Queen of Hearts: (Family Stone #6 Shelley) (Family Stone Romantic Suspense) by Lisa Hughey Read Free Book Online Page A

Shelley crossed her arms over her chest and rubbed her bare biceps.
    She propped her fists on her hips and focused on the extravagant Las Vegas skyline view from his window. It was unseasonably warm this April. Heat shimmered off the pavement, and waiters scurried around the opulent pool delivering food and fruity drinks to the sunbathing guests.
    “Only I could have a one night stand who’s going to follow me around for the next four days,” she muttered.
    Suddenly Ric’s stomach dropped as he realized he hadn’t really taken that into account. Spend the next few days basically glued to her side? That wasn’t quite how he’d planned to enjoy his vacation either. Of course, he hadn’t planned to have a one night stand that turned into four days of awkward. But he would do it for Jack. And for Shelley.
    “And still no one has told me the threat.”
    “It’s pretty nebulous.” Shelley blew out a frustrated breath. “You have what belongs to me. I want it back.”
    Ric touched on obvious points of contention.
    “Sounds personal. So did you beat out anyone for a promotion? Or close a deal that forced someone out?”
    “I…own the farm outright now. We did have a bit of a dust up last February, but the man involved confessed, it was all hushed up. He received a commuted sentence. Frankly, he’s lucky his penalty wasn’t worse. I bought him out and the farm is not for profit anyway. I don’t have anything of his.”
    “She’s right on that count.” Jack nodded. So he was clearly aware of the farm situation.
    Ric slipped into work mode. “Are you dating anyone who recently broke off with another woman?” He was thinking out loud. Then he realized what he’d just asked. Obviously they just reached another level of awkward.
    “No,” Shelley bit out.
    He knew it was embarrassing, but really she needed to come clean. “Are you sure? Since this sounds personal. Could they have been dating someone and you didn’t realize it?”
    “For that scenario to be considered, I would have to have been dating someone.”
    “Okay well, let’s go back a few months. Sometimes these things fester.” Ric was thinking about how engaging she was, how funny, how hot, and how sweet. How she could lure away a guy without even trying.
    “No one.” She ducked her head, and an embarrassed flush covered her cheekbones. Ric smiled at the tumble of her hair.
    “Come on, Shel.” He cajoled. “I know this is a little awkward but we need to start somewhere.”
    “Right. Well, my last date was three years ago. I went out to dinner with an older gentleman who was on the Food for Life food bank board with me. He subsequently died a week later. They figured out he had a weak heart.” She snapped, “I really doubt his fifty-year-old daughter has hatched some evil plan to come after me.”
    Ric wanted to laugh at her snarky comeback. But he was stuck on the first part of her confession. “Three years ?”
    She flushed again and crossed her arms protectively over her chest. Ric looked to Jack for confirmation because really, that couldn’t be true. No way had the amazingly sexy, hot woman who’d smoked up the sheets with him last night not had a date in three years.
    But Jack just nodded.
    Three years.

Five
    Shelley wanted a giant sinkhole to appear in the hotel room suite and swallow her up. The humiliation was almost more than she could take.
    She knew she should be upset about the fact that her hotel suite was trashed but seriously it was just stuff. She was more dismayed that her one night stand was now quizzing her about her sex life.
    Ric was still standing there, unmoving.
    Well, wasn’t this special? She’d struck him dumb over her serious lack of sex life.
    Now he knew how sexually deprived she was and how much of a total novice she’d been at the whole hook up process. Which would have been fine, if she didn’t have to spend the next four days with him shadowing her every move. And explaining her life in excruciating