Alicia's Folly by C A Vincent Read Free Book Online Page A

should, she stayed with him. It was incredibly foolish and careless of her, but the possibility of throwing caution to the wind and just being with this man was becoming more and more tempting by the moment.  
    “Men’s walking sticks and accessories?” he asked. Alicia jerked, not seeing the wares being sold at the second stall until Nate spoke. Knowing she was normally more observant than this, she turned to look into his face, expecting to see a triumphant gleam in his eyes. And it was there, of course. What she didn’t expect was the healthy dose of uncertainty mixed in with it.  
    “Too much?” he whispered, steering her away toward a food vendor. He even sounded unsure, despite his earlier success at knocking her completely off balance. The sudden change from suave seducer to uneasy, nervous man tugged hard at her heart strings. To her surprise, there was also a desire coursing through her to beat the crap out of the person who’d knocked his ego off its pegs. It was then and only then Alicia realized she was in a world of trouble.  

Chapter 7
    “So, yesterday’s excursion through the shops was – Whoa!” Nate stopped dead in his tracks and took Alicia in. She looked more stunning than he remembered. His stomach did an odd little flip, which he attempted to attribute to the fact it was empty. The voice in the back of his mind called “bullshit”, loud and clear. There was something very different about her this morning.  
    He quickly catalogued everything he remembered. Blonde hair up in a ponytail – totally “girl next door”, not to mention “hot as hell”. Soft, sexy curves all neatly packaged up and waiting to be uncovered. Long, sweetly plump leg – Oh God, don’t go there! He squinted down at her. Yeah, right. As if that will help.  
    “What?” she asked, swallowing her mouthful of toast. The rosy hue of her sun-kissed complexion deepened. There was also a gleam in her eyes, which she tried to hide by ducking her head. When the squirrelly feeling in the pit of his stomach intensified, the thing that was different smacked him squarely in the solar plexus.  
    Son of a – ! he thought, sitting down hard. “Now that’s just not fair,” he growled. Alicia’s head snapped up, her beautiful blue eyes rounded in surprise.  
    “That I started eating without you?” she asked innocently. “You said you’d overslept. ‘Restless night caused by an unpleasant phone call. Go ahead and start without me’,” she mimicked. He shook his head. The sweet, guileless expression on her face didn’t fool him. Nate exhaled sharply through his nose. Did the glint in her eyes just brighten?  
    “You cheated. I have to start over,” he countered, refusing to be swayed. “All that lovely sexual tension you were practically twitching from when I dropped you off is gone.” The sparkle in her eye flashed brightly then, telling him he’d hit the nail on the head. If that wasn’t enough, what she said next made his mouth go dry.  
    “When needs must…” she whispered, evoking images in his mind of her pleasuring herself. Nate resolutely squashed them before he mentally brought her to climax. If he didn’t, he’d have to go back to his hotel and change his shorts.  
    Unlike Alicia, he hadn’t taken care of his needs last night, all thanks to a phone call from Elizabeth. He heaved a frustrated sigh before snapping at the pretty, clueless server who’d come up to take his order. When she was gone, he made a concerted effort to keep the mood light between himself and Alicia by issuing a warning.  
    “You are in so much trouble!” He pitched his voice low and tried to put a little extra growl into it. His reward was the barely noticeable shiver that went through her as she picked up her coffee cup. Unfortunately, his efforts were for nothing. Instead of tossing some light, sexually charged banter back at him, she asked him about the call.  
    “So, everything okay?” The question