Snatched (Coronado Series Book 2) Read Online Free Page B

sure. How would I know what caused this?”
    “If you had a man in your life, it might have deterred someone from choosing you. It would be more hassle, and they may have chosen another victim. I’m going to act as your boyfriend and see what we come up with.”
    “Don’t you think you should ask me first and see if I agree?”
    “No, this is a sound strategy and we’re going to use it.”
    “As long as you take my opinion into account.” She put her hands on her hips and stared him down.
    He realized this wasn’t a woman who was going to be easy to manage. No one had probably ever been successful. “Let’s try it, and if we don’t get any results, we’ll try something else.”
    “All right, I will go along with it - for now.”
    “If we’re lucky, it’ll shake the trees a little and get back to whoever is stalking you. It may eventually make our job easier.” While it was all true, Max just wanted to stick close to her and this was a great excuse. He realized he didn’t want anyone else spending time with her. He was going to be the only one.  
    “You just made that up.”  
    “I did not.” He was completely willing to lie to her to get her to go along with his idea.
    “You kissed me five seconds ago. I think there’s more going on.” She studied him for a moment and tried to determine what he was up to. She realized he was going to confess to nothing. “I guess we can pretend to be together and see if anyone takes the bait.”  
    Max didn’t feel like he was going to be pretending, but kept that to himself. “Let’s go and see what we come up with.”

CHAPTER TWO

    She sat in Max’s comfortable black SUV and noticed how relaxed he appeared. They were on the freeway heading into La Jolla where the corporate offices were located. The weather was still hot and the Santa Ana winds had started blowing earlier in the day. When it was this dry and windy people started to act crazier than usual.  
    He looked over and grabbed her hand and held it. “How are you doing?”
    “I’m doing ok…. considering what’s going on. Why are you holding my hand?”
    “I like holding your hand…. I’m attracted to you. I’ve decided that I’m not going to fight it. I don’t feel like playing games or acting like I don’t care. In fact, I’m going to lean into it and see where it goes. I’m 38 years old and I understand how rare it is to have a woman like you show up in my life.” Taking her hand, he lifted it to his mouth, kissed it very gently and winked at her.
    Rory said nothing in response. What could she say? Giving him a small smile she looked out the window and let her mind float away. It was too much to process - stalker, quitting her job and a man who just announced he was leaning in. Her mind landed in the shoe department at Niemen Marcus. It was her happy place and she was going to think about that instead. Her hand felt wonderful in his, warm, surrounded by hard male flesh, somehow safe. She had spent the last twenty eight years being self-sufficient. This was the moment she felt like leaning into this very attractive, capable man and letting him handle it for a while.
    As he drove, he looked over and noticed she was physically there, but her mind was a million miles away. Maybe he should’ve kept his intentions to himself. “How are you doing sweetheart? Are you still with me?”
    She kept her face pointed towards the window and her eyes closed. “I’m visiting my happy place, so my head doesn’t explode. Let me know when we get to the office.”
    He squeezed her hand and followed instructions. At least she didn’t pull her hand away. They soon pulled off the freeway and made their way to the office. He parked the car, leaned over and kissed her cheek. “We’re here - let’s get you to your office.”
    She slowly opened her eyes and smiled. “OK…. show time, let’s get this over with.” They made their way into the building. She spoke with the security guard and got Max a