Freelance Love by Barbara Alvarez Read Free Book Online

equipment belts, they sat and spoke with Morgan,
Ian and the restaurant manager. As Morgan pointed John out, the taller, more
muscular officer walked to his table and pointed toward the door with his
thumb. As John walked out, he followed.
    “Mr. Mack, when you’re out in public and someone you’re trying to
talk to tells you they don’t want to talk to you, you’re supposed to respect
that and leave them alone. If you don’t, it becomes harassment.” The officer
paused for a few seconds to consult his notes. “Ms. Adams says that she’s been
forced to seek legal assistance because you’ve slandered her to one of her
clients. She reported that, in spite of her request to you to leave her alone,
you came up to her again and continued to bother her about coming back to work
for you. She doesn’t want to talk to you. You have to respect that and leave
her alone – or risk arrest. What’ll it be?”
    John shifted his heavy frame as he tried to hold his temper.
“Look, officer, I don’t intend to bother nobody. It’s just that I know better
than she does that what she’s doin’ is bound to end in failure and I want her
to come back to work for me.”
    “Is it more likely to end in failure if you, say, slander her to
her clients?” asked the officer pointedly.
    John had the grace to blush. Laughing slightly, he said, “Hey,
I’m just gonna use everthin’ I can to get her to come back to my store. Can’t
blame me for that, can ya?”
    “Actually, if you’re slandering her, yes, we could. She can sue
you. You’re standing on very shaky ground, so you’d better stop it right now.”
As he spoke, the big officer’s voice hardened. “What you’re doing could be
considered harassment, which is a crime. Leave her alone.”
    At the end of Morgan’s and Ian’s editing session, Ian paid for
their meals and Morgan said she would go through Ian’s changes. They walked out
to their cars and, as Ian walked Morgan to her car, he looked up and down
Valley Drive, looking for John Mack. Not seeing him, he put his hand on
Morgan’s arm, then pulled it back as he felt an immediate and visceral
reaction.
    “Morgan, I have a suggestion. Rather than meeting at restaurants
to do our editing work, let’s change things. Mack’s not going to stop harassing
you, no matter what the police tell him. He’s a jealous egomaniac and, in his
perfect little world, he’s right and what he says, goes. I don’t want to deal
with that braying jackass any more, so I’d like for us to work at your place or
mine. Same schedule, but, depending on where we meet, one of us would either
bring or prepare the meal. Deal?”
    Morgan gave it a few seconds of thought. She liked the idea, but
she was nervous about having Ian in her home. It was hard enough for her to
hide her attraction to him in public – what would happen at her house or his?
Still, the idea of not having to worry about John was . . . appealing. As was
the thought of being truly alone with Ian. Throwing caution out the window, she
nodded.
    “Good idea. Let’s meet at my house next week. We’ll set up a day
and time and I’ll make the food.” As she finished talking, she felt her heart
pounding.
    Ian smiled. “I’ll be there. For the record, I love coffee cake
with streusel topping.” Winking one blue eye, he tipped her a casual salute,
blew a kiss to Morgan and went off to his car.
    Morgan returned home and sitting at her computer, she made the
changes Ian had asked for. The work went quickly because she agreed with most
of the changes Ian wanted, knowing that what he had suggested made the premise
of the article stronger. Her fingers slowed on her keyboard as she thought to
Ian’s suggestion that they move their working meetings to her house or his . .
.
    She opened her door, inviting him in. The fragrant scents of
coffee and streusel-topped coffee cake wafted from the kitchen, causing Ian’s
eyes to close in delight. They sat on her couch with dessert plates and