Bare (Miss Demeanor Series Book 2) Read Online Free

Firearms to hail a cab and didn’t notice him. The collision jolted her bags from her hands. She started to apologize but the beautiful man she viewed left her speechless.
    “Whoa! Someone is in a hurry.” His hands landed on her upper arms. The heat that generated against her bare skin from his touch left her dazed. No man had ever had that effect with one single touch. His dark lashes encircled his hazel eyes and held her stare. She desperately fought the urge to run her hands through his darkened sexy mess of hair. Then plant her lips on his perfect pout. Snap out of it Shay. This man is a total stranger.
    “I’m sorry.”
    Her heart skipped a beat when he smiled. “Not to worry.” He bent down to retrieve her bags. One item had fallen out of the bag and he reached for it. “Bedside backup,” he read the label on the box and then placed it back in the bag. He handed Shay her bags with a raised eyebrow. Before he could tease her about it, she figured she’d make the first wisecrack.
    “Every single girl in the city needs one.”
    He laughed. “Good one. But it is always good for a single girl to remain safe in this city.”
    Shay smiled. A hot guy with sensitivity and smarts must be attached to someone. The good ones always were. Saddened by that thought, she apologized again and opened the cab door. She looked at her watch as the cab pulled away. She still had enough time to go home and change before her interview at eleven-thirty.

    Shay looked up at the sign. Business Associates Reserved Establishment . The nickname given to it still stuck in her memory. She assumed many still called it— Bare . The sign on the door instructed members only to swipe their card for entry and visitors to ring for service. Nervously, she pressed the button on the door. She heard a female voice come through the speaker.
    “Good morning, may I help you?”
    Shay announced she had an appointment at eleven-thirty with Richard Newark and gave her name. The woman told her to come in and she heard a buzz. Shay reached for the handle and pushed the door open.
    She felt as though she’d stepped into a different world—a world of wealth. She walked into an open area with a marble water fountain in the center of the room. The water flowed through white lights which sparkled like diamonds. A seating area to her left had a dozen tables and chairs, small table lamps accented with gold trim and white shades. A bellboy stood beside the elevator. Shay noticed there were buttons for five floors.
    She turned to her right. An elegant, burgundy leather finished bar, sat in the center of the large room. It had tiny white lights built-in along its edge. There had to be at least twenty leathered burgundy cushioned stools. Both ends curved to enclose the glass wall behind it. She couldn’t begin to count the number of bottles and glasses on that wall. To the left of the bar she noticed more tables and chairs of the same sort that sat to her left. To the right of the bar were leather couches and chairs in front of a stone fireplace. The same gold-accented table lamps sat on each table around the furniture. Beautiful young women moved elegantly between the tables and couches serving drinks. Some dressed in classic black skirts and tops and some in elegant black cocktail dresses just as Mike described.
    Shay turned her focus back to the bar and a man’s stare.
    Oh shit! It’s that man I bumped into in front of McCarthy’s Firearms shop earlier. Thank God I never introduced myself. I hope he doesn’t suspect I’m here undercover. She smiled nonchalantly and waved. His returned smile weakened her already nervous state. Who cares if he’s attached? He’s probably in on this secret drug ring. Damn! All the good ones are untouchable. Her attraction for him diminished with that thought. A strikingly handsome man came toward her. She recognized him from the pictures Maile showed her. But the pictures didn’t do him justice.
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    “Miss Dunbar?”