Don't Tempt Me by Julie Ortolon Read Free Book Online Page B

still worked together, with Rory and Chance handling the business end of things. Allison ran the gift shop, and Adrian handled the cooking. They served breakfast together each morning, and on Saturdays they served lunch on the veranda to the boatload of tourists Bobby and Paige brought for the Haunted House Lunch Run; but they never had time to sit and visit like a family anymore.
    "You know, I've been thinking," he said as he set a plate of appetizers on the bar.
    "Always a dangerous thing," Rory said.
    "No." Adrian smirked playfully at her. "It's dangerous when you start thinking."
    Chance choked, earning a sharp look from his wife.
    "What I was about to say," Adrian continued, "is that we might want to reconsider the housing situation."
    "What housing situation?" Rory asked, handing her daughter a piece of bread crust to gnaw on.
    "The situation that has me living by myself in this four-bedroom apartment while you married people live in houses that are half the size. Doesn't this seem a little backward?"
    "What do you suggest?" Allison asked. "That Scott and I move in here after the wedding and you move back to the cottage?"
    "Wait a second." Scott held a hand up. "I like living in the cottage. And no offense, but I don't want to live here. I need privacy and quiet to write, not guests hounding me all day and night."
    "Understandable," Adrian agreed. "But it seems ridiculous for me, the only single one left, to have the biggest place."
    "Except you're the oldest," Rory said. "And you won't always be single."
    "I plan to be for a while, at least. I mean, yeah, I'd like a wife and kids eventually, but not right away. I'm not even seeing anyone." Jackie sprang to mind, but he pushed the thought away. Even if she were interested, she didn't strike him as the kind of woman who was looking to get married ---which would have made her perfect for his current interests if she weren't off limits.
    Chance looked at him over the top of Lauren's head. "If Scott and Allison don't want to move, would you be interested in swapping with us?"
    Adrian tried not to jump on the offer too fast, since he'd love nothing better than to swap living quarters with Chance and Rory. He'd been hesitant to suggest it, because Chance had built the house behind the inn with his own money. He kept his voice nonchalant as he checked on dinner. "I might be persuaded."
    Chance smiled sheepishly at his wife. "I have to admit, I've felt guilty for taking Aurora away from the inn. Part of her reason for buying the house and restoring it in the first place was because she's always dreamed of living here. Yet she's the one who never has, because of me."
    "Like I regret marrying you." Rory smiled at him.
    "No, but you do regret not getting to live here."
    "True." She turned hopeful eyes to Adrian."Would you really consider swapping with us?"
    "It is a perfect solution," Adrian said. "You two will be on premise, which will make it easy for you to manage the inn, but I'll still be close enough to walk to work in the morning. That is, if Chance is willing to make me a good offer."
    "We'll work something out on the money end," Chance said.
    Rory looked at her brother. "Won't you be lonely, though, cut off from the inn?"
    "Privacy? Quiet?" He sighed. "It'll be a burden, but I think I'll adjust."
    A sound on the stairs drew his attention. He looked up to see Jackie standing on the bottom step ---and did a double take when he noticed what she was wearing. It was a simple, long-sleeved T-shirt with horizontal stripes of red and white tucked into blue slacks. But it fit her more snugly than what she usually wore and had a scooped neck that showed a tantalizing hint of cleavage to a pair of incredible breasts.
    The sight threw him, since he'd thought she was nearly flat-chested. Then he realized that every time he'd seen her, she'd been wearing one of those sports bras that squashed a woman fiat, or a top so loose he couldn't tell what was beneath.
    The fact that he'd found a