Foreshadowed by Erika Trevathan Read Free Book Online Page A

would give their right arm for. There was some benefit to using the excuse of watching TV to actually Alex-watch. I could look at him all day; and I pretty much had been for the past ten minutes. Of course, I would never let him know that. He was already cocky enough as it was.
                Just then he turned his head to look at me and it was too late to pretend I was watching the action movie he'd picked out. I was so not interested in it, but who could be with Alex Chase sitting in the dark next to them?
                The corner of his mouth was quirked up in amusement and it was pretty clear I was busted.
                "You don't like the movie?" he asked.
                I shrugged a shoulder, the roomy top I was wearing slipping off one side. That may have been a little bit on purpose. "I guess. You're much more interesting to watch, though."
    His eyes had drifted to my bare shoulder and were working their way over my exposed skin. They were glowing a fiery blue when they met mine again. "Is that so?"
                I nodded. "Yeah, action movies aren't really my style."
                "What, gorgeous, is your style, then?"
                "You."
                He raised an eyebrow, a slow grin spreading across his face. He flicked the television off and the room went pitch black. My vision immediately compensated for the darkness and within a few seconds I could see him just as clearly as I could in broad daylight.
                "Your eyes are glowing," he said.
                "Yeah, so are yours. I didn't know mine would do that too."
                Our eyes were locked together as he studied mine. "They're glowing this lavender color with flecks of green. Very unique. I don't think I've seen any like them."
                I sighed. "Of course mine would be weird."
                He smirked at me in true Alex form. "They're not weird, they're beautiful."
                I gave him an exasperated look. "You're partial."
                He shook his head at me in mock annoyance.
                “Brooke, I've come to the conclusion that you'll never love yourself the way I love you-- or see in yourself what I see in you. But don't worry. I plan on spending the rest of eternity trying to convince you to anyway.…”
                And Alex could be so very convincing when he wanted to.
     
                When Alex left for work the next morning, I grabbed a book and blanket and ventured out for a walk to the pond. It was an overcast day so I was excited at the prospect of being able to stay out longer than usual. Now that I was sensitive to the sun, I'd grown pretty fond of days when the cloud cover was thick and my skin was protected from its stinging rays. As I hiked through the silence of the woods, crunching through the leaves and stepping over branches, my phone rang loudly. Glancing at the display, I was thrilled to see that it was Kara, the girl who'd taken my assistant position at Chase, and a good friend. I had missed getting to see her everyday. As soon as this mess with the Regency cooled down, I was going to press Alex on the issue of going back to work. 
                "Hello," I answered.
                "Brooke! How are you doing? It's been so long since I've talked to you!" Kara's bubbly personality was one of the first things I'd noticed about her and also one of the qualities I loved about her.
                "I'm doing great, but I miss seeing you!"
                "Well, that's why I called, actually. I was hoping we could get together for lunch today. Noon at the deli next door to Chase?"
                "That'll be great, Kara. I'll see you then." Kara hung up and I took a quick peek at my watch. I still had a few hours until I needed to meet her, so I decided to continue my trek towards the pond.