The Inn at Ocean's Edge by Coble Colleen

Author:Coble, Colleen [Coble, Colleen]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Tags: ebook
Publisher: Thomas Nelson
Published: 2015-01-01T08:00:00+00:00

TWENTY-ONE

The warm sand baked the soles of Claire’s bare feet. Ric—or more likely the waitstaff—had thought of everything for the picnic, right down to the red-and-white checkered tablecloth she spread out on the flat rock. The basket contained thick roast beef sandwiches, potato salad, coleslaw, apple chips, and blueberry pie.

“I didn’t get much breakfast, and I’m ready for lunch.” She sat across the tablecloth from Ric and dug into the food with gusto.

The roast beef was tender, and the horseradish had a pleasant bite on her tongue. She eyed Ric, who was staring at her with an intense gaze that made her squirm. She left the last bite of the blueberry pie on her plate. “I’m done. What a great lunch, though. Blueberry pie is my favorite.”

“I tried to pick things I knew you would like.” He took her plate and ate the last of her pie, his gaze on her face the whole time.

She found his expression a little creepy. It was way too proprietorial, like a shark looking at dinner. She curled her fingers into the warm sand to ground herself and took strength from it. She needed to get this over with so she could relax. She reached for her satchel. “Did you review those figures I gave you the other night?”

“I did.” He reached over and twirled a lock of her hair around his finger. “You are most beautiful today, my dear.” His voice was husky. “I have been looking forward to this time alone.”

“Um, Ric. I really want to hammer out an agreement between our companies. Were you in favor of the dollar amount?”

His hand left her hair and stroked down her arm in a long, sensuous stroke. “Your skin is so soft.” Leaning over, he pressed his lips to her neck.

His hot breath wafted over her face and neck. She froze as she evaluated her options. He’d brought her out here for something very different than talking about the merger. If she rebuffed his advances, would he walk away from the deal?

As his lips moved closer to her face, she suppressed a shudder. Putting her hand on his chest, she twisted her face away. “Don’t, Ric. This is business.”

“One can mix business and pleasure. It’s the best kind of merger.” His thick voice was muffled by another attempt to pull her closer.

She scrambled back away from him on the tablecloth. “I’m not interested in that kind of merger, Ric.”

He made another grab at her arm, but she managed to get to her feet. She snatched up her satchel and held it across her chest. “Let’s talk business, please.”

He got up and planted his feet wide. His nostrils flared as he looked her over. “I find I am not much interested in discussing the business merger with a woman as cold as you.”

His stance with his arms crossed over his chest told her all she needed to know. “Then I suggest we get back.” She didn’t wait for an answer but bent over to put everything away.

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