Free Seduced and Enchanted by Stephanie Julian Page B

what’s going on. Right now. You can’t drop hints like that then expect me to say, ‘Sure, I’ll just twiddle my thumbs until my godmothers come home.’”
    Even as worried as he was, Rio grinned. He knew that look on her face. He’d seen her use it on an unruly preschooler in story time yesterday. Two seconds of that look and the kid had settled down like someone had flicked a switch.
    Turned out Sal wasn’t immune either.
    “Now, Rosie,” Sal held out his hands in front of him, palms up, “there’s no need to get testy.”
    “Then I suggest you start explaining.” Rosie lifted her delicate chin in the air and raised her brows. “Now.”
    Damn, if he hadn’t been in love with the woman already, that look would have sealed the deal. He didn’t know many people who would take on Sal, much less a woman who’d only just met him, who’d only just discovered that the fairy stories she read to her preschoolers happened to be real.
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    Sal’s deer-in-the-headlights expression made Rio laugh. In fact, he laughed so hard his stomach hurt. Doubled over on the chair, he caught the sharp-eyed look Rosie was now giving him and laughed even harder.
    “Oh babe,” he said between gasps, “I’m not laughing at you. I’ve just never seen anyone take on Sal and win. This is classic.”
    “Yeah, well, you won’t be laughing when her godmothers get hold of you, Rio.” Sal just shook his head. “You’re not going to be able to charm your way around those women.”
    “My godmothers are the sweetest women in the world.” Rosie shook her head, glancing back and forth between the two of them. “I don’t know where you got the idea they’re these evil creatures who are going to lop off your head.”
    When Rio’s laughing jag finally abated, he got up, walked around the table and kneeled in front of her. With his hands on her knees, he looked straight into her eyes and said, “There’s no way they can be bad if they raised you to be this sweet.”
    Her smile should be considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World, Rio decided. It was sweet and playful and a little sad and so hot all at the same time. When she leaned forward to kiss him, still smiling, he swore he felt sparks crackle between them.
    “Ah Christ, Rio,” Sal groused, shaking his head. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
    “Just spit it out, Sal.” Rio stood, pulling over an empty chair so he could sit next to Rosie. “Tell us what’s going on. If her godmothers want to blame someone, I’ll make sure it’s not you.”
    Sal eyed him through slitted lids. “All right, son. You asked for it.” Then he turned to Rosie and his expression softened as he sighed. “Honey, do you have any memories of your parents? Any at all?”
    Carefully pulling her hands out of her pockets, Rosie slid them down her thighs until they connected with Rio’s. Lacing their fingers together, she held on. “No. I was only a baby when they died.”
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    “You were five,” Sal said. “You only looked like you were six or seven months old.”
    At Rosie’s shocked gasp, Sal scrubbed a hand across his jaw. “Tinia’s teat, I wish your godmothers were here.”
    “Well, they’re not, so just keep going, Sal,” Rio said.
    “Actually, yes, we are,” came a female voice from behind.
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Chapter Seven
    A tingle racing up her spine, Rosie swiveled toward the sound of her godmother Lora’s voice to find Lora, Fanny and Vivian standing in the entrance to Sal’s kitchen.
    When she was younger, Rosie had assumed they were sisters, they looked so much alike. It was only later that she’d learned they weren’t, though they all had the same coppery brown hair, leaf green eyes and slim builds. Facially, they looked nothing alike.
    Lora’s features were sharp and pointed, giving her an inquisitive expression. Vivian’s features were soft and rounded and her constant smile never failed to make others