Page 53 of Naturally Naughty


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Act innocent. She gave him a “Who me?” shrug.

He crossed his arms and raised his brow, waiting for her to admit she’d been spying on him.

“Oh, all right,” she muttered. As she entered the front door she immediately launched into an explanation. “I didn’t mean to watch you working out. I just stepped out for some fresh air, and couldn’t help noticing.”

“Uh-huh,” he said as he began to stretch his arms out, slowly rolling his shoulders as if cooling down from his workout.

“I mean, the curtains were open. I just caught a glimpse.”

“Right.”

His one-word answers did nothing to hide his amusement.

“Really, Jack, I do respect your privacy.”

He finally stopped moving all those yummy muscles long enough to meet her eye. “Kate, you’ve been standing there for almost ten minutes.”

She fisted her hands and put them on her hips. “You saw me?”

“No,” he admitted. Then he grinned. “But I heard your front door open, and that board on the front porch really creaks.”

She was surprised he’d been able to hear anything except his own churning pulse as he’d flexed and stretched all those lovely, hard muscles. She forced herself to look away, wondering if she’d been drooling while she’d watched from the window. She surreptitiously lifted her fingers to her chin to check.

“So, uh, were you doing some kind of karate?” she finally asked, wanting to fill the charged silence. “I’ve thought about taking some self-defense courses.”

“Tae Kwon Do. If you’re serious, I teach at a studio in Chicago. I can give you the address.”

That implied they’d see one another after they left Pleasantville, something Kate hadn’t really allowed herself to consider. “Well, I don’t know….”

“If you don’t feel comfortable in a class,” he said with a cajoling smile, “I’d be happy to work with you one on one.”

Work with her. One on one. How about one you on one me?

She gulped. “I’d better go.”

He grabbed a white towel and draped it over his shoulders. “Don’t go. I’ll make you some breakfast. I can’t promise gourmet food like diet Coke and donuts, but I can do a decent omelet.”

Considering she hadn’t bothered to do a grocery shopping trip, and had been living off fast food and 7-Eleven burritos for the past few days, Kate’s stomach overruled her brain. “Great.”

“Lemme change.”

You don’t have to on my account!

While he was upstairs, Kate went into the kitchen, glad to see Jack was keeping the place spotless, just as it had been when her mother had lived here. Kate, unfortunately, was more the slob type. And the world’s greatest chef—or even a competent one—she was not. She did, however, know how to crack an egg and was hard at it when he returned, dressed in jeans and a T-shirt.

“So tell me why you want to take self-defense courses,” he said as he began making their breakfast.

“I dunno, I live in a big city and run a rather infamous store. I got a few wacky phone calls after that article.”

Jack’s shoulders stiffened. “Did anyone threaten you?”

“Oh, no. I just got asked on some unusual dates—to strip clubs, S and M hangouts and the Circus.”

“Circus sounds pretty normal.”

“I thought so, too, at first. Turns out there’s a sex show called the Circus where the animals are all people in costume who offer rides to members of the audience.”

“I think I’d rather not have known that,” he said with a groan as he diced some ham for the omelets.

“Me, too.” She made herself at home, finding his coffee supply and filling the coffeepot. “I guess some people heard about my shop and instantly thought the worst of me.”

He put the knife down to study her. “You’ve had to deal with that before, haven’t you?”

She knew he meant here, in Pleasantville. “Ancient history.”

“So how does it measure up now? How has the town treated you these first few days?”

So far, she had to admit, things had been okay. Then again, she hadn’t been out too much, staying mostly at home, at Cassie’s place or at the store. “Fine, actually. How about you? Has the red carpet been rolled out for the return of the prodigal son?”

Source: www.allfreenovel.com
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