The Cinderella Bride Read Online Free

had taken his response in stride, chuckling about her grandson’s stubbornness. “He always did hate being told what to do,” she’d replied. “He’ll be here,though. He’s a good boy, and I can always count on him to do the right thing. Eventually.”
    The sound of voices brought Emma back to reality. She looked to the armoire and saw a beautiful blonde woman sobbing on the television.
    â€œOh, for crying out loud,” Mrs. Kent muttered. “Are you still pining over that ex-husband? Make up your mind already.”
    Emma smiled as she headed to the door. The change from regal businesswoman to obsessed soap fan never ceased to amuse her. It was a side of the Kent matriarch most people didn’t see, the softer, grandmotherly side, and it made it easier to endure some of the more outrageous demands of her job. Like this morning’s debacle.
    With Mrs. Kent sequestered for the next hour, she had time to catch up on the work she’d missed this morning. Gideon had joked about her diligence, but Emma prided herself on being responsible. After all, someone had to be.
    She placed a call to the chef confirming today’s tea service, including the extra petit fours, then boiled a pot of water with the miniature coffeemaker she kept stashed behind her desk. Despite Mrs. Kent’s insistence that she order coffee or tea from guest services, she felt more comfortable providing her own.
    Fifteen minutes later she was inhaling the soothing aroma of orange pekoe. Mrs. Kent was right; tea did chase away the cold. Closing her eyes, Emma took a deep breath, then another, letting the warmth spread from her lungs to her body. Little by little the chillfinally fled. She kicked off her pumps and flexed her nearly thawed toes. How on earth did people like Gideon stand being out in the elements for hours on end? In nothing but a ratty sweater, no less.
    Maybe that explained the gruffness, she thought, taking a sip. His insides were frozen.
    No, check that. She thought of their collision on the stairs. He was anything but frozen. One brief contact had been enough to melt her insides. The memory made her shiver.
    â€œTold you you’d catch a chill,” a voice whispered in her ear.
    â€œWhat the—” Emma started and dropped her cup. Tea sloshed everywhere. “Didn’t your mother ever tell you not to sneak up on people?” she snapped.
    The skin on the back of her hand stung where the tea had splashed. Shaking her fingers, she looked up into Gideon’s blue eyes.
    â€œOn the contrary,” he replied. “She preferred I make as little noise as possible.” He nodded toward Emma’s hand. “Did you burn yourself?”
    â€œNothing life threatening,” she replied, regretting her outburst. “I’ll be fine.”
    He made a sound resembling a strangled cough, and handed her a wad of tissues. “Here, dry yourself off.”
    â€œThank—” The words died in her throat as his fingertips grazed the back of her hand, causing a flutter in the pit of her stomach. Startled again, she jerked away, letting the tissues float downward.
    â€œMiss O’Rourke?”
    â€œYes?” His eyes had turned the most mesmerizingshade of sapphire. She couldn’t stop staring at them. Not even when he nodded toward her desk.
    â€œYour tea is pooling.”
    Emma blinked.
    Her tea! Shaking off the trance, she saw a brown puddle spreading across her desk. Having ruined the correspondence she’d spent the last hour typing, it was making tracks toward the stack of manila files next to her phone.
    â€œOh no!” She grabbed another handful of tissues and threw them on the spill, hoping to stem the flow. The file contained original drawings for a renovation project at the Manhattan flagship hotel.
    â€œAllow me.” Gideon lifted the file so she could blot underneath. “Looks like your paperwork caught the brunt of the