Long Simmering Spring

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Book: Long Simmering Spring by Elisabeth Barrett Read Free Book Online
Authors: Elisabeth Barrett
Tags: Suspense, Romance, Contemporary
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CHAPTER 8
    “Finalize March insurance forms,” Julie muttered to herself as she stood in her bedroom the following night before jotting the words down on a little pad on her dresser. And her latest shipment of prescription pads had been misplaced. “Reorder prescription pads,” she said, jotting that down, too.
    It’s Saturday. Stop thinking about work, she ordered herself, pacing back and forth in front of her dresser to try to relieve the stress. Her long, flowy pants flipped around her legs as she walked. Back and forth, flip and flop.
    She was driving herself crazy. It was just a date, for God’s sake!
    “Check bandage supply.” Then she groaned, and in an uncharacteristically acrobatic maneuver, she vaulted backward onto her bedspread. She simply had to put herself in a different mindset. Think about Cole. Embrace the fun.
    But her nipples hardening brought a different set of distractions.
    “Oh, good grief.”
    God, she was pathetic! With a sigh, she propped herself up on her elbows. She didn’t want to want him so much—truly, she didn’t. It was making everything that much harder, because the more she thought about him and not her work, the guiltier she felt.
    Standing, she plucked her house keys from her dresser and threw those into her evening bag. At that moment, the doorbell rang.
    “That man has a sixth sense,” Julie muttered, sweeping up her clutch from her vanity stool.
    “I’m coming,” she called as she walked down the stairs to the front door. She opened the door to darkness. “Whoops,” Julie said, flicking on the porch light. “Sorry about that.”
    The dim bulb came on, illuminating Cole standing on the stoop. He was wearing gray slacks and a slim, blue button-down shirt that was almost the same color as his eyes. The shirt skimmed over the surface of his shoulders and chest, hinting at the power that lay beneath.
    For once, his black hair was swept off his face. It looked good. With his hair out of his eyes, his piercing, inquisitive gaze came into sharp focus. And then it was the easiest thing in the world to simply forget about her to-do list and her practice, because the man was gorgeous.
    She swallowed before speaking. “Hi.”
    Cole just grinned and gave her an appraising glance. “You look great,” he said. “Shall we?” He reached out his hand to her.
    Without any hesitation, she put her hand into his. Immediately, his large hand engulfed her smaller one with a firm pressure. Tucking her purse under her arm, she grabbed the doorknob and pulled the front door shut, hearing it click.
    “All set? Let’s go.” Cole led her down the stairs to his waiting car, a black Dodge Charger. He opened the passenger door for her and then walked around the front of the car to the driver’s side, giving her a prime view of his profile that almost took her breath away.
    “Where are we going?” Julie asked after Cole lowered himself into the driver’s seat and buckled his seat belt.
    He looked over at her. “I thought we’d head to New Bedford. There’s a little Italian restaurant I haven’t been to in a long time. What do you think?”
    “Italian sounds great,” Julie responded.
    “Glad you approve.” He smiled as he turned the key in the ignition. The car roared to life, and soon they were speeding away from Star Harbor.
    As Julie seldom got out of town, getting off the Cape would be a treat. Even better, they’d be away from prying eyes. At least being grist for the Star Harbor gossip mill wouldn’t be on the menu this evening. It was a good move on Cole’s part, and Julie finally found herself relaxing. But only fractionally, because she still had to deal with her unbelievable attraction to the man sitting right next to her. An attraction she was becoming increasingly hard-pressed to control.
    Cole angled his head toward her, still keeping his eyes on the road. “You okay?” he asked.
    “Yes,” she said. “I’m—glad we’re doing this.”
    “We could have

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