Only His Read Online Free Page A

“Not you. I never wanted to see you again.”
    â€œI’m the one in charge.”
    â€œExactly. Which is why it’s okay for you to leave now.”
    As rejections went, she was more than clear. He didn’t like it, but he wasn’t going to beg. He nodded once, then left, still confused about what was going on. He got halfway across the parking lot when a pickup pulled in next to him.
    â€œYou’re a long way from the Amazon,” a familiar voice called.
    Tucker saw Ethan climbing out of the truck and grinned.
    â€œWhat are you doing here?” Tucker asked.
    He and Ethan shook hands, then slapped each other on the back.
    â€œI run the place,” Ethan said, pointing at the sign. “Not that I’m here much these days. I’m over with the turbines.”
    Tucker knew his friend had become involved with turbine construction. Wind energy was a growing field and Ethan’s product was in high demand.
    â€œI have some names for you,” Ethan told him, pulling a worn briefcase off the passenger seat. “Good guys you’ll want to think about hiring. A couple work for me, but I’ll let them go. With Nevada leaving, there’s going to be less construction work.”
    â€œLeaving? Where’s she going?”
    â€œTo work for you.” Ethan looked surprised. “I know she applied.”
    â€œShe did. I just offered her a job, but she turned me down.”
    â€œI don’t get it,” Ethan told him. “She was excited about the opportunity.”
    â€œI wanted her on board.”
    There had to be something else going on, Tucker told himself. It couldn’t just be the past. Assuming what she’d said was true, that their time together had been…awful, even that shouldn’t be enough to keep her from coming to work for him. He wasn’t some jerk of a boss.
    â€œI was planning on giving her a team of my best guys.”
    Ethan frowned. “Let me talk to her.”
    Tucker shook his head. “Don’t. She either wants the job or she doesn’t. It needs to be her choice.”
    â€œOkay. But don’t think this means you’re going to be in town and avoiding me. I want to have you over for dinner. You can meet Liz and the kids. See all you’ve been missing with your nomadic lifestyle.”
    â€œI like my nomadic lifestyle.”
    â€œThat’s because you never were as bright as the rest of us.”
    Â 
    N EVADA DID HER BEST to ignore the pounding in her head. She’d taken as much aspirin as she thought was safe and had hydrated enough to water fifteen acres of corn, but she still felt as if she would have been smarter to shoot herself that morning.
    Jo had tried to warn her, she reminded herself. She’d been very specific on the consequences of drinking that much—especially for someone who generally limited herself to a single drink. But had she listened? Of course not. Now she was paying the price with a pounding headache and a body that hurt everywhere but her eyelashes.
    â€œI can’t believe you turned down the job.”
    The loud words came unexpectedly, causing her to jump. She glanced up and saw her brother standing in the doorway to her office. Tucker had filled up the space nicely, she thought, remembering how good he’d looked and how that had pissed her off.
    â€œI don’t want to talk about it,” she mumbled, wondering when the last of the alcohol would finally get out of her system.
    â€œYou’re going to talk about it. This is what you wanted. You said you were interested in a challenge. Tucker’s offering all that. He thinks you’d be good for his team.”
    Telling her sisters what had happened was one thing, but explaining the details to her brother wasn’t a place she was willing to go.
    â€œI’m not interested anymore.”
    â€œWhy? I don’t get this. Are you scared?”
    â€œNo.”
    â€œThen,