That First Kiss by J. C. Valentine Read Free Book Online Page A

seat.
                  “Fine.”
                  “Fine!” She saw his leg stretch out, his foot seeking the edge of the chair, and rather than allowing him to have it, she grabbed the back and dragged it toward the door with her. “Would you like another chair?” she asked a woman who stopped with her powdered doughnut halfway to her lips to look at her with a slightly fearful expression.
                  “Um, sure?”
                  Piper slid the chair under the table with more control than she was feeling and darted out the door, but not before she took the time to flip Tate Larson the bird.
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     

 
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
    7
     
    “Forget something?”
                  Piper looked up to find Poppy standing in the doorway. After getting fired, Piper decided the least she could do before she went on a Ben and Jerry’s binge was stop back at the office, clock out and inform Mr. Sinclair that she wouldn’t be back. Plus, she had to return all those fancy tech gadgets she hadn’t gotten to use yet.
                  “Nope.” She sighed. “Just dropping in to say goodbye.” She smiled grimly.
                  “What?” Poppy stood there, shocked. “You mean Felix let you go?”
                  “No, not Felix. The other one.” By the look on her face, Piper didn’t need to explain.
                  “Oh, you mean him.” Poppy waved her concern away, slanting a look at her that said she thought it was utter nonsense. “Don’t listen to anything he says. Tate is all hot air.”
                  “He’s my boss.”
                  “No, he’s your second boss,” Poppy clarified.
                  Piper recalled Felix saying just that earlier, but still she was unsure. “But a boss is a boss, right? I mean, one call from Mr. Larson and Mr. Sinclair will let me go anyway.”
                  Poppy shook her head emphatically as she stepped deeper into the room. “Between you and me, Felix is at his wit’s end looking for someone who can fill this position. If a person can last the day, he’s willing to overlook everything else. Tate is like a spoiled teenager. He barks loud enough, he gets his way. He needs someone who isn’t afraid to stand up to him.”
                  “And what if he bites?” Piper had met plenty of dogs with a loud enough bark to scare half the neighborhood away. She was leery, but never afraid, because she recognized their reaction as nothing more than fear of someone getting too close. Was that Tate’s problem? Was he afraid of her? The idea was intriguing. It made her tempted to test her theory, but just the thought of subjecting herself to more of his nasty demeanor was enough to make her think twice.
                  “Trust me, Tate Larson is all bark. When you get to know him, he’s just a big teddy bear,” she assured.
                  Piper scoffed openly. “Right, a teddy bear that will rip my head off in a blink for his personal enjoyment.”
                  “He’s really not that bad,” Poppy insisted. “Trust me. Go back to that diner, march up to him and tell him to go stuff himself. Don’t let him chase you away. Everyone runs from him and that’s why he thinks he can keep doing what he does. He needs someone willing to get in his face and refuse to back down.”
                  “I don’t know if I can do that,” Piper muttered. She wasn’t much for confrontation and he would probably just fire her again anyway. It would be like adding insult to injury and she was not a glutton for punishment.
                  “You can.” Slinging an arm around her shoulders, Poppy pulled her toward the door. “Besides, you promised to go to lunch with me today.”
                  “I forgot my