Curse of the Alpha: The Complete Bundle by Tasha Black Read Free Book Online Page B

both. It was wrong to tease them like this, but she couldn’t seem to help herself.
    “I guess we’d better go, it’s a shame about the dresser,” Will said.
    “Really, it’s no big deal, the junk man will have to come for other stuff anyway, I’m sure.”
    “No, I mean we need a dresser. It’s a long story but we had a third roommate for our apartment who bailed on us. Most of the furniture was his.”
    “Do you want to come back another day for it?” Ainsley asked.
    “Yes!” they said in unison.
    “I see,” she said. “Well it’s fine with me if you want to come back for it but it needs to be this week. Let me give you my number. Next time maybe text me on your way over?”
    She wrote her name and number neatly on a honeysuckle scented note card and thrust it in their direction. Will grabbed it before Justin could challenge him.
    “Thank you…Ainsley. We really appreciate it. And we’ll be glad to help you move anything while we’re here. Next time we’ll be more careful.” He grinned and she couldn’t help but grin back.
    “That’s fine,” she said lightly, as the two of them stepped onto the porch. “I’m sure two strong, young guys like you could help me with a lot of things. Maybe next time we can just skip the part with the furniture.”
    Ainsley closed the door, leaving them both standing on the porch with their mouths hanging open. She leaned back against the door and covered her mouth with her hands to stifle a laugh.
    Had she really just said that?
    What was this town doing to her?
    She pushed it out of her head and went upstairs again to dress. It was almost time to leave for Julian’s talk.

Chapter 15
    P eeling off her robe , Ainsley contemplated her body in the mirror. She thought idly to herself that she’d been a senior in college herself just a few years ago, but somehow those few years in the adult world had changed her point of view.
    She gazed at her own naked reflection, trying to see what they saw instead of the million flaws and imperfections she always inventoried.
    Deep down, Ainsley loved her body and all its soft, sensual curves. She just wasn’t sure why anyone else would like it. She certainly didn’t look like the women on the magazines and TV – all hard lines and cheekbones.
    She turned and surveyed the closet. She’d brought so little with her. It would have to be the linen shift again. At least it fit well. Finding nice things that didn’t overly accentuate her voluptuous body was annoying, but Ainsley refused to hide in over-sized clothing.
    She slid back into the dress and sandals and applied a little powder and lip-gloss. It took restraint not to make up fully, but she wasn’t going to work, and she wasn’t going to look like she was trying too hard.
    Satisfied, she grabbed her clutch. Impulsively, she stuffed a mini-bag of toiletries in it, just in case.
    “Don’t over think this, Ainsley,” she said to her reflection as she wondered what was happening to her sense of propriety.
    Although she had her parents’ old Volvo station wagon, she decided to walk to the college. The temperature had dropped to a few degrees below sweltering, and the scent of night-blooming jasmine filled the air. Ainsley was normally a very fast walker, but, not wanting to sweat in her dress, she walked slowly and took it all in.
    The lights were all on at Sadie Epstein-Walker’s house. Ainsley wondered whether she was having a garden party or if she was just lonesome and wanted the house lit up warmly. The new people down the block were having a deck put on; the men had just added the copper post tops today. It looked nice even though it was a change.
    She crossed Yale and passed the construction site where she’d seen Erik earlier. Her heart lurched and she forced herself to keep up her pace.
    Soon, she found herself at the edge of the college woods and the path to Scott Hall. She stopped under a streetlight to powder her nose and smooth on a little more lip-gloss. Her