Robin in the Hood (Robbin' Hearts Series Book 1) Read Online Free

line, like a dagger. For a second, I wondered if it was a warning—
    “You gotta be kidding me,” he shook his head, folding his tattooed arms. “You honestly think you can take on this place?”
    He leaned his tall frame against the tree, appearing amused. Instantly, I could tell from his ripped clothes, sinewy body, and nearly feral gaze that he was pretty much
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Pinnacle had been paid so handsomely to keep out of my reach.
    Beautiful.
    Deadly.
    And
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within kissing distance—
    Without warning, his intense eyes locked on mine as if we were the only two people who’d ever mattered on planet earth.
    And all at once, I felt a weight dislodge and explode into a gazillion pieces inside my chest.
    This is my heart—
    This is my heart on CRACK.
    I hyperventilated for a moment, fully acknowledging that I
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the most undersexed teen this side of Mississippi. As long as no one counts kissing Laura Ritter, but that was only because she sobbed and got all needy on me and promised to write my “Female Power in Japanese Culture” essay.
    Get a grip, I snapped at myself. Focus!
    Okay, so I know most girls like me are diamond-wise and boy-foolish. Except for CeeCee Stone, of course, whose conquests rival alley cats. So surely the only reason the hottest thing in the known universe is standing in front of me right now is because . . .
    Well, um, because . . .
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.
    “Dammit!”
    The guy laughed like I’d said that out loud.
    “Shit!”
    Yep, I’m pretty sure he heard that one, too.
    I shuffled my feet, heaving a big sigh.
    All right Mr. Rugged & Beautiful, I thought, folding my arms across my supremely-dorky school sweater. Think you can psyche me out? Well I’ve just completed a year and a half in mean-girl lockdown, where they make you check in your soul at the door in exchange for verbal switchblades, so don’t even
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I’m gonna cave any time soon.
    No fear.
    I lifted my chin and gave him my iciest stare.
    “First one inside hits the jackpot!” I said, darting into the bank’s front door before he could blink.
    At least, I’d thought I’d made it before him. But in the time it took me to absorb Home & Hearth’s truly horrendous country-blue lobby with white geese & little red hearts on the perky gingham wallpaper borders, I could feel the guy’s warm breath against my neck.
    “Okay, Silver Spoon,” he whispered from behind me with a laugh, “let’s see what you got.”
    I whipped around, but he was already half-way out the door.
    Holy crap.
    It’s
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    Without wasting another second, I marched up to the only teller—a round woman with a doughy face and gray, curly hair—and shot her my very fiercest look.
    “Give me the money,” I stated, spying the name tag on her blouse, “Darlene.”
    No finger in the cardigan, or note, or even a hint of violence.
    In the heat of moment, I’d forgotten all about that stuff, but there was no retreating now.
    The woman’s face broke into the sweetest smile I’d ever seen.
    “Thank you, Jesus!” She clapped her hands together loudly, her eyes tearing up. “Honey, I been prayin’ for you!”
    She waved her hands in the air to some unseen troop of angels and nodded at me as if I were her walking dream-come-true. Then she turned to grab a basket full of muffins.
    “Here, sweetie. We usually hand these out to customers who open up new checking accounts. But I thought it might be a nice touch to give it to you, too.”
    Before I could speak, she’d plopped the basket into my arms. Then she pulled out a quilted fabric purse and opened it wide, removing a thick wad of bills held together by a rubber band. Eyes sparkling, she dropped the bills into the basket like it was Easter candy.
    “There you go—three-hundred and fifty whole dollars! I won it at bingo last Wednesday, and I been askin’ the Lord
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week to show me a sign for who to give it to. And here you came in