Read Online Wild Heat (Northern Fire) by Lucy Monroe - Free Book Online

I was so determined to erase the obligation as quickly as possible. I don’t know, maybe that’s partly why he was so critical of my attempts to fit in his world on a budget.”
    Tack shook his head. He didn’t think so. “Or maybe he saw the financial liability as a way to maintain control over you. The longer you took to pay it off, the longer he had that particular anvil to hold over your head.”
    “Asshole,” Egan spit.
    Kitty didn’t shrug, but her expression didn’t share either Egan’s or Tack’s outrage. “It is what it is, right?”
    “Let me guess,” Tack said with a narrow-eyed glare. “His lawyers kept your divorce settlement to a minimum.”
    “He fought the divorce, Tack. He didn’t want it. He wasn’t offering any settlement at all. I didn’t even ask for lawyer’s fees. I just wanted out.”
    “Even if he didn’t want to give you anything, didn’t the judge order something ?” Egan asked, sounding confused.
    “I signed a very strict prenup. Filing for divorce negated any and all claims I had on Nevin’s assets.”
    “You should have sued him for the cost of that lavish wedding,” Egan opined.
    Kitty almost smiled. “I thought about it, but getting away was more important than getting anything out of him.”
    Egan grimaced, but he didn’t say anything else. He gave Tack a pointed look that couldn’t be misinterpreted, though.
    “Are you sure you can work here and at the B and B?” Tack asked, wishing she’d reconsider but knowing she wouldn’t.
    “Definitely.” Kitty’s face glowed with hope for the first time since he’d seen her back in Cailkirn. “I’ve lost a lot, but not my ability to put my shoulder to it.”
    “More like your fingertips. It’s a lot of paperwork,” Tack warned. “And talking on the phone.”
    Not one of his favorite things to do.
    “I can do it, Tack.” She swallowed and stood, giving both him and Egan an earnest look. “I’m not useless.”
    Hell. Tack sighed, lost. “I know that.”
    “You’re smart enough to keep us both in line and Bobby out of trouble,” Egan offered teasingly.
    And still sexy enough to challenge Tack’s determination to keep her at arm’s length. “I’ll make a deal with you.”
    “What do you want in exchange?” she asked in a tone he’d never heard from Kitty Grant, her voice flat and wary at the same time.
    “Go on a hike with me. You should see what we do if you’re going to take reservations and liaise with the cruise ships.”
    She bit her lip. “I don’t have any boots.”
    Kitty was wearing boots right now, but he knew what she meant. Something suitable for hiking. “I imagine Miz Moya has a pair of your old ones stored somewhere in that big house.”
    Kitty gave a barely-there nod. “I’ll do it.”
    “Would you feel better if Egan came with us?” Tack asked, not liking that idea one bit.
    He wasn’t the one who had proven himself untrustworthy. Not in their relationship and not in Kitty’s life.
    Her blue eyes widened and she shook her head vehemently. “No. I…it’s just…it’s been a while. I probably can’t keep up with you.”
    “We’ll see, wildcat.”
    “Don’t go feeling bad about it if you can’t,” Egan offered. “No one can keep up with Tack. I’ve had more than one tourist come back from his excursions asking if he’s even human.”
    “I’m not that bad.”
    “You’ve got about as much stamina as the bear you’re named for, Taqukaq.” Egan shook his head. “And the tourists still request you because their friends tell them how amazing your excursions are.”
    Tack frowned at his brother. “I’m not a grizzly bear.”
    “You’re about as big as one,” Kitty teased.
    He was too happy she was showing some spunk to take umbrage at her words. “Bears have a few hundred pounds on me.”
    “You sure about that, brother?” Egan smacked Tack’s tight abs with the back of his hand.
    “That was muscle you hit, little boy.” At six-foot-four, his brother