbling over her bare feet. Eloisa grabbed the chair for balance. “I need to finish getting ready for work.”
What the hell had caused her quick turnaround? He’d been sure he was making headway and suddenly she was checking her watch, shoving on her shoes and scooping up her purse.
Maybe he’d hit a snag there by pushing too hard, too fast. But he wasn’t one to admit defeat. It was all about building on the progress he’d made, one brick at a time. He watched her rush around the town house, gatheringherself on her way out the door. And as she turned to wave goodbye, he realized.
She’d put on lip gloss.
He thought back to the evening before. She’d been stunning, silhouetted against the waterside, wind rippling her dress and lifting her hair. She had an unstated style and innate grace that proclaimed her timeless beauty regardless of what she wore.
And he was damn sure she hadn’t worn makeup last night or a year ago. Yet for some reason, she’d slicked on gloss today. Sure, it was a minor detail, but he found himself curious about every detail surrounding the woman he’d married.
They’d made a decent start in getting to know each other better today. Although they’d mostly talked about his job. And now that he thought about it, he didn’t know much about her career since she’d transitioned from being a student.
If he wanted to get closer to Eloisa, perhaps it was time to learn a little more about her workplace.
Six
E loisa perched on the second-to-top step of the rolling ladder, replacing two copies of The Scarlet Letter. They’d been returned by a couple of high schoolers who’d lost their classroom edition and had to check it out from the library in a panic before the test. And while work usually calmed her, channeling peace through the quiet and rows of books… Today the familiar environment fell short of its normally calming effect.
She placed the blame squarely on her husband. Having Jonah show up in her life again so unexpectedly was unsettling on too many levels. No wonder she was having trouble finding her footing. She’d contacted her attorney and it appeared Jonah’s claim was correct. The divorce hadn’t gone through after all. Her lawyer had received the paperwork just this morning, although hevowed he had no idea how Jonah had learned of her Medina roots.
The lawyer had gone on to reassure her he would look into it further. In fact, he planned to go straight to the source and speak with her father and brothers directly. If they didn’t have the information, they would need to be warned, as well.
She aligned the books and started back down the ladder. A hand clamped her calf. Gasping, she grabbed the railings to keep from pitching over backward. She looked down fast—
“Jonah,” she whispered, her world righting and narrowing to just him, “you scared the hell out of me.”
“Sorry about that. Wouldn’t want you to fall.” He kept his hand on her leg.
Eloisa continued down, his hand naturally sliding up for an inch, and another. Her heart triple-timed as she wondered how long he would keep up this game.
She descended another step.
His hand fell away. The heat of his palm remained.
Soft chitchat sounded from a couple of rows over, the air conditioner nearly as loud as the conversation. Otherwise, this section of the library was pretty much deserted this morning.
Eloisa gripped a shelf since the floor felt a little wobbly. “What are you doing here?”
“I came to take you out. Unless you have to do something with your sister’s wedding plans, in which case, I’m here to supply lunch.” He gripped the shelf just beside her, his body blocking the rest of the row from sight and creating a quiet—intimate—haven.
A lunch date? God, that sounded fun
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