Chasing Temptation by Payton Lane Read Free Book Online

know. Between the maid, the car, the grocery, the security service, trust me, I would know.
    She harrumphed. “I'm starting to think you don't want to see me.”
    He glanced at the TV in time to see a fifty-piece set of Tupperware. “Soon, Mom. After I close this last deal, I'm coming home.”
    “Hopefully not to try and talk me into moving again.”
    That's exactly what he had planned to do. She still lived in the house his father had bought her as a wedding gift. He understood the sentimental value, but the neighborhood Nathan grew up in was the same one that left him fatherless when fate wrote Senior's name on a bullet.
    He closed his eyes on the memories. “How's King? Did you take him to the vet?”
    Nate relaxed at her sigh of defeat. She would leave the subject alone for now. He couldn't deal with thoughts of Senior. Not so soon after his competition had pegged him in less than fifty words. He'd handed over his one weakness. He knew better. Knew how to keep a poker face even when the odds were against him.
    But the moment she talked about success—
    “Nathan Omar Craine, Junior.”
    Shit. He really needed to stop thinking about Lynne. “Sorry, Mom, it's someone at the door.”
    She sighed again, and he had to fight the instinctive guilt. “Call me when you get the chance.”
    “Okay,” he said, even though he knew he wouldn't. So did she.
    “Same time tomorrow,” she said. “I love you.”
    She hung up, probably knowing he wouldn't say it back. Nate hit the mute button again and tried to find the Zen he had when he first sat down. His mother didn't understand. He couldn't come back home yet. Not until he'd acquired the last piece of his business. Hart and Style. Lynne, no matter how hard she fought, wouldn't stop him.
     

CHAPTER EIGHT

    The next morning, Nate whistled the tune of Andy Griffin on his way to the shop. The town had started to grow on him. It had a Mayberry atmosphere. He glanced at a house to his left. Gnomes littered the perfectly, square, and green yard. A woman across the street waved at him while walking her dog.
    He actually waved back. Suppressing the urge to smell the rosebushes, Nate turned the corner on to Main Street. Valley City was quaint, but still predictable. All the big shops were on Main Street. The street also served as the junction to the major highway. The light posts had an authentic period appearance. Grade-A picturesque. The city gave him the kind of feeling that the world could be perfect.
    Except today there was a line down the block. His steps slowed. The word about his fifty-percent-off sale had gotten around town. From the size of the line, it hadn't taken long. The whistle died on his lips as he got closer. The line stretched past his door, blocking the entrance to his shop.
    “Excuse me,” he said, attempting to slip through.
    “Hey, aren't you the new guy?” a woman asked and offered her hand.
    He took it, hoping his impatience didn't show on his face. “I am.”
    She didn't let go of his hand. The gleam in her eyes told Nate he wasn't going to escape easily. “You know, I was just thinking that Mack used to own Megan's store. He wanted yours to expand but could never come up with the money to buy it.”
    The name hit him in the chest. Nate could almost hear the gruff voice again. Mack had offered condolences to him when Senior had been murdered. Mack, was the same man who had been willing to give his father the store at a fair price.
    He attempted to pull back his hand, but she held on. “Mack?”
    “Yes, Mack. I can't remember what he sold, though. He was there one day, gone out of business the next.”
    The older woman pulled his arm through hers and dragged him a couple of feet. He received a few looks as they cut in the line.
    “It's not a problem if you don't remember.” He tried to reassure her and get his arm back. He remembered very well what type of store Mack had. “I'm trying to get into Hart and Style.”
    “Leslie,” she yelled,