The Fifth Season by Julie Korzenko Read Free Book Online Page B

Stone.
    “He left,” Tilly said. Emma raised her brows at the obvious bitter edge to the woman’s words.
    “Really?” A stab of disappointment lodging in Emma’s chest. “Where’d he go?”
    “I dunno. One minute he was here the next he was gone. Still want to eat?”
    “Of course,” she answered. Tilly shook her head in disgust and returned to the kitchen. Emma knew she needed to deal with the chef’s attitude, but there always seemed to be something more pressing to resolve. She’d admired Stone’s deft handling of the difficult situation earlier and wondered how he’d learned such diplomacy?
    The table was lavishly adorned with the best silverware and finest china. A bottle of wine cooled in an ice bucket, and Emma walked over to pour herself a glass.
    As she placed her hand around the neck of the bottle an arm reached around from behind, taking the bottle from her grasp. Woodsy aftershave signaled the arrival of Stone. He took hold of the wine glass with his other hand, pinning her between his body and the table. Emma was trapped.
    The warmth of his chest pressed against her back igniting every nerve with sparks of energy until her entire system hummed in anticipation.
    She spun around within the circle of his arms and gasped in surprise, her anger fading beneath shock.
    The only familiar feature on the face before her was a set of icy blue eyes warming to a deep azure.

 
     
    Chapter Four
     
     
    “You shaved.” An uncomfortable pang constricted Emma’s heart. He’d done it. With one swipe of the blade, Stone Connor had flicked off the scab of solitude and opened her soul to a longing she’d never dared contemplate.
    “Yeah, don’t make a big deal of it. I’m not real happy right now.”
    “But you look great,” she said, trying desperately to control the frenzied rhythm of her pulse. He’d been roughly attractive before; but now, without all the facial hair masking his chiseled features, Stone Connor was downright gorgeous. The vulnerability hidden smartly behind cynical eyes undid her, luring her into an alien place.
    Emma studied his face, tracing a finger down the right side of his cheekbone to a strong, square jaw. He tensed and pulled her hand away.
    She shouldn’t have touched him, but her impulses refused to be disregarded. “Sorry.”
    “I figured I’d better look the part of an expensive resort owner and not a mountain man.”
    “I see,” Emma said, a little disappointed. Ridiculous, she silently chided herself. It’s not like he’d do something like this for me. Curbing her bubbling emotions, she remembered the way he’d gazed at her wrapped in the towel. Attraction, in the physical sense, didn’t equal the heartrending sensation rapidly seizing her soul.
    “Want some wine?” He stepped back, a cold draft snaked its way up her arm, replacing the warm tingle of his skin.
    “Yes, please. I’ll just slip inside and inform Tilly we’re ready to eat.”
    “Why not wait a few minutes,” he said, startling her. “I’d like to talk to you.”
    Emma nodded and took a seat at the table. He smiled, displaying a sexy dimple that snagged her attention.
    “What? Am I bleeding?”
    “No. I just hadn’t expected that.” She pointed to his cheek.
    “What?”
    “That dimple.”
    He frowned, the sudden warmth in his eyes fading. “I’d forgotten,” he said.
    Emma looked at her hands, twisting a napkin between her fingers. Forgotten? How did a person forget their own face?
    “What do you want to talk about?”
    “Your salary.”
    She reached up and gripped the stem of her wine glass. Talk about forgetting. “I don’t have one,” she said.
    “That’s what the accounting reports indicate, and I’d like to change that.” Stone sat back, sipping his wine. His eyes locked onto hers. She ignored the desire that began twirling in her chest instead focusing on this latest obstacle.
    “I don’t want a salary.”
    “I’m not leaving you River Run which means I need to pay