Enticement by Madelynn Ellis Read Free Book Online Page A

milk from the fridge, intensely bemused by the changes morning had wrought. Out went her original assessment, the self-possessed, glitzy bad boy of the previous evening having been replaced by something more like a teddy bear with a hangover. She almost wanted to pet him and tuck him back into bed. Except with fear-inducing certainty, she knew physical contact was a bad idea just from the zing that zipped through her midriff at the very idea.
    “Ross said you worked in a bar,” she said, venturing into the territory of her unsatisfying conversation with Ross the previous night. Neutral territory, that’s what she needed in order to deal with Kit. Jobs were generally a safe topic, far less volatile than religion or politics. Besides it was far too early in the day to be mourning the state of the economy.
    “Did he?” Kit took the milk and poured.
    “An expensive one, right?”
    Kit remained poised over the teacups, his head bowed and his teeth pressed into his lower lip. When he finally looked up his expression remained curiously guarded.
    “I just meant that it was obviously a step up from the White Boar over the road.” She gave an awkward laugh. “You only have to look at the landlord and yourself to realize the bars were clearly worlds apart.”
    Kit glance down at his attire, and so did Evie. The belt of the kimono had come undone and now tickled the floor tiles, and his shorts seemed even more microscopic. “Oh, I see,” he said. He fastened the belt again and rested his bum against the sink while he sipped his tea. “It was a place in Kabukicho. It’s a kind of entertainment district in Tokyo. Lots of clubs, bars and pachinko parlours, that sort of thing.”
    “Pachinko whats?” Her mind conjured numerous semi-legal possibilities. “What are they, some sort of massage parlour?”
    Kit smiled through a yawn. “High tech slot machines.”
    “Is that a euphemism for something?”
    A second smile stretched his lips, this one lighting up his whole face and crinkling the corners of his eyes. “No, Evie, although there are certainly places that do have those. Both robots and dolls are very popular in Japan, particularly with middle-aged men.”
    “No way.” She reached out, intending to poke him, but changed her mind and swiped ineffectually at the air instead. They were still barely acquainted, and that zing only got stronger the nearer she got to him. Doing her best to seem busy, she started tidying away the breakfast things. Kit showed no signs of eating. “So, what are your plans for the day?”
    Having finished his first cup of tea, Kit set about pouring another. “I thought I’d head over and survey my new domain, since I keep hearing it’s such a wreck. See what needs doing and whether I need to call in the builders.”
    “It is a wreck.”
    Having come alive a little on his diet of tea, Kit watched her flutter about the kitchen emptying porridge into the bin and shaking the various juice cartons. “What about you?” he asked.
    “Shopping. Supermarket, for all the stuff we’re out of. Ross has finished all the juice again and I think we’ll need more teabags.”
    The remark earned her playful smirk, which shot straight to those magnificent dark eyes of his. “Mind if I join you? I’ve a few bits and pieces I need to pick up.” He rubbed his hand over his chin. “Like a new razor for starters.”
    “Sure,” she said as nonchalantly as she could manage. “You can help push the trolley.”
     
    He’d been forgiven, or mostly forgiven, for spying on her and Ross last night, Kit thought as he leaned over the ice cream cabinet trying to decide between mint chocolate chip and cherry spagnola. In the end, he put both in the trolley at which Evie raised her eyebrows. He noticed she’d stuck to the essential five fruit and veg a day sort of shopping his mum would have approved of. The luxuries reduced to a tub of olives and packet of croissants. Still, there were fun things you could do with