AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Grinding her teeth to make sure her jaw wouldn’t drop, she turned away. “So, which essential oils are you interested in buying today?”
Here she was, a grown woman, just about salivating because a gorgeous man was in her shop. Maybe she should seriously begin to think about dating again. “There is an essential oil for just about every problem you may have. Suzie’s husband, for instance...” The minute the words left her mouth, Lindsay nearly groaned out loud. Normally, she kept clients’ issues completely confidential, but Suzie had already let that cat way out of the bag. Even so, why talk about Suzie’s bedroom problem, of all things, while she was talking to Blake?
“I don’t have problems in the bedroom.” His voice was as smooth as Tennessee whiskey.
Lindsay closed her eyes for a minute. He didn’t have to tell her that; one look at his broad shoulders, square jaw, and confident stride made it clear he was all man and... Oh, my goodness, the very last thing she should be thinking about was Blake and bedrooms.
“Okay, so maybe something for your beard?” Why didn’t she simply shut up? She motioned to one of the shelves. “I make a very nice oil with lavender, peppermint, lemon, and coconut oil. You should try it.”
“I don’t...” he began gruffly, before he swore softly and took out his wallet. “Okay, give me the damn oil.”
She took a bottle down and walked towards the till. “Anything else?”
“No,” he said tersely and paid her.
She gave him the package and turned away. She began to clear the counters and checked whether all the cupboards were closed.
“Can you stand still for one damn minute?” Blake growled. “I want to talk to you.”
“I have to finish here; I want to go home. It’s been a long day and I’m hungry.”
“Great. So am I. I’ll take you out to dinner.”
Exasperated, she looked at him. When had he moved so close to her? “I have food...”
“In that case, you can feed me.” And moving away, he began closing the shutters at the windows.
“Blake, seriously...” she began hotly, but he ignored her.
“I mentioned I want to talk to you. So I can either take you to dinner or you can give me dinner—your choice.” His voice was clipped; he was clearly in the habit of barking out orders.
She straightened her shoulders. “Well, I don’t want to talk to you,” she said. Ever since she’d met this man in the local bar earlier that year, he’d been irritating the living daylights out of her. Okay, maybe irritating wasn’t the right word. “Bothering” was probably a better description.
He looked at her; something flashed in his eyes, leaving her breathless. She quickly moved towards the cupboards where she kept her bag and jacket. He turned her inside out with just a look, and she didn’t like it one bit. “Good day. I’m leaving now.”
Clearly exasperated, he rubbed a hand over his face. “Lindsay, damn it, I have to make sure you’re safe, I want to—”
“You’re my self-defense instructor, that’s it. Well, you were before you left, that is.” Fed up with him and her stupid fluttering heart, she picked up her bag and jacket. “I haven’t been back to the dojo; I’m fine. And I’m not your problem. I don’t need looking after, thank you very much. I can do that myself.”
“Someone tried to run you down, damn it! Or have you forgotten that?”
Pulling on her jacket, she shrugged. “They’ve caught the guy, haven’t they? Anyway, as I’ve said, not your problem.”
He opened his mouth and closed it again, pressing his lips together.
Maddened, she took the keys of the shop out of her bag and walked towards the door.
“I don’t think the guy who’s been taken into custody is your real problem, as I think you very well know. I have information you’ll want to know about,” Blake said from behind her. “It’s about Mark Taylor.”
Her breath hitched in her throat, and she stopped. “What information?” Slowly, she turned to face him again. Fear threatened to cut off her oxygen, and she had to inhale deeply. Mark Taylor was the guy who’d nearly broken her spirit, and she hated the fact that the mere mention of his name still made her shiver.
“Let’s go for dinner and I’ll tell you.”
Instantly, fear was replaced with irritation. “This is blackmail and you know it. Fine. But just remember this is no date.” Turning on her heel, she walked out of the shop.
Blake followed her out. With unsteady fingers, she tried to lock the door but she dropped the keys. Quickly bending forward, she put out her hand to pick it up, but Blake was already reaching out and her fingers encountered his. When she looked up, only a few centimeters separated their faces.
Her breath left her body in one swoosh and for a moment she was unable to move.
