Christmas with the Boss by Annie Seaton Read Free Book Online Page B

and the
key she had locked it with was in her beach bag. She put her bag on the table
outside the door and poked her head inside cautiously.
    “Hello?” Her voice was husky and she cleared her throat. “Dominic?
Are you inside?” Her eyes settled on the small dining table. Her car keys were
sitting exactly where she had left them last night. But a small vase filled
with pretty summer flowers was in the middle of the table.
    Jilly frowned and backed out through the doorway before walking to
the far end of the verandah and peering around the back of the house. She let
out the breath she had been holding. Her little red sedan was parked behind the
shed in the longer grass. Whoever had mowed had moved her car to the back.
Folding her arms, she marched along the verandah and stepped back inside.
    Thoughtful, but presumptuous.
    “Is there anybody here?” Her temper was growing by the minute. If
Dominic had wanted her to move her car so he could mow, all he’d had to do was
ask. God, he knew she was on the beach; he could have waited till she came
back.
    How dare he just walk in, pick up her keys and move her car as
though he owned the place? Well, in a way, he did. The place belonged to his
family, but she was a tenant and she didn’t feel at all comfortable with him
having free access to where she was staying. She was tempted to march up and
front him straight away, but she’d wait until he came down later.
    Jilly picked up her Kindle, raided the fridge for a healthy snack
and wandered back outside. She narrowed her eyes. In between the door and the
shower halfway along the verandah, a small hammock chair hung from a hook. She
walked up to it and gave it a gentle push as she looked around. She was sure
that chair hadn’t been there last night when she’d had her shower. She
shrugged; it looked inviting, calico macramé knots held it together and
colourful cushions invited her to sink in and curl her legs up.
    Jilly backed into the hammock and sat cross-legged, testing the
weight, before she leaned back against the soft cushions.
    Okay, putting up a chair like this for her to chill in, maybe she
could forgive him for coming by while she was at the beach. It was thoughtful to mow the lawn and move her car so it
didn’t get chipped. Maybe he was just trying to make amends for being so
insistent that she move to a motel.
    Not a chance. She could see herself spending the rest of the week
rocking in this chair reading. Putting one foot against the wooden rail at the
edge of the verandah, she pushed hard and the hammock rocked gently from side
to side.
    Bliss. Just what she needed.
    Jilly flipped open the Kindle and began to read. She took a deep
breath as the sex scenes got hotter and hotter.
    Oh, my.
    She read until her eyelids began to droop, keen to keep reading as
the story came to a searing climax. Finally she put her Kindle aside and
snuggled into the cushions for an afternoon nap. The only problem with the
hammock was it wouldn’t swing unless you pushed it but Jilly was too comfy and
she closed her eyes and let sleep overtake her.
     
    Creak, creak, creak. The gentle swinging
of the hammock chair soothed her as she surfaced from the delicious realms of
sleep a while later. She stretched and rubbed her eyes as the chair rocked from
side to side; she’d had the most explicit dream about Dominic. A smile crossed
her face; that’s what she got for reading erotic romance novels. As she came
fully awake, she stiffened. The chair was swinging from side to side as someone
pushed it from behind.
    God, I dream about him and he turns up.
    “Dominic?”
    No reply. The hammock swung away and she had to hang onto the side
to avoid falling out.
    “That’s so not funny.” Jilly waited until the swinging slowed and
putting her feet to the ground, she slid out of the chair. She really wasn’t
appreciating her boss’s sense of humour. Putting her hands on her hips, she
opened her mouth and stepped to the back of the chair.