Real Challenge (Atlanta #2) by Kemmie Michaels Read Free Book Online Page A

wanted them around the loft, but we got it. We even brought old blankets and quilts to sit on and a little electric lantern for extra light. It’s awesome. I want to show you. Come on!”
    Cassie wrapped her arms around herself against the cool air and Scott took the opportunity to put his arm around her again.
    “You’re going to get hay in your fringe,” Scott warned when they walked in the barn.  
    Cassie laughed and walked over to a big electrical box and powered up the barn and then flipped a few switches. Just a smattering of dim bulbs cast a warm light on the musty scene around them.  
    The weathered wood of the walls seemed to soak up the light leaving only a soft glow. Scott walked in and looked around. The old barn wasn’t all that impressive, but he could see why she liked the place. The structure was in all ways opposite of the city…and completely private.  
    Hell. Yes.
    “The fort is up here,” she said, obviously excited. She looked like a little kid with a secret. She hiked up her skirt a little to allow herself enough movement to get up the straight ladder to the loft at the far corner of the barn. He about groaned when he saw her do that. She was energy and fun, but she was also pure sex appeal.  
    Seeing her firm legs covered by nothing but form-fitting thin fabric move up the ladder was driving him crazy. And getting a better look at the shape of her ass made him even more crazy. He followed her up the ladder, enjoying the view. He wished the loft was a little higher.  
    When they stepped up into the loft, they immediately were faced with a passageway formed from the straw bales. Scott followed her through a zig-zag of highly stacked bales and into an opening surrounded by more bales of stacked up straw. This was definitely a fort. She cracked him up.  
    In the dim light that filtered through little window-holes they built, he saw just what she had described. There was a heater, lantern, blankets, and a few old crates set up like a tables. They had stacked up some of the bales like benches around the edges of the fort walls. They had even hung a random picture of a llama on one of the walls. He saw decks of cards, romance novels, a sketch pad and some treasures Cassie must have found while junking. One of them was a dash-board hula girl. He laughed when she walked over and tapped its hips so the little island girl would dance.
    “This is great,” he said, completely amused. He watched her plop herself down on one of the quilts on the floor, tucking her feet back beside her. She patted the spot next to her.  
    “Come sit with me,” she said, grinning at the look on his face.  
    Hell yes, indeed.  
    She reached over and switched on the heater and the lamp and then snuggled over to Scott to stay warm while the heater warmed up. He was tempted to go turn that thing off so she’d need to stay that close. But then again, where’s the challenge in that?
    “I really did have fun tonight,” she said. “Thanks for taking me out. I think that restaurant was probably too expensive for what you should have spent on me.”  
    “Ha. The look on your face was worth it. But that wasn’t the point, though,” Scott said confidently. “That place is unique and strange. It was an obvious choice for you.”
    She smacked his shoulder. “Don’t call me strange, even if I am.”
    “Strange is a good thing.” He knew she wouldn’t want to be called beautiful again. Strange was the best compliment he could give. Impressing her was harder with this alternative set of rules. He was starting to catch on, though. He knew she liked to be the one in control. “Am I allowed another try at that kiss yet?”
    “Yes, but give me your hand. You obviously need a little help with this.” She giggled at the eye roll he gave her, and he gave her his hand in spite of the suggestion that his kissing was less than stellar. He’d had no complaints before.  
    Cassie moved so that her legs were crooked up over his