The Playboy by Carly Phillips Read Free Book Online Page A

recent marriage.”
    He rolled his eyes. Rick knew his mother didn’t believe the gossip, but the story had obviously already spread. A glimpse at the other end of the aisle told him Lisa was just where he figured she’d be, lying in wait and no doubt trying to figure out who he was with. Rick needed to give Lisa a firm and final reason to believe he didn’t return her interest. At the same time, he needed to provide his mother with a female to focus on instead of the hoards who drove him crazy.
    “I appreciate you holding dinner, Mom. I’ll be there in . . .” He glanced at his watch, calculating how much time they needed to finish up. “About half an hour. Oh, and I’m bringing a guest.”
    Beside him, Kendall shook her head. “You don’t need to do that,” she whispered. “I’ll be fine.”
    He waved away her objections and caught the end of his mother’s question.
    “Female company, Mom, and you’ll be pleasantly surprised.” Before his mother could begin the interrogation, he hit the STOP button, flipped his phone closed, and rebuckled it into the holder.
    “Now that was stupid.” Kendall glared at him.
    He stepped closer, mindful Lisa was snooping around the corner. “A little ungrateful considering I saved you from boiled hot dogs and dust for dinner.”
    “You just got through telling me your mother is out to marry you off. Everyone in town probably thinks we’ve done the deed, and now you’re bringing me home for dinner? Are you insane?”
    “Probably.” He met Kendall’s shocked gaze and treated her to a grin. “I have a plan. A quid pro quo of sorts and you need to hear me out before you say no.”
    A hint of wariness flashed in her eyes, making him think she’d nix the idea before he got the chance to propose it.
    She perched her hands on her hips and faced him. “What makes you think I’d say no?” she asked, surprising him with a challenge instead.
    He figured she was out to prove she could handle anything he dished out and after that kiss, he wouldn’t mind proving the same thing.
    “So what kind of exchange did you have in mind?” The wariness in her voice hadn’t changed.
    If he wanted a chance of convincing her to go along with his plan, he needed to alter her attitude. He propped an arm on the glass door behind her head, bracketing her between his body and the frozen food case in an intimate position. One any observer couldn’t mistake, and one meant to lower her defenses and make her his. “I’m proposing a housecleaning of sorts.” His voice dropped a deeper octave, spurred by her nearness and the sizzling awareness raging through his veins. “I’ll clean your house if you’ll clean mine.”
    She shook her head and light laughter bubbled from deep inside her. “You aren’t talking literally.”
    “About your house I am. My house I’m not.” On impulse, he reached out and grabbed a strand of her hair and rubbed it between his thumb and forefinger, liking the sensual feel of the strands against his skin. “I’ll help you get your aunt’s place in shape to sell, and you’ll help me get my house in order. My personal house.”
    What more could he say by way of explanation?
Be my lover, Kendall?
His skin prickled with awareness and his body trembled. In words and fact, all felt right.
She
felt right. So how could he offer a proposal that sounded so hard and callous?
    “Quit beating around the bush and tell me what you have in mind.”
    Drawing a deep breath, he opted for the unvarnished truth. “I want you to pretend to be my lover. Keep the tongues in town wagging and the women off my doorstep.” His eyes bore into hers. “What do you say?”
    A nervous tick pulled at her mouth. “What I said before. You’re crazy,” she said as her huge eyes stared into his.
    Was it his imagination or did hurt flash in the green depths before she masked the emotion. “Not crazy,” he corrected. “I’m just a man who’s had it with unwanted female attention. I also