Begin Again: Short stories from the heart by Mary Campisi Read Free Book Online Page A

think of it as my own private sauna. Great way to lose weight.”
    “Lady, from what I’ve seen you’re perfect just the way you are
    “Easy for you to say. You haven’t seen me with my clothes—”
    He smiled and his gaze slid along her body. “No. I haven’t.”
    Natalie swung around and headed for the bedroom, ignoring the rich male laughter that followed her.
    ***
    A half hour later, she emerged from her bedroom, determined to put her stupidity behind her. She felt relatively attractive dressed in a sleeveless royal-blue, silk dress, her hair gathered in a classic chignon. Small pearl earrings adorned her ears and a long strand of pearls draped her neck.
    She stood in the door of the bathroom, looking at Chase Danning’s back. “I’ll be going out for a while so you can just lock up when you leave.” She wanted him to turn around and be awed by her presence but he barely acknowledged her.
    “Sure. I shouldn’t be much longer.”
    Natalie hesitated. “Okay. Well, you don’t need to worry about any lights because I have them on timers.” Damn you, Chase Danning , turn around.
    “Okay.”
    “And if you’d like another beer, or… or something else to drink, just help yourself.” How can you ignore me, you big oaf?
    “And if you—”
    “What is it, Natalie?” He cut her off, clearly irritated with her mindless chatter. He turned around and stared at her. “Oh,” he said as he took in the dress, the hair, the pearls. “You want me to tell you how beautiful you look? Fine. You look beautiful.” His expression softened slightly. “But I happen to think you looked beautiful in those cut-offs and that tank top you had on the other day.”
    She turned to leave, annoyed he’d guessed her silly game. Whatever on earth had possessed her to act like such a fool?
    “Natalie?”
    “What?” She stopped, but refused to face him.
    “I take back what I said about your clothes the other day.” He paused. His next words were soft, seductive, “When you move with that dress on, I can see everything . Just as though you were completely naked.” She whirled on him, prepared to give him a piece of her mind, when the doorbell rang. Natalie hurried to answer it, stopping only long enough to grab a jacket from the hall closet. She thrust her arms into it as she opened the door to greet her date. Naked indeed!
    Chase leaned against the tub and took another long swallow from his bottle. What in hell had possessed him to say such a crude thing? He had more class than that and yet he had to admit, he’d spoken in anger. Maybe even a little jealousy. At first he’d only been teasing her about her clothes. He loved to get her all worked up. It was so easy to do. And then, when he’d heard she was going out on a date and seen what she was going to wear on that date, it had set him off. He didn’t like the way he’d been acting these last few days, somewhere between a lovesick schoolboy and a possessive idiot. But Natalie Allington had gotten to him. He may have dated more physically beautiful women, but he’d never met anyone like her. She was real. Open, honest, genuine, full of laughter, fire and passion. He wanted to get closer to her but she wouldn’t let him. Chase vowed he’d find a way. He smiled and took another swig of beer. Natalie Allington was not going to get away that easily.
    ***
    After work the next day, Natalie picked up her dry cleaning, bought a few groceries, and returned an overdue book to the library. She’d do anything to avoid a chance encounter with Chase Danning . Natalie was still angry with him for his behavior last night. Angry and humiliated, if the truth be known. She’d practically begged him for a compliment, throwing her ego at his feet and when she didn’t get an immediate response, she’d tried another tactic. It was pitiful. She was pitiful. As Natalie turned onto her quiet tree-lined street, she ignored the little jump her heart took when she saw Chase’s SUV parked in