Free I'm All Yours by Vanessa Devereaux Page B

humiliating her.”
    Kyle didn’t respond, pressed the end call button and let the phone fall to the floor. He glanced over at the red velvet box that housed the engagement ring he had bought to be ready to ask Evie to be his wife and now this…
    Nope, it couldn’t be true. Evie’s feelings for him had been real , but why had she hired a PI? Bile rose in his stomach. Bob was right. Why else would a reporter send a PI to locate his mother? He’d been played , and worse yet, the world was going to find out about his mother because he’d fallen for an obvious femme- fetale.
    He leaned over and grabbed the phoned, punching the numbers of her cell phone, hardly seeing them through the tears that were forming in his eyes.
    “Hi , Kyle.”
    “Evie, why did you do it?”
    “Do what?”
    “My mother, why did you hire a PI to find where she was?”
    There was silence.
    “I’m sorry. I know I shouldn’t have , but…”
    “But what , Evi e? Was this all a set up for me? Was Ms. Sutton even in on it? Pairing us up , you sleeping with me, telling me you loved me when all you wanted to do was find my mother?”
    “Kyle, no, and how dare you accuse me of doing such a despicable thing ? ”
    “You were right , Evie . W e don’t have a thing in common because you’re a career - minded, selfish bitch.”
    He stabbed at the phone, ending the call , but then he shook so hard it dropped to the floor.
    He loved Evie . H e’d trusted her , and now his world was falling apart.
    * ***
    Sadie paced up and down her office. She only had herself to blame for this . She should have intervened and forced Kyle to tell Evie about his mother before he’d purchased that engagement ring. Wh at a horrible misunderstanding between two perfectly matched people.
    “Sadie, I see that trouble is brewing.”
    Sadie turned around to see Nadine standing in the doorway. She’d forgotten to turn off her witch ’ s globe when she’d decided to check on Kyle and Evie. Here in plain view were the two of them, bot h sitting on beds , heads in their hands , and Evie sobbing.
    “It’s just temporary,” said Sadie.
    “Perhaps these two aren’t meant to be together after all. And I did warn you about intervening. That’s why we don’t use potion s and spells in the Department of Love.”
    Sadie slumped down on t he chair. Maybe Nadine was spot on . N o , no, in her bones she felt right about this pair.
    “I’m not wrong,” sai d Sadie. “And please just let me put a thought into her head so these two can talk things out.”
    Nadine didn’t respond.
    “Please,” said Sadie. “If I’m wrong then you can take away Perfect Pairing from me and report me to the Counsel.”
    “Just this once , and if it doesn’t work, that’s it.”
    Sadie nodded, hoping she was right. She pulled out her mixing dish, a bottle of potion 46 and poured in three drops before circling her hands over the silver bowl.
     
     

Chapter Twelve
     
    Evie knew that wasn’t the real Kyle she’d come to know and love. She’d tried calling him back to explain the whole horrible misunderstanding , but for the next two hours all she got was his voicemail.
    At first she thought it was hopeless, that Kyle would never believe her intentions weren’t to hurt him or his mother. But then a strange feeling had washed over her. She needed to straighten things out in person. S he ’d booked herself on the next flight to Missoula , telling her producer that she was needed there on urgent family business.
    Luckily the plane was able to land before the snow began moving into the area , but it was a slow taxi ride to the condos were Kyle was living while he was filming.
    * ***
    Evie was the last person Kyle expected , or for that matter, wanted , to see when he arrived back from the set the following evening. However, s he look ed gorgeous in her coat, its fake fur - edged hood rimming that lovely face of hers.
    “I’m sorry,” she said. “Please let me explain the real reason I