His Convenient Virgin Bride Read Online Free Page B

was done.
    He turned, then waited for Amber to start back to the house with him. Lights had come on in the staff cottages. The scent of freshly cut hay hung in the cooling air. And the diesel truck rumbled away down the ranch road, towardthe long hill that wound past the main ranch house to the highway.
    “I was looking for a media file,” said Alec as the engine faded and the crickets took over. “A what?”
    “That’s why I came to find you earlier. Do you have documentation of your jumping career publicity?”
    She looked confused.
    “I’ll need the background information to calculate the dollar value of the exposure,” he elaborated.
    “I don’t understand.”
    “What’s not to understand?”
    “You can switch gears that fast?”
    It was his turn to draw back in confusion.
    “You just risked death to save Amber.”
    “Risked death?” he chuckled, but then he realized she was serious.
    “How did you know how to do that?” she asked.
    “It’s not exactly rocket science.”
    She peered at him through the dim glow of the yard lights. “Were you with the fire department or search and rescue?”
    “No.”
    “You pull a woman from a burning truck and carry her to safety only seconds before it explodes. How does that not rattle you?”
    “That’s the Hollywood version.” He steered their course around the corner of the big barn, linking up with the path to her front porch. “I kicked out a windshield. I didn’t defuse a nuclear weapon.”
    “You risked life and limb.”
    “You know you tend to overdramatize, right?” He didwhat needed to be done, and only because he was the closest guy to the wreck.
    And, quite frankly, it wasn’t fear of the fire and for Amber’s safety that had stuck with him. The worst moment had been that split second before he’d pulled Stephanie out of the way of the truck.
    “You saved a woman’s life, and just like that.” She snapped her fingers. “You’re working on some mundane report.”
    “Correction. I’m trying to work on a mundane report. Do you maybe have a list or something?”
    They’d arrived at the house and mounted the steps, heading in through the door.
    Stephanie kicked off her muddy boots, socks and all. “I have a few scrapbooks down at the main house.”
    “Can we pick them up tomorrow?”
    “Sure.” She pulled the elastic from her ponytail and ran her fingers through her messy hair. The action highlighted its auburn shimmer, while the pose showed off the compact curves of her body.
    It was a struggle not to stare. So, he moved further into the house to where his work was spread out on the dining room table. He dropped into a padded chair, reminding himself of where he’d left off.
    “Alec?” she called, coming around the corner.
    “Yes?”
    When she didn’t answer, he couldn’t help but turn to look.
    She’d stripped off her cotton work shirt and now wore a thin, washed-out T-shirt and a pair of soft blue jeans that hugged her curves. The jeans rode low, revealing a strip of soft, pale skin above the waistband. Her bare feet struckhim as incredibly sexy as she padded across the hardwood floor.
    “What is it about your past life that led you to rush into a burning vehicle while everybody else stood there and stared in horror?”
    “Let it go.”
    She might look soft and sweet, but the woman had the tenacity of a pit bull.
    “I’m curious,” she told him.
    “And I have work to do.”
    “It’s not a normal thing, you know.”
    “It’s a perfectly normal thing. A dozen guys out there would have done the same.”
    Stephanie shook her head.
    Alec rolled his eyes and turned back to his spreadsheet.
    “Let me guess,” she carried on. “You were in the marines.”
    “No.”
    “The army?”
    “Go away.”
    That surprised a laugh out of her. “It’s my house.”
    “It’s my job.”
    She pondered for a minute. “There’s an easy way to get rid of me.”
    He slid a quizzical gaze her way.
    “Answer the question.”
    He