Love Bytes Read Online Free Page A

container in the trash receptacle. “You spend too much time in dark rooms.”
    “I’m ignoring that.” Francis leaned back in the chair, stretched his long legs in front of him, and crossed his arms. “I’m too busy thinking.”
    She leaned her face in the palm of her hand and watched him. He was quite good looking, better looking than most of the men in the local software industry. His hair was thick, cut close on the sides and back, longer on top where it stood in stiff waves. Its light brown color was almost a match for his tan skin, which reminded her of the beach on a summer’s day. A straight, refined nose gave him a look of arrogance while his full lower lip softened his overall appearance, and was a delight to nibble on.
    And he was smart too. Forget Rogers, Francis was the best programmer she knew, which was why she tapped him to help her co-found the company after meeting him at a conference years back.
    “What are you thinking about?”
    “How long is it going to take for us to work out these glitches. Calculating the time it’s going to take before the deadline.”
    Violet shook her head. Though she was expert at programming and was one of the top coders in the industry, she’d left that behind. The whole process gave her headaches which is why she hired programmers. “You told them in the meeting that they would be able to handle the issues with the software.”
    “That was confidence building.”
    “I call it lying.”
    Francis shook his head back and forth, a half-smile on his face. “This is why I’m glad you let me run the meetings.”
    Violet made a face and turned back to the laptop screen. “You’re wonderful, Francis. Absolutely fabulous.” Her tone was heavy with sarcasm, but she knew the words were true. “So can we make the fixes or not? No BS confidence building, please.”
    “We can.”
    “Hear anything about Avarix?”
    “No.” He blew out a breath. “But I’ll keep my ear to the ground.” He glanced at her. “Are you nervous?”
    Using one finger, she pushed one of the laptops forward, trying to appear nonchalant. Her voice was quiet when she spoke. “It means a lot of money, Francis.” She allowed her gaze to meet his. “A lot.”
    “Worry not, Violet.” He reached over and patted the back of her hand where it was curled on the table. “We’ve got the best programmers. They work hard. If they can’t do it…heck, we can do it ourselves.”
     

Chapter Five
     
    As Violet entered the lobby that morning, the rich fragrance of brewed coffee and the vanilla odor of something sweet baking enticed her through the open door of the shop, the words “Grand Opening” above the door. It was a scent that reminded her of her friend Penelope who was always baking up something tasty at her bakery. The heady fragrance was so intoxicating that she crossed the threshold against her will. She glanced at her watch and realized that the shop wasn’t yet open despite the man behind the counter with his back to her. How embarrassing. Why hadn’t she bothered to look at the hours on the door?
    Changing directions, she knocked against a metal garbage can, startling herself. The man behind the counter turned around, a look of suspicion on his face, which vanished when he saw her.
    “Morning,” he said, dropping a white cloth on the stainless steel counter.
    Violet backed up, making a gesture of apology. “I’m sorry, I…I didn’t realize it was so early. You’re not open. I didn’t mean to—”
    He pointed at her as he came from behind the counter. “Violet, right? Violet Connelly? Second floor, NorthStar Tech?”
    She flushed, feeling too warm inside her wool coat. “Yes, I’m Violet. Well, people…people call me Vee.”
    “Joe Costello.” He extended his hand and she took two steps forward to shake it. Tall, black-haired and the bluest eyes she’d ever seen. He didn’t have any problem filling out the gray thermal shirt he wore.
    “Welcome, Joe. Grand opening and