Engaging the Bachelor (Pulse) Read Online Free Page A

kisses, the soft sweep of his hands on her body—gentle one minute, greedy the next. Arousal wound through her just from the memories.
    Honest to God, how she was going to make it through a date with him without wanting an encore was beyond her.
    Wait. Why the hell couldn’t she just get him naked and have her way with him—again? Why not satisfy a curiosity—what would he be like in bed after all these years—and scratch the itch that still stirred deep within her. Once he demonstrated that he cared only about himself and his needs, she’d be able to forget about him once and for all, and get on with her life.
    Or not .

Chapter Three
    With the auction finished and the bar empty, Carson shouldered his backpack and followed Gemma outside. He stood in the parking lot while she locked the door behind them. Darkness had fallen over the town, the only illumination coming from a nearby streetlamp. She turned to him and tilted her head, a defiant gleam in her big brown eyes.
    “It’s late. Are you sure you still want to do this?”
    As tired as he was, he wasn’t about to let her out of his sight, not after finally finding her. “I’m sure.” He looked over his shoulders and scanned the empty parking lot. His car was still at the hospital. With no other vehicle in sight, she had to be traveling by foot, and while the neighborhood was fairly safe, the idea of her walking alone at night didn’t sit well with him.
    “Can I give you a lift?”
    “I’d rather walk.”
    “Okay,” he said, turning toward the tree-lined walkway that wove past the hospital and through the core of downtown. He took three steps then stopped. Why wasn’t she following? He craned his neck to see her. “I thought you wanted to walk.”
    She pointed up. “I live in the loft upstairs.”
    “Oh.” Carson spun and followed her gaze. A narrow set of stairs on the side of the building led to the upper floor apartment. He hadn’t noticed it before now. “Do you want me to wait here while you get Gracie, or do you want me to come up?”
    She shrugged and hiked her purse higher on her shoulder. “It’ll take me a few minutes to get changed so I guess you can come up and wait.”
    He arched brow. “Oh yeah?”
    “Don’t get any ideas.” She narrowed her eyes and glared at him. “I’m just changing my clothes and getting my dog.”
    He stepped in toward her, their bodies close but not touching. “Ideas?” He softened his words and coiled one long strand of her hair around his finger. “What kind of ideas do you think I might have, Gemma?”
    She tugged away from him. “Oh, that I have ulterior motives for inviting you up.”
    “Such as?”
    “You’re a smart guy. I don’t think I need to spell it out for you.”
    “Apparently you do,” he teased, holding his hands up, palms out to display his innocence. “I wasn’t suggesting anything other than coming up to wait.” She was right, of course. He did have all kinds of dirty thoughts and ideas about what the two of them could do inside her apartment. Feigning insult, he scoffed. “I think maybe you’re the one with the ideas. How do I know you’re not trying to get me alone to have your way with me?”
    She shook her head. “Are you always so annoying?”
    He laughed. “Annoying? Women have called me a lot of things. You know, like hot stuff, adorable, and stud muffin… But annoying was never one of them.”
    “Stud muffin? Who calls you that, your grandmother?”
    “Jesus, that’s just wrong.” He made a face like he’d just sucked a lemon. “What kind of weirdo are you anyway?” he teased. “Grandma would never say something like that to her grandson.”
    “Her friend, then? Someone older.”
    “I wouldn’t say that, exactly.”
    “Then what exactly would you say?”
    He kicked at an imaginary pebble. “I’m pretty sure Ethel is at least a year younger than Grandma.”
    Gemma laughed. “Come on, Stud Muffin,” she said, and then mumbled something else under