Her Summer with the Marine: A Donovan Brothers Novel (Entangled Bliss) by Susan Meier Read Free Book Online

the funeral home to make enough money to support her dad.”
    Brent walked away to ring up the tab, but Devon laughed. “So the competition begins again.”
    “Not really. I’ve been siphoning business from her dad for six months. With Mark in the hospital, people are going to think she’s closed.”
    Devon took a swig of his beer. “That’s tough for her.”
    “I tried to do the decent thing and buy her out. She turned me down.”
    Devon laughed.
    “This is not funny.”
    “Sure it is. Especially since I know you don’t get turned down a lot.”
    “This is business, not personal.” Even as the words spilled from his lips, he thought of Ellie and her puritanical need to split hairs about things like lying and charades, and his blood supercharged again. Okay, so there was a personal aspect to this business. But he didn’t have to admit that to Devon.
    Devon cast a long, cool look at him before he said, “If this really is just business between you two, then make it business. If you think she’s going to fail, let her. I know you probably feel sorry about her dad, but if this is really just business, let it go.”
    Devon rose from his seat and tossed a ten-dollar bill on the bar. “I should stay here and force you to go home and watch the last two hours of soaps, but you need to think this through.” He patted Finn’s back. “You’ll owe me. Big-time.”
    Finn grunted. Devon only laughed and left the bar.
    Finn took a swallow of beer. The pretty blonde he’d held the door for strolled over. “Hey, Finn.”
    “Hey…” Shoot. He’d met her. He knew he’d met her. But he couldn’t remember her name. Unlike Ellie, whose every move seemed to be seared in his brain. He remembered her cute and toothless in first grade. Beating him in the geography bee in fifth grade. Goading him when she took first place in the science fair. Smiling cockily when she snatched the number one class ranking away from him in tenth grade because she was just a little bit better in history…
    “You got plans for tonight?”
    He pulled himself out of his reverie. Though any other day of the week he’d happily join in on a pretty girl’s plans, he’d expected to be with Ellie tonight, and for some reason or another he couldn’t switch gears.
    The woman was going to be the death of him.
    He smiled ruefully at the blonde. “Actually, I’m trying to think through a little bit of a work problem.”
    Her eyelashes fluttered. “Maybe I can help?”
    He took a quick glance at her very short denim shorts and very tight top and sighed, annoyed with himself. This could qualify as the best offer he’d had all year, and he was turning her down. Why? Because he wanted to hook up with a redhead he’d had sex with once? Nine years ago?
    He was insane.
    He finished his beer. “Thanks, but I do my best thinking alone, in front of my computer.”
    As he turned to go, she caught his arm. “Are you sure?”
    He expected to feel a tingle of excitement, the rush of pure male need. None came.
    Damn Ellie. “No thanks.”
    In the Range Rover, he forced his thoughts off sleeping with Ellie, and put them on their business. Or maybe he should say fighting over business. Their competition might be old news, but this time they weren’t evenly matched. He felt like a Rottweiler fighting a poodle. He was going to destroy her, and she couldn’t see it. Wouldn’t even consider it.
    He frowned.
    Maybe Devon was right. With the way things were going lately, he wouldn’t have to lift a finger to beat her. But he wasn’t going to win. She was going to lose. And maybe he should just let her. He’d offered her a very good deal, and she’d refused it. Maybe it was simply time to let the chips fall where they may.
    After all, this was business.
    …
    Monday morning, Ellie called Nicole as she dressed to visit her dad.
    “I can’t come into the office today.”
    “Oh?”
    “Nic, I’m going to have to run the funeral home. My dad wants me to. He