Twisted in Tulips Read Online Free Page A

clothes and looks. Liked that he noticed her and, unlike other men, wasn’t set on seducing her.
    “Jace Nichols.” Misty moved closer, forcing Jace to take a step back. “You don’t know me or anything about me.” She dug a nail into his chest, driving him back another step. “You know nothing about what’s going on between my companion and me.”
    “I know he’s not man enough to stand up for you.”
    “Contrary to what you may believe, I don’t need a man to stand up for me.”
    He lowered his head so his face was inches from hers. His breaths brushed her skin. Her lips parted. When he spoke it was with that quiet danger he did so well. “That wasn’t true this morning.”
    The knots in her stomach rolled with grumbling anxiety. “I thanked you for your help this morning. I don’t appreciate having it thrown back in my face.”
    “Your clothes—” He grabbed her neck with his right hand and with his hook at the base of her spine he yanked her close.
    His mouth descended, claimed hers.
    His anger slammed into her. She sucked in a breath, drawing in a flame of passion. It licked through her, whipping in slick tendrils that coiled around her veins. Soaking into her blood.
    The kiss only lasted a few seconds.
    He released her, stepped back. “You should rethink what you wear.”
    Breathing heavy, her chest rising in painful pulls of oxygen, she stared.
    “My…” The argument started out at a high and almost shrill decibel in her brain but came out as a squeak. She stopped herself and tried again. He’d kissed her to prove a point? She would prove one to him. “Desperation had that creep targeting me, not my outfit alone. There is nothing wrong or inappropriate about my wardrobe.”
    “Except that the shortness of your skirt and the height of your shoes suggest you’re an easy target.”
    “Along with thousands of other women. Your archaic and overbearing views blind you.” He started to speak, but she cut him off with a wave of her hand. “Thank you for the rude interruption, but if you don’t mind I’d like to get back to my friend.”
    “You need to be careful.”
    “Are you some kind of stalker? Are you following me?”
    “I was here first.”
    “Convenient for you.”
    “You are not convenient.”
    “And you need to choose when to butt in and when not to a little better.” Without waiting for another response, she pivoted on the ball of her stiletto and returned to Dewayne. “Sorry about that.”
    Dewayne waved off her apology. “Jealous ex?”
    “Ha. No.” Just a stubborn man with a giant grudge. At least she hoped that’s all he was, because she didn’t need any more trouble.
    “What happened to his hand?”
    “I don’t know.” But curiosity and a nagging idea that he could be jealous had her seeking out Jace. He’d returned to a table in the corner and sat staring at her. She wanted to know more about him, like what compelled him to help a stranger, what made him so grumpy, how he lost his hand, and why he had kissed her.
    Misty cocked her head with an I-am-going-to-figure-you-out-and-you-can’t-stop-me challenge ringing in her mind.
    His stare locked with hers. His facial expression didn’t shift. His posture didn’t alter. Power rippled across the room as if dancing on an invisible chord tethered to her. Just as when she’d responded to his surprise kiss, tightness spread slow and suffusing along her throat and chest.
    He’d read and accepted her challenge.
    Caught up in the moment of awareness, twisted in the tingles of rightness, she fought to pull her gaze away and turn back to Dewayne. She didn’t know what they were talking about. Her focus was riveted on the man behind her across the room. More frequently than she wanted, her gaze sought him out in the mirror behind the bar.
    Jace Nichols.
    She should have noticed him during her first scan of the room, but hadn’t. She should be enjoying the safety of Dewayne’s unassuming company, but couldn’t. He