Surprised by Love: A Contemporary Romance (The Armstrongs Book 4) Read Online Free Page B

from now. For dinner.”
    “Really? When did that get scheduled?”
    “When I called him and scheduled it.”
    A scowl crossed his face for a millisecond, but then he put on his business face, “Thank you. That sounds like a wonderful idea.”
    Toni raised a mental eyebrow at the veiled compliment. Did he just compliment me?
    “Come in and have a seat. There’s no reason to hang out in the doorway.”
    Toni stepped inside his office, making sure the door stayed open. She needed an escape, just in case. She didn’t trust herself in his presence.
    When he rose and gestured towards the chair sitting in front of his desk, she took a seat and then waited for him to seat himself again.
    “So, tell me more about Mr. Wang Li. I assume there’s a reason you scheduled a dinner date with he and his wife?”
    Toni nodded. “Things work differently over here. Mr. Wang is of Chinese heritage.”
    “And that is important why?”
    “The Chinese like to do business with people they know. In this instance, Mr. Wang needs a chance to get to know you so that he is comfortable with you handling the construction of his building.”
    Douglas interrupted her. “But we already signed the contract.”
    She couldn’t hide a smile. “See. This is the first mistake foreigners usually make. A contract isn’t worth the paper it’s written until the two parties get to know and trust each other.”
    She expected him to get angry at her, like her clients normally did, and give her a lecture in contract law, blah blah blah. But much to her surprise, he didn’t.
    He kept quiet for a long time and when he talked again, he fired questions at her. She startled for a moment. Mr. I’m-Perfectly-Capable asks me about my opinion?
    Toni answered them all, to the best of her knowledge, and was amazed at how perceptive he was. She’d expected him to challenge her, but instead, he listened and seemed receptive to her suggestions.
    “So, can you put together a lead sheet? Just the basic facts about Wang Li. I want to study up on him before our dinner meeting.”
    She looked at him with wide eyes, but nodded, “Sure. I’ll have something for you before the end of the day.”
    “Thanks.”
    Toni stood up and left his office. Maybe he’s not that bad after all?

Chapter 5
    Toni returned to her office and put together the information on Wang Li and his wife. It took her twice as long as it should have because she was all keyed up from seeing Douglas again. Her knees felt weak and her heart rate still hadn’t slowed down. She felt her pulse beating in her temples and that made it hard to concentrate on business stuff. That and the constant flashes of his gorgeous body in the pool going through her mind.
    She dropped her head into her hands. Something must be done. I need to get a handle on him .
    When she finally finished up the lead sheet, she tried to bury herself in the company books once again, but couldn’t concentrate if her life depended on it. Her mind kept wandering. While she was excited to be starting a new project, she felt that emptiness creeping in once again. She felt like she was missing something, but what? Maybe I should take an adult time-out. A sabbatical so I can decide what to do next with my life.
    She had been slightly unfulfilled for a while now. She knew she couldn’t travel for the rest of her life; and someday soon, she’d have to get a ‘real job’ and stay in the same place for more than a few months. Once she became more stationary, then she would allow herself to think about a boyfriend. Then again, maybe she’d just stay single. Her track record with relationships was horrible.
    After another thirty minutes of fruitless labor, she realized she was getting nowhere. She sent a text to her friend, Tricia, and smiled when the response arrived within seconds.
    Drinks?
    Heck, yeah!
    Where?
    I’ll meet you outside your office.
    Toni closed her phone and then signed off her computer. Now she just had to get out of the