Roni Loren - Melt Into You

There was a storm behind his green eyes as he stared back at her, but after a moment, he returned her smile and stepped past her to open the door. “Glad to hear it. Now get back to your room before your fiancé comes hunting us down in a jealous rage.”

“Right.” She glanced at Andre, who was watching her and Jace’s exchange intently. “Nice to meet you, Andre. Y’all have fun on the rest of your vacation.”

He lifted a hand in good-bye and after one last look at Jace, she walked out of the room, holding her breath until she heard the door click shut behind her.

* * *

Jace let the door close and then dropped back onto the couch with a groan.

“Whoa, what was that all about?” Andre asked.

Jace pressed the heels of his hands to his brow bone to stave off the fierce pounding that had started there. “Which part?”

“Um, not sure what to start with—Dr. Dan’s woman being here at all or the fact that you totally jumped her shit like you had some right to her.”

Jace shook his head. “We have history. It’s been twelve years, but I know her well enough to see that she’s feeding me a platter of bullshit about being great.”

Andre stretched his legs out and propped them on the coffee table as if ready to settle in for a great story.

Too bad this story sucked.

“She seemed fine to me. You sure you’re not reading too much into it?”

“No, I watched Evan on that beach. She was sad—and drunk. I didn’t know who she was at that point, but I almost got up to talk to her to make sure she was all right. But then she started taking off her clothes, and well, I got a little distracted.”

Andre sniffed. “Can’t blame you there. The girl’s smoking. I saw her in the lobby yesterday and definitely conjured up some mental pictures her fiancé wouldn’t have appreciated.”

Jace tilted his head back and stared at the ceiling. “Believe me, I had the same thoughts down on the beach. I flirted with her and, up until she realized who I was, she was giving me all the positive signs—like she was interested.”

“Huh. That’s surprising. She and the doctor are supposed to be some power couple. She stays behind the scenes but he talks about her all the time on his radio show. Their whole image is based on that ‘we’re the super happy All-American couple, so let us help you be that way, too.’” Andre’s snide tone made it clear how he felt about that sentiment.

Jace released a frustrated breath and lifted his head. “See, that’s what I don’t get. If things are going that awesome for her, why was she out there alone at three in the morning looking so lost? And where the hell was her fiancé? He should be looking out for her. She could’ve drowned.”

“She seems pretty tough to me. I doubt she needs anyone watching out for her.”

“Trust me. Evan always needed someone to do that even if she thinks she doesn’t.”

“Maybe, maybe not. Twelve years is a long time. People change.”

He grunted. “No one changes that much.”

“You should let it lie, man. She obviously doesn’t want to reminisce with you and if you push it, you’re going to piss her off and risk her saying something to the doctor. Stay focused on why you’re here.”

Jace stood and stalked over to the mini-fridge to grab a beer. Yes, why he was here. That’s what he needed to concentrate on. Dr. Dan Witter could be the key to dragging Jace’s sales numbers out of the drastic decline they’d been in over the last year. Between the struggling economy and the financial hit he took from his divorce, Jace’s once thriving business was on shaky ground.

If the good doctor agreed to feature Wicked as the best adult store and website for couples on his sure to be a hit new TV show, Reignite the Flame , Jace could almost guarantee that he’d get enough of a bump in business to stabilize his current location and expand the chain.

It was make it or break it time, and make it was the only option he’d consider. He would rather die than admit to his parents that he’d fucked up yet again, that he’d made the wrong decision walking away from his lucrative financial planning job to pursue his passion.

He tipped back the beer and took a long swallow. He just needed to steer clear of Evan. That’s what he should’ve done when he was nineteen and that’s what he needed to do now. He wasn’t the guy looking out for her anymore. If there were things amiss in her life, it was none of his business. And even if he had wanted to make it his business, she’d certainly made it clear she had no intention of talking to him about it.

He turned back to Andre. “You’re right. No use dredging up the past with her anyway. I just wanted to make sure she was doing okay, and I guess she is.”

Andre sat forward, setting his feet back on the floor. “So what’s the deal with you two anyway? How do you know her? Old flame?”

Jace leaned against the wall, feeling his lack of sleep. He didn’t want to talk about this right now—or ever really—but he knew Andre would put on his police interrogator hat if he tried to brush him off. Jace drained the last of his beer. “She lived with my family for a little over a year when I was in college. She was sixteen the last time I saw her. My parents fostered her.”

“What happened at sixteen?”

“She ran away. Without a goddamned trace.” He tossed his bottle in the trash can. “Seeing her again is like seeing a ghost.”

Andre’s forehead wrinkled. “So you were her foster brother? Man, the way she was looking at you, I would’ve bet money that you two had something more than that between you.”

Jace’s stomach knotted—the word brother stirring the old guilt into a maelstrom. His gaze shifted to the sliding glass doors and the darkened beach beyond. “Yeah, well, I’m not done with the story yet.”

THREE Contents Title Page MELT INTO YOU RONI LOREN Dedication PROLOGUE ONE TWO THREE FOUR FIVE SIX SEVEN EIGHT NINE TEN ELEVEN TWELVE THIRTEEN FOURTEEN FIFTEEN SIXTEEN SEVENTEEN EIGHTEEN NINETEEN TWENTY TWENTY-ONE TWENTY-TWO TWENTY-THREE TWENTY-FOUR TWENTY-FIVE TWENTY-SIX TWENTY-SEVEN TWENTY-EIGHT TWENTY-NINE THIRTY THIRTY-ONE THIRTY-TWO THIRTY-THREE THIRTY-FOUR Acknowledgments Special Excerpt from Crash Into You About The Author Also by Roni Loren Praise for Crash Into You Copyright Конец ознакомительного фрагмента. Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес». Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес. Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом. About the Publisher Конец ознакомительного фрагмента. Текст предоставлен ООО «ЛитРес». Прочитайте эту книгу целиком, купив полную легальную версию на ЛитРес. Безопасно оплатить книгу можно банковской картой Visa, MasterCard, Maestro, со счета мобильного телефона, с платежного терминала, в салоне МТС или Связной, через PayPal, WebMoney, Яндекс.Деньги, QIWI Кошелек, бонусными картами или другим удобным Вам способом.

“Sweets, you okay in there?” Daniel tapped on her door. “We missed you at the meeting this morning.”