Once A Bad Girl Read Online Free Page A

arm as she moved slowly into the space, crossing what she assumed would be the dance floor. Quiet echoed around them, and she wondered why he had brought her here. Glancing over her shoulder, she saw him standing by the entrance, hands tucked in his pockets, his gaze intent on her.
    She couldn’t figure him out. But she wanted to. ‘So where’s this drink you offered me?’ She picked her way through a maze of paint pots, toes burning, and tried not to wince. It hadn’t been so bad on the tube, where she’d been lucky enough to get a seat, but her shoes were now on serious overtime. She’d give anything for a pair of trainers right now.
    Another step forward, and an arrow of pain shot up her leg and her ankle flexed dangerously. Time to give up on trying to look good, Lottie decided. It wasn’t as if she could impress him anyway. Bending down, she fixed her palm to the heel of her left shoe and was about to slip it off when a hand settled on her shoulder.
    ‘Why do women always take their shoes off in a nightclub?’ he asked, and there was a soft stroke of amusement in his voice. ‘It’s asking for trouble.’
    Lottie straightened up, found herself side by side with him. The sleeve of his beautifully cut charcoal-grey suit brushed her arm, and she felt the touch like a jolt of electricity. Was this the good twin she was talking to now, or the bad one? ‘Because our feet hurt,’ she told him, trying not to wince.
    ‘You need to keep them on. There could be all sorts on the floor. Nails, that sort of thing. And it won’t look good if I get an onsite injury before the place has even opened.’
    ‘I guess not.’
    She glanced around, trying to find something close by that she could sit on. Anything. On the far side of the space, what she assumed would be the bar snaked along the wall, the shelves behind it empty, underneath a network of dangling wires. A couple of plastic chairs sat near one end, but they seemed a mile away.
    Lottie bit the inside of her cheek, and tried to figure out what to do for the best. Maintaining her dignity was high on her list of priorities, but she wasn’t sure if she could. It had been manageable back at City Hall, when she had been too busy being cross to fully acknowledge her awareness of him. But here, in this empty cavern, there was no place to hide from her thoughts. Her naughty, indecent thoughts.
    ‘Do me a favour,’ Josh said, interrupting those thoughts with that low, crisp voice. ‘Close your eyes for a second, and try to pretend that you don’t think I’m a creep.’
    ‘I’ll do my best,’ Lottie replied. She lowered her lashes, but not all the way, wondering what on earth he was up to. Her skin prickled, and she found herself holding onto her bag a little too tightly. She reminded herself that they’d come here to talk, and she still had plenty to ask.
    ‘Close your eyes,’ he said again.
    This time she did as she was told, and the prickle gave way to a little tingle of awareness. She could sense him moving closer. No, she thought suddenly. No, this is…
    Lottie made herself drink in some air and tried to remember the life-changing gem she’d picked out of the self-help book that was propped open on the little white table at the side of her bed. Visualise your place of safety. Her desk. Her computer. The door of her office, firmly closed. She put herself there.
    And then her feet left the floor.
    She opened her eyes and found his face only inches from hers. One arm was tucked under her knees, the other around her waist. Slipping her arms round his neck was instinctive, easy. He didn’t look at her, instead made his way across to the bar, setting her back on her feet next to one of the chairs.
    Lottie sank down into it, not quite sure what had just happened. Okay, she knew exactly what had just happened. She’d just been picked up and carried across the room like something from a romantic film. Her pulse was frantic, her body on sensory overload as her brain