The Lost Tycoon by Melody Anne Read Free Book Online

first time they’d met. If not more.
    Only this time, she wasn’t afraid.
    Running a hand through the escaped tendrils of her damp hair, Misty was suddenly self-conscious about the way she was dressed. She looked down to see dirt-caked hands and grass stains on her clothes. It shouldn’t matter — but somehow it did.
    Walking up to her, Bryson didn’t say a word, his eyes intense, a smile flitting across his lips. Misty wondered whether she would find her voice in the next few moments, before the situation became any more awkward.
    “What are you doing here?” she finally asked, her voice a bit too breathy.
    He seemed to be taking his sweet time answering, and Misty was feeling a whole new kind of heat creeping down her neck. Her stomach tensed. How it was that she felt any kind of attraction toward this man? Men weren’t trustworthy. Not even this special agent who’d saved her from Jesse — for now.
    He wasn’t here on a social call. This would be business. That’s all the two of them had together. Even if he were making a social call, it wouldn’t matter. She wasn’t interested in a relationship — she just wanted to live her life without drama. Without men.
    Someday, that might be possible.
    “My supervisor sent me. We’ve gathered all the witnesses and I’ve now been reassigned to you,” he finally replied as he squatted down, putting himself at eye level with her, and making her feel at a huge disadvantage.
    The surge of disappointment from his answer irritated her.
    Of course he was here on business. She’d already known that. It changed nothing. She’d just been telling herself that they would never be anything to each other but casual acquaintances. When this was all over, she would never see him again.
    The clothes he was wearing weren’t bought at a cheap department store, and so, even if she had been interested in dating, he was way beyond her league. This man wouldn’t be seen out socially with a woman like her. It just didn’t happen.
    She stood up slowly, feeling uncomfortable remaining on her knees. “What happened to Agent Benson?”
    “He’s been assigned to another case.”
    “What if I don’t want to change agents?” she challenged him, her bravery rising as she faced him. She had managed to get the upper hand on him once, she remembered with some pleasure.
    “Then I’d have to say, ‘Tough,’ Misty.” His smile turning up a notch, making her take a cautious step backward as her hand lifted again and she wiped the sweat from her brow.
    Great! Now she was going to have a streak of mud on her forehead. This just kept getting better by the second.
    “Well, I could say, ‘Tough,’ when you ask me questions.” Feeling at a disadvantage, she was consequently acting slightly immature.
    His smile grew even bigger, and he winked. “I have ways of making a witness talk.”
    “I guess that just makes you special ,” she quipped, hating the way he was perfectly unaffected by her stubbornness. She could sense her own irritation growing by leaps and bounds.
    He leaned forward, invading her personal bubble. “I could show you exactly how special I am,” he whispered.
    Whoa! That was definitely not professional. What was he trying to do now? Seduce her into talking, giving him what he wanted, obviously. She just needed to remember that’s all this was about — her testimony.
    She finally broke the long silence that followed. “Um…it’s getting pretty hot out here. I was just finishing up,” she said. Better just to let him win their verbal battle.
    “Great. I’m a bit warm myself.” He stood up and invited himself to join her. She wasn’t sure how she felt about that, but for some reason she couldn’t seem to tell him to go away.
    “I really have a lot to do…”
    “How about we start this conversation again?” he asked with a killer smile. “I’m in town working, and thought I’d stop by. It’s been a long drive, and my throat is parched.”
    Misty stood