The CEO Daddy Next Door by Karen Booth

Author:Karen Booth
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Harlequin
Published: 2016-02-22T16:00:00+00:00

Eleven

Marcus might have wished Ashley a good night’s rest, but he’d had nothing of the sort. If he was torn over how he felt about her before, he was even more conflicted now. The adrenaline rush of the fire, coupled with missing Lila, all while perseverating on the image of Ashley in his pajamas, had left him restless all night.

Yes, Ashley had created the situation that put Lila, his sister and the entire building in danger last night. He’d told her dozens of times that her contractor was reckless and irresponsible and she’d refused to listen. But then again...he couldn’t fathom her leaving them on the project if she’d had any idea what would happen.

He’d seen it the night they went out to dinner. She wasn’t self-centered, nor was she dumb. Carefree and audacious? Yes. Brazenly negligent? No. Did that leave her as the victim? Probably. Which was precisely why he couldn’t let her go to a hotel last night, even when it meant subjecting himself to the physically arduous proximity of being around a woman he knew he was falling in love with, even when he’d sworn he wouldn’t.

Realizing he’d claimed as much rest as he could possibly get, he climbed out of bed and took a shower. Getting into the office early was the best way to deal with the way she made him feel. When he’d given her his pajamas last night, he’d been fighting every urge imaginable—to take her in his arms, kiss her, admit to panicking the night of the premiere and ask for a second chance. To make love to her, if only to be able to stop the talking, the endless back and forth, and physically express how he felt. He might not be able to put his feelings into words or coherent thought, but he was fairly certain he could put them into action.

Last night, she was stuck in this unthinkable situation and had been so vulnerable, but still remained strong. How she’d kept from truly breaking down was beyond him. There had been shaky moments, there had been tears, but that was it. Had she been putting on a good face for him? Or had he actually managed to comfort her?

The rattle of dishes and closing of cabinet doors came from the kitchen. Better to get used to running into his new roommate now, rather than avoiding the situation. He sauntered down the hall but wasn’t ready for the vision that greeted him—Ashley on her tiptoes in nothing more than the shirt from his pajamas, searching through the kitchen cabinets.

He coughed, partly to get her attention, partly to keep himself from walking up behind her and snaking his arms around her waist. He did have a good ninety minutes until his sister expected him in the office. They could accomplish a lot in that much time. “Good morning.”

She dropped back down to bare feet and turned. Her hair was a sexy mess. She didn’t have on a lick of makeup—still beautiful, but in an entirely different way than he was used to.

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